Florida Real Estate Litigation Attorney

The Andrew M. Schwartz Legal Team represents property owners, investors, landlords, and co-owners in real estate disputes across Boca Raton, West Palm Beach, Fort Lauderdale, and the rest of Palm Beach and Broward Counties. The firm also acts for clients in New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut who hold South Florida property and need a lawyer on the ground. Real estate disputes here tend to be high-value and fast-moving, which is why a Florida real estate litigation attorney needs to know both the statutes and the local courts.

Property cases in Florida run on short, unforgiving clocks. A claim to enforce a written contract can be brought within five years, but a suit seeking specific performance of a purchase contract has only one year. Miss that window and the remedy that would actually deliver the property may be gone, even if a damages claim survives. Choosing the right claim and filing it on time often decides the outcome before any witness testifies.

Most of these disputes fall into a few patterns: a closing that collapsed and one side wants the deal enforced, co-owners who cannot agree to hold or sell, a cloud on title that blocks a sale or refinance, or a tenant relationship that has broken down. Each has its own statute, its own court procedure, and its own strategic choices about speed and leverage.

Why Choose the Andrew M. Schwartz Legal Team for Real Estate Litigation

The Andrew M. Schwartz Legal Team is a business and real estate litigation firm serving Palm Beach County, Broward County, and South Florida generally. Andrew M. Schwartz has spent 37 years in litigation and has practiced in Florida since being admitted to The Florida Bar in 1989. He earned his undergraduate degree from Emory University in 1986 and his law degree from the University of Miami in 1989.

Sundeep Nath, Senior Counsel, is a Northwestern-trained litigator with years of experience handling business and real estate cases in both state and federal courts. That federal experience matters in South Florida, where the Southern District of Florida sits in Fort Lauderdale and West Palm Beach and some property and business disputes end up there.

The results speak to the work. After a five-day bench trial in Broward County Circuit Court, the court issued a 32-page final judgment awarding the firm’s client specific performance of a commercial real estate contract. Getting a court to order a seller to actually convey the property, rather than simply pay damages, is among the harder outcomes in real estate litigation, and it depends on careful preparation of the contract record and the parties’ course of dealing.

The firm practices as a true legal team, so everyone working on a matter knows the file. Clients get a strict 24 hour return call policy if the attorneys are in court. The firm handles local court appearances for out of state clients, accepts referrals from other attorneys, and is experienced in mediation and arbitration as well as the courtroom. The aim is a resolution that fits the client’s goals and budget rather than a drawn-out fight.

Types of Real Estate Disputes the Firm Litigates

• Failed Closings and Purchase Contract Disputes: Buyer and seller disagreements over financing contingencies, inspection periods, deposits, and who defaulted. Remedies include specific performance, damages, and rescission, each with a different limitations period.
• Partition Actions: A co-owner who wants out can ask the court to divide the property or order it sold and the proceeds split. These arise among former business partners, siblings who inherited property, unmarried couples, and investors in shared deals.
• Quiet Title and Title Disputes: Suits to clear competing ownership claims, cancel a questionable deed or other instrument, or remove a cloud that blocks a sale or loan.
• Commercial Lease Disputes: Defaults, disputes over operating expenses and personal guaranties, and wrongful termination claims between landlords and business tenants.
• Landlord and Tenant Matters: Nonpayment, lease violations, and terminations for both residential and commercial properties, governed by strict notice requirements.
• Fraud and Misrepresentation in Transactions: Claims that a seller concealed defects or a partner diverted funds in a property deal, along with accounting and recovery of the money.
• Property Held Through Business Entities: Disputes where the real estate sits inside an LLC or corporation and the owners are deadlocked, which can overlap with judicial dissolution.
• Emergency Injunctions: Temporary and permanent injunctive relief to stop a sale, transfer, or encumbrance while the case is pending.

What to Do When a Property Dispute Is Heading Toward Court

Start by preserving documents: the signed contract and every amendment, the deed, closing statements, emails and texts with the other side, leases, notices, and anything showing payments or deposits. Real estate cases are won on paper, and the exact wording of an agreement frequently controls. Do not delete messages, even ones you think hurt you.

