Here’s one way to win your court case in Florida: change the laws in your favor. By Geniusofdespair

Lobbyists' current vogue in Tallahassee: Make the legislature quickly enact a law to help along your client's issue that is in litigation, before the Court makes a decision. As reported in a Miami Herald Sunday ("Legislature Proves Friendlier Than Courts"):

"During this year’s legislative session in Tallahassee, litigants from large corporations to local governments are pushing changes to state laws that would give them an automatic trump card in pending lawsuits.

Florida’s Constitution, which mandates a separation of powers between the judicial and legislative branches, frowns upon using the lawmaking process to preempt active legal cases. But lawmakers have ignored several warnings from state analysts pointing out unconstitutional proposals, and the litigation-tinged measures have sailed through the chambers with little debate."

One measure that's rolling through the legislature and wasn't even mentioned in this Herald report but has significant impacts, both locally and statewide:

Miami Rep. Lopez-Cantera's bill to affect the ongoing Port of Miami “Deep Dredge” case brought by environmental groups and Fisher Island residents. That case has an August hearing date but the bill seeks to speed things up even more and could curtail the rights of citizens challenging port dredge projects statewide.

The statewide implications were reported by Bruce Ritchie in The Florida Current.

Final votes in the Florida House and Senate on the Lopez-Cantera bill are set for as early as this morning.

Contact Lopez-Cantera (850) 488-4202 and tell him to withdraw his amendment. That is, if he cares about following the Florida Constitution and all that jazz.