Miami Real Estate Litigation Lawyer

When a Miami property dispute threatens title, a closing, a deposit, rent or control of a building, a real estate litigation lawyer reads the recorded documents and the contract before anyone sues or answers. Miami real estate litigation attorney Aaron Resnick of Law Offices of Aaron Resnick handles those disputes for owners, buyers, investors and co-owners.

What Kinds of Real Estate Disputes End Up in Court in Florida?

Most start with a document: a deed or title defect, a purchase contract that fell apart before closing, a deposit held in escrow, a lease, a broker's commission claim, or co-owners who no longer agree. Florida circuit courts hear all actions involving the title and boundaries of real property, so the proper court is known from the start.

The firm's work covers title and boundary disputes, including clouded title and defective conveyances; real estate contract breaches, failed closings and deposit fights; real estate joint venture disputes between partners in a development or holding entity; partition between co-owners; claims against a real estate broker; commercial real estate and lease disputes; and condominium assessment disputes between owners and associations. Each has its own page below.

What Real Estate Cases Has Aaron Resnick Handled?

In 2012 Aaron Resnick represented four NFL players who sued the developer of the W South Beach condo hotel to recover their deposits, and The New York Times quoted him on condo hotel investments. In 2016 he was one of the lead attorneys in condominium fee class actions filed across Florida.

In 2020 the Icon Brickell Tower 1 association settled the fee class action he co-led for $762,500.

How Long Do I Have to Sue Over a Florida Real Estate Contract?

For many Florida contract claims, the limit is five years when the contract is founded on a written instrument and four years when it is not, under chapter 95 of the Florida Statutes. An action for specific performance, the remedy that asks the court to order the deal completed, has a one year limit, so the remedy sets the deadline.

The clock is not the only deadline: the contract itself may require written notice, a cure period or mediation before suit, and missing those steps can put the claim at risk.

A purchase contract, its addenda and the escrow instructions are read together. The analysis starts with the date the claim arose, not the date someone first complained. Aaron Resnick determines that date from the documents.

What Is a Lis Pendens, and How Long Does It Last in Florida?

A lis pendens is the recorded notice that a lawsuit involves the property. Under chapter 48 of the Florida Statutes, it generally expires one year after the action begins unless the claim is founded on a duly recorded instrument or a lien under part I of chapter 713, or the court extends it for good cause.

Time the case is pending in an appellate court is not counted in that year.

Because a recorded lis pendens clouds title, it can stall a sale or a refinancing while the case is pending. Whether to record a lis pendens, challenge one or ask the court to discharge it by bond is a decision Aaron Resnick makes in the first days of the case, not the last.

Can a Co-Owner Force the Sale of Miami Property?

Yes, when the co-owners hold title in their own names. Florida lets any joint tenant or tenant in common file a partition action against the other owners (chapter 64 of the Florida Statutes), and when the land cannot be divided without prejudice to the owners, the court may order it sold at public auction.

When an LLC or a partnership holds title, the members or partners do not own the land directly, so the company's agreement governs the exit and the dispute is an ownership dispute first. The firm handles both kinds. See What to do if a co-owner wants to sell and you do not and Real estate joint venture disputes.

What Should I Bring to a First Meeting About a Property Dispute?

The recorded deed, the title commitment or policy, the purchase contract and every addendum, the closing statement, escrow and deposit records, leases, any notice sent or received, and the complaint or lis pendens if one has been filed. A short timeline of who promised what, and when, helps Aaron Resnick organize the documents and deadlines.

Where Are Miami Property Records Kept and Cases Filed?

Recorded deeds, mortgages, liens and lis pendens in Miami-Dade County are public in the Official Records of the Miami-Dade Clerk of the Court and Comptroller, and Aaron Resnick's review starts there. A case within circuit court jurisdiction is filed in the Eleventh Judicial Circuit in Miami-Dade County, the Seventeenth in Broward County or the Fifteenth in Palm Beach County.

The New York Times, The Real Deal and the Miami Herald have covered the firm's property cases; the press page collects that coverage.

Talk to Aaron

Tell us what happened and get a straight read on where you stand.

Property Disputes Aaron Resnick Handles

Property disputes in Miami arrive at every stage of a deal and every stage of ownership.

• Title and deed disputes, including clouded title and defective conveyances.
• Real estate joint venture disputes between partners in a development or holding entity.
• Condominium assessment disputes between owners and associations.
• Condominium and association representation across Florida.
• Property and co-ownership disputes, including partition.
• Claims against a real estate broker for commissions or misrepresentation.
• Selling commercial property and the disputes that follow a failed closing.
• Lease review for overpaid rent tax.

More Property Matters

• Filing a complaint against a realtor in Florida.
• Self storage facility legal services across Florida.

Questions Property Owners Ask

• Your options in a Florida commercial lease dispute.
• What to do if a co-owner wants to sell and you do not.
• When a condo special assessment can be challenged.

More answers are in Ask Aaron.

Send the parties, the problem and the next date; the firm reviews every inquiry and tells you whether it can help.

We Don't Make Promises. We Have Results to Prove It.

Aaron Resnick has handled business disputes in Miami since 1998 and is a fourth generation Miami resident. He works hands-on on every case; the client gets Aaron on every major litigation issue, not a junior partner. The Law Offices of Aaron Resnick represents property owners, buyers, investors and co-owners in Miami Dade, Broward and Palm Beach counties and across Florida in real estate litigation and property disputes. Call 305-672-7495 or request a consultation.

This page provides general information and is not legal advice. Prior results do not guarantee or predict a similar outcome.