Florida Statutes 526.311 – Enforcement; civil penalties; injunctive relief
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Terms Used In Florida Statutes 526.311
- Complaint: A written statement by the plaintiff stating the wrongs allegedly committed by the defendant.
- Jurisdiction: (1) The legal authority of a court to hear and decide a case. Concurrent jurisdiction exists when two courts have simultaneous responsibility for the same case. (2) The geographic area over which the court has authority to decide cases.
- person: includes individuals, children, firms, associations, joint adventures, partnerships, estates, trusts, business trusts, syndicates, fiduciaries, corporations, and all other groups or combinations. See Florida Statutes 1.01
- Subpoena: A command to a witness to appear and give testimony.
- writing: includes handwriting, printing, typewriting, and all other methods and means of forming letters and characters upon paper, stone, wood, or other materials. See Florida Statutes 1.01
(1) A person who knowingly violates this act shall be subject to a civil penalty in the Class III category pursuant to s. 570.971 for each violation. Each day that a violation of this act occurs shall be considered a separate violation, but the civil penalty may not exceed $250,000. Such a person shall also be liable for attorney fees and shall be subject to an action for injunctive relief.
(2) The Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services shall investigate any complaints regarding violations of this act and may request in writing the production of documents and records as part of its investigation of a complaint. If the person upon whom such request was made fails to produce the documents or records within 30 days after the date of the request, the department, through the department’s office of general counsel, may issue and serve a subpoena to compel the production of such documents and records. If any person shall refuse to comply with a subpoena issued under this section, the department may petition a court of competent jurisdiction to enforce the subpoena and assess such sanctions as the court may direct. Refiners shall afford the department reasonable access to the refiners’ posted terminal price. Any records, documents, papers, maps, books, tapes, photographs, files, sound recordings, or other business material, regardless of form or characteristics, obtained by the department are confidential and exempt from the provisions of s. 119.07(1) and Fla. Const. Art. I, § 24(a) while the investigation is pending. At the conclusion of an investigation, any matter determined by the department or by a judicial or administrative body, federal or state, to be a trade secret or proprietary confidential business information held by the department pursuant to such investigation shall be considered confidential and exempt from the provisions of s. 119.07(1) and Fla. Const. Art. I, § 24(a). Such materials may be used in any administrative or judicial proceeding so long as the confidential or proprietary nature of the material is maintained.
(3) The civil penalty imposed under this section may be assessed and recovered in a civil action brought by the department in any court of competent jurisdiction. If the department prevails in a civil action, the court may award it reasonable attorneys’ fees as it deems appropriate. All funds recovered by the department shall be deposited into the General Inspection Trust Fund.