Next, identify which clock applies to you. A claim founded on a written instrument generally has five years, an oral or implied contract claim has four, an action to rescind has four, a fraud claim has four years from discovery with an outer limit of 12 years, and a specific performance action has one year. A negligence claim, for example against a professional, now has two years for causes of action arising after March 24, 2023. Because the one-year specific performance period is the shortest, a buyer or seller who wants the deal enforced should speak to a lawyer promptly rather than waiting to see whether negotiations resolve.

Be careful with notices. In residential tenancy matters, a landlord must give the right written notice in the right form. For unpaid rent, the tenant has three days, excluding weekends and court-observed holidays, after written demand before the landlord may terminate. For curable non-rent violations, the notice must give seven days to cure, and for incurable ones a seven-day notice to vacate may be used. Accepting partial rent after serving a notice does not by itself waive the landlord’s right to proceed, but it must be handled correctly with a receipt, a registry deposit, or a fresh notice. Errors here get evictions dismissed and restart the process.

Where the case is filed depends on the amount and the relief. Disputes above the county court limit go to circuit court, which in Palm Beach County means the Fifteenth Judicial Circuit and in Broward County the Seventeenth Judicial Circuit. Real estate suits are generally filed in the county where the property sits. Broward also has a complex business division that handles larger commercial litigation, which can be relevant when a property dispute involves a business entity. Federal court, the Southern District of Florida, comes into play for certain diversity and federal claims.

If the other side is about to sell, encumber, or strip value from the property, ask early about emergency relief. A court can issue a temporary injunction to hold the status quo, and a recorded notice of the pending suit can put buyers and lenders on notice. Waiting until a sale closes can turn a title fight into a money chase.

Partition, Quiet Title, and Co-Ownership Conflicts

Partition is a creature of Florida’s chancery jurisdiction. The complaint must describe the land, name the owners and where they live, and state each owner’s share. If the court orders partition, it appoints three commissioners, chosen by agreement of the parties if they can agree. If the commissioners report that the land cannot be divided without prejudice to the owners, the court may order a public sale to the highest bidder and divide the proceeds by ownership interest. A sale on credit is possible for good cause, but at least one-third of the price must be paid down unless everyone consents otherwise.

Family property gets special treatment. Florida’s Uniform Partition of Heirs Property Act applies to partition actions filed on or after July 1, 2020, and covers property held by cotenants where at least one acquired title from a relative and certain further conditions are met, such as relatives holding twenty percent or more of the interests. Where it applies, the court must follow the Act’s procedures, which favor partition in kind and give cotenants a chance to buy out a seller. This changes strategy considerably for siblings or heirs, so identifying whether the property qualifies is one of the first questions.

Quiet title actions resolve competing claims. Florida courts can determine title when two or more people claim the same land and can cancel a conveyance or other evidence of title held by someone who is not the rightful owner. The plaintiff generally must trace title back at least seven years unless the court orders otherwise, and the suit may be filed in any county where part of the land lies. Where the claim rests on a fraudulent attempted conveyance, a summary procedure is available and the court is directed to advance the case on its calendar.

Adverse possession comes up in these cases too. Florida bars a suit to recover real property unless the claimant or a predecessor was in possession within seven years before filing. A person asserting adverse possession without color of title must show seven years of continuous possession under a claim of title, and must include a full legal description of the property in the required return. Under color of title, the instrument must be recorded in the county where the land lies. These rules are technical, and the burden falls on the person claiming the property.

Frequently Asked Questions About Real Estate Litigation in Florida

How long do I have to sue over a breach of a real estate contract in Florida?

For a contract in writing, the period is five years. For an oral or implied agreement it is four years. A suit asking the court to order specific performance, meaning to force the sale to go through, has only one year, so that deadline usually controls if you want the property rather than money.

What is specific performance and when can I get it?

