Joe Eagleton Presents on High-Profile Florida Supreme Court Victory

Brannock Berman & Seider shareholder Joe Eagleton was a featured panelist at the 2025 Reporters’ Workshop presented by the Florida Supreme Court and the Florida Bar’s Media & Communications Law Committee.

Each year, the Reporters’ Workshop presents a case study of a high-profile lawsuit. This year, the Workshop focused on a case involving “Marsy’s Law,” a state constitutional amendment adopted by Florida voters to provide additional rights for crime victims. The case involved whether Marsy’s Law includes a right for police officers involved in deadly shootings to remain anonymous.  Brannock Berman & Seider represented the City of Tallahassee on appeal in the First District Court of Appeal and the Florida Supreme Court, arguing that Marsy’s Law did not shield the identity of two Tallahassee police officers who shot and killed suspects in the line of duty.  The Supreme Court ultimately agreed with the City’s arguments in a unanimous decision that received a lot of media attention.

At the Workshop, which was attended by hundreds of people across the state, Joe discussed the complexities of the case, including the City’s arguments for Supreme Court jurisdiction, the competing legal arguments, and why the Supreme Court ruled the way it did.  He also leaned on his prior work as a Supreme Court law clerk to describe what goes on behind-the-scenes when the Court is considering a case like this.  Joe was joined on the panel by Mark Caramanica of Thomas & LoCicero, who represented a coalition of media entities seeking the officers’ names, and Stephen Webster of Webster & Baptiste, who represented the officers and their union.  Daniela Abratt-Cohen of Thomas & LoCicero moderated the panel.