Supreme Court disciplines nine Florida lawyers

Historic City News received the following summary of disciplinary orders issued against members of The Florida Bar between September 18, 2025, to November 25, 2025.  The Florida Supreme Court in recent court disciplined nine attorneys, suspending eight, and reprimanding one.  Court orders are not final until time expires to file a rehearing motion and, if filed, determined. The filing of such a motion does not alter the effective date of the discipline. Disbarred lawyers may not re-apply for admission for five years. They are required to go through an extensive process that includes a rigorous background check and retaking the Bar exam.

The Florida Supreme Court, The Florida Bar, and its Division of Lawyer Regulation are charged with administering a statewide disciplinary system to enforce Supreme Court rules of professional conduct for the more than 114,000 members of The Florida Bar.  Key discipline case files that are public record are posted to attorneys’ individual online Florida Bar profiles. Information on the discipline system and how to file a complaint is available at www.floridabar.org/attorneydiscipline

David Casals, 110 E. Broward Blvd., Floor 17, Fort Lauderdale, suspended due to a felony conviction effective 30 days following an October 1 court order. (Admitted to Practice: 2000) Casals was charged by information with Trafficking in cocaine, Delivery of cocaine, and Introduction of contraband into a County Detention Facility. On September 5, 2025, Casals was convicted after a jury trial of Possession of Cocaine, a third-degree felony, and Introduction of Contraband into a County Detention Facility, a first-degree misdemeanor. Casals was sentenced to 364 days in the Palm Beach County Jail, followed by a three-year term of supervised probation with other conditions. Casals has filed a notice of appeal. The Supreme Court of Florida has ordered that a referee recommend the appropriate disciplinary sanction for Casal’s criminal misconduct. (Case No. SC2025-1538)

Billy-Joe Hoot Crawford, 748 Jenks Ave., Panama City, felony suspension effective 30 days following a November 3 court order. (Admitted to Practice: 1998) On January 30, 2024, Crawford was convicted of one count of Interference with Custody, a third-degree felony, in violation of F.S. §787.03, and one count of Tampering with a Witness, Victim or Informant, a third-degree felony, in violation of F.S. §914.22. (Case No. SC2025-1715)

Jeffrey Rice Hussey, 853 Victoria Terrace, Altamonte Springs, suspended effective 30 days following November 12 court order. (Admitted to Practice: 1990) Hussey failed to respond to an official Bar inquiry and the Bar filed a Petition for Contempt and Order to Show Cause with The Florida Supreme Court. The Court issued an Order to Show Cause to which Hussey failed to respond. (Case No. SC2025-1424)

Larry Elliot Klayman, 7050 W. Palmetto Park Rd., Boca Raton, suspended for two years effective 30 days following a November 5 court order. (Admitted to Practice: 1977) In one matter, Klayman engaged in a conflict of interest when he represented plaintiffs in three separate cases against Judicial Watch, an organization he founded and for which he previously served as general counsel, without seeking conflict waivers. In another matter, he expressed to his client that his personal feelings for her rendered him unable to properly represent her. However, he failed to withdraw from her case even after being terminated, and he publicized the case against her wishes. (Case No. SC2023-1219)

Joan Marie Powers, 950 S Pine Island Rd., Suite 150A, Plantation, suspended for 20 days effective 30 days following a November 13 court order. (Admitted to Practice: 1985) In two separate matters, Powers filed appearances in immigration proceedings while her clients were being held at Krome Detention Center. The appearances specifically indicated that Powers would represent her clients in all proceedings, where Powers claimed her services were only meant for the cases while at Krome. When each client was released from Krome, Powers took no further action on their cases but failed to withdraw. In one matter, after failing to appear for a removal hearing, that client was ordered deported. In the other, a one-year deadline to file a petition for asylum was missed. (Case No. SC2025-0703)

Marcy S. Resnik, 12 SE 7th St., Suite. 602, Fort Lauderdale, suspended for 10 days and ordered to attend Ethics School effective November 21, 2025. (Admitted to Practice: 1988) Resnik entered a plea of no contest to the misdemeanor charge of Obstruction/Resisting an Officer without Violence. The charge was based upon Resnik’s advice to a former client that she should not discuss a certain matter with police because she had previously signed a settlement agreement that contained a confidentiality and non-disparagement clause. (Case No. SC2025-1661)

Eduardo Rodriguez, 1615 Edgewater Dr., Suite. 250, Orlando, public reprimand administered by personal appearance before the Board of Governors of The Florida Bar, completion of Ethics School, completion of Professionalism Workshop, and completion of an additional continuing legal education course, effective immediately following a November 20 court order. (Admitted to Practice: 1999) As the supervising partner of his law firm, Rodriguez at times permitted retainer and contingency fee contracts and other legal documents to be notarized by qualified law firm employees without the notaries having witnessed the execution of the documents, nor were the client/signors present, as required by Florida law regarding notarizations. (Case No. SC2024-1273)

Jennifer Anne Tanck, 360 Central Ave., Suite 800, St. Petersburg, suspended effective 30 days following an October 8 order. (Admitted to Practice: 2008) Tanck failed to respond to an official Bar inquiry and the Bar filed a Petition for Contempt and Order to Show Cause with The Florida Supreme Court. The Court issued an Order to Show Cause to which Tanck failed to respond. (Case No. SC2025-0790)

Capp P. Taylor, P.O. Box 1770, Dandridge, TN, suspended for two years, nunc pro tunc to April 29, 2024. (Admitted to Practice: 1979) This is a reciprocal discipline action based on a two-year suspension in Tennessee. Taylor was previously suspended for six months by the Supreme Court of Tennessee in 2017. Following that order, Taylor failed to inform his clients of his suspension, nor did he return any of the clients’ property, or notify them that he could only continue representing their interests in Federal Employee Compensation Act (FECA) cases as a non-lawyer. (Case No. SC2025-0664)