Specific performance is a court order requiring a party to carry out the contract, typically to convey the property. Courts treat real estate as unique, which is why it is available for land sale contracts, but you must show a valid contract, your own readiness to perform, and the other side’s failure to do so. The firm obtained such a judgment after a five-day bench trial in Broward County.

Can one co-owner force the sale of a jointly owned property?

Generally, yes. A co-owner can file a partition action. The court may divide the land or, if division is impractical, order it sold and split the proceeds. Different rules apply to heirs property, which can give other family members a right to buy out the one who wants to sell.

What is quiet title and when do I need it?

It is a lawsuit asking a court to declare who owns the property and to cancel competing claims or instruments. You may need it when a deed is disputed, a prior owner or stranger asserts an interest, or a recorded document clouds your ability to sell or finance.

Which court handles a real estate lawsuit in Palm Beach or Broward County?

Larger cases are heard in circuit court, the Fifteenth Judicial Circuit for Palm Beach County and the Seventeenth for Broward County. Smaller disputes within the county court limit may be heard there. Broward also has a complex business division for larger commercial cases.

Can I stop a sale of the property while the lawsuit is pending?

Often, yes. Courts can issue temporary injunctions to preserve the status quo, and the firm regularly seeks early or emergency relief in disputes where property or assets are at risk of being moved or sold.

How do I fight a tenant who has stopped paying rent without messing up the process?

Serve the proper written demand and wait the required three days, not counting weekends or court-observed holidays, before moving to terminate. Be careful with partial payments, since how you handle them determines whether the notice remains valid.

My business partner and I own property through an LLC and cannot agree. Is that a real estate case or a business case?

Often both. If members are deadlocked and irreparable injury to the company is threatened, or assets are being misused, a Florida court can dissolve the LLC, appoint a receiver or custodian, or order a buyout of a member’s interest. If the operating agreement has a deadlock sale provision, that may take priority if properly initiated.

I live in New York or New Jersey. Do I have to come to Florida for hearings?

Not for most of them. The firm handles local appearances and keeps out of state clients informed throughout, and also works with referring attorneys from other states.

Is mediation an option before trial?

Frequently. Many real estate disputes settle through negotiation, mediation, or arbitration, and the firm is experienced in all three. Settlement can be especially valuable when the goal is closing a sale or separating co-owners rather than winning a judgment.

Can a lawsuit be filed in a county other than where I live?

Suits over land are generally brought where the property is located, so a Palm Beach County parcel is litigated in Palm Beach County regardless of where the owner lives. A quiet title action may be filed in any county where part of the land lies.

What if my claim is based on someone’s professional mistake in my transaction?

Professional malpractice claims other than medical have a two-year period that runs from when the problem was or should have been discovered with due diligence. Because that period is short, consult a lawyer quickly if a closing agent, surveyor, or similar professional may have erred.

Serving Real Estate Litigation Clients Across Palm Beach and Broward Counties

The firm’s work starts in Boca Raton and extends through Palm Beach County, including West Palm Beach, Delray Beach, Boynton Beach, Lake Worth Beach, Wellington, Royal Palm Beach, Jupiter, Palm Beach Gardens, Riviera Beach, Belle Glade, and Greenacres. Moving south into Broward County, we represent owners and investors in Fort Lauderdale, Deerfield Beach, Pompano Beach, Coral Springs, Parkland, Plantation, Hollywood, Davie, Sunrise, Weston, and Coconut Creek.

Cases from these communities are heard in the Fifteenth Judicial Circuit and the Seventeenth Judicial Circuit, and in federal court in West Palm Beach and Fort Lauderdale when jurisdiction requires. We also serve clients from New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut who own homes, rental property, or interests in commercial real estate here and need Florida counsel to handle the proceedings.

Talk With a Florida Real Estate Litigation Lawyer Today

If a closing has fallen apart, a co-owner is blocking a decision, a title problem is holding up a sale, or a lease dispute is escalating, the deadlines are already running. Speak with a Florida real estate litigation lawyer at the Andrew M. Schwartz Legal Team to review your documents and options. Call the firm to schedule a consultation.