Overview
Abby Corbett is a Shareholder in the Litigation Department. Her national legal practice encompasses a wide variety of complex commercial litigation matters, including defending and prosecuting class actions in both federal and state court. Abby also regularly advises local governments, as well as other public and private entities, on constitutional law and other government affairs issues, including the legal considerations and policy options associated with efforts to adapt to the effects of climate change.
In her commercial litigation practice, Abby has extensive experience in antitrust class actions, complex contract disputes, deceptive and unfair trade practice cases, defamation and libel lawsuits, RICO actions, and False Claims Act cases. She has also served as primary defense counsel in class actions involving the Electronic Funds Transfer Act and the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act. And she has experience successfully litigating appeals in federal and state appellate courts.
Before joining the Firm, Abby served as a law clerk for the Honorable Paul C. Huck of the United States District Court, Southern District of Florida. Prior to her clerkship, she was an associate in the Washington, D.C. office of an international law firm.
Representative Experience
- Serves as the City of Coral Gables’ Special Counsel on First Amendment matters.
- Obtained a complete dismissal with prejudice on all counts, which was affirmed on appeal, for a large national bank in a class action lawsuit alleging tens of millions of dollars in allegedly improperly charged overdraft fees.
- As lead counsel in a set of related federal class action lawsuits, obtained a favorable settlement for the largest commercial bank based in Florida.
- Obtained a $151,250,000 recovery on behalf of a class of indirect purchasers in antitrust litigation against the country’s leading manufacturers of polyurethane foam involving a cross-border price fixing and market allocation conspiracy. The amount represents the fourth largest antitrust recovery ever on behalf of an indirect purchaser class.
- Obtained multimillion dollar recovery for a class of 33 Florida counties in an action to recover unpaid Tourist Development Taxes from various online travel companies (Expedia, Priceline, Travelocity, Orbitz, etc).
- Obtained favorable settlement, and complete summary judgment on all of Defendant’s counterclaims, on behalf of multinational petroleum coke and energy trading company in litigation against two of the company’s former executives and their co-conspirators arising out of international embezzlement and product diversion scheme.
- Drafted successful memoranda of law leading to permanent injunction in trade dress action on behalf of internationally renowned manufacturer of high-end men’s shirts against infringing competitor.
- Assisted with negotiating and drafting of the NFL-NBC Sunday Night Football contract.
- Obtained dismissal with prejudice of First Amendment-barred contract case against historic Washington, DC church.
Judicial Clerkships
- Law Clerk, Honorable Paul C. Huck, United States District Court for the Southern District of Florida
Professional & Community Involvement
- SAVE Dade
- Board of Directors and Treasurer, 2009-2013 and 2020-2022
- SAVE Action PAC, Endorsement Committee, 2017-Present
- Endorsement Committee Chair, 2020
- The Florida Bar, Diversity and Inclusion Committee Member, 2015-2018
- Chattahoochee Hills Charter School, Board of Directors, 2016-2018
- Student Animal Legal Defense Fund, Georgetown Co-President, 2004-2006
- Human Rights Campaign, McCleary Law Fellow, 2005-2006
Recognition
- Benchmark Litigation, “40 & Under Hot List,” 2018-2021
- AV Rated by Martindale-Hubbell
- Pro Bono Honor Roll, United States District & Bankruptcy Courts of the Southern District of Florida, 2016
Publications & Presentations
Events:
New Technologies: Legal Issues with Automatic License Plate Readers
Florida Association of Police Attorneys, Inc.|October 2023
Events:
Understanding the Risk and Rewards of Social Media Communications for Local Government
Miami-Dade County Commission on Ethics and Public Trust |May 2023
Events:
Symposium to look at 'Social Media and the 1st Amendment'
Western Michigan University Cooley Law School |July 2022
Events:
Getting Ahead of the ‘Curve’: Opportunities and Challenges in Preparing for Sea Level Rise
Florida Association of County Attorneys|December 2020
Events:
Social Media and Government Communications: Legal and Ethical Considerations
Miami-Dade County - Commission on Ethics & Public Trust|September 2020
Events:
Virtual Webinar - Land Use: Climate Adaptation Measures
International Municipal Lawyers Association (IMLA) Mid-Year Seminar|April 2020
Events:
Climate Change: Legal Impacts and Opportunities
Meritas Annual Meeting|May 2018
Land Development News Update, Publications:
What's Developing? | Winter 2018
Stearns Weaver Miller News Update|March 2018
Newsroom
In the Media:
Fla. High Court To Hear Challenge To State Gun Law
Law360|September 2021
In the Media:
Lawsuits Could Spark ‘Existential Crisis’ in Cities Trying to Survive Climate Change
Miami Herald|December 2019
In the Media:
Judge Won’t Dismiss Lawsuits Brought By Cities Against State Restrictions On Gun Laws
Miami Herald|October 2018
Firm Announcements:
Stearns Weaver Miller Lawyers Named Among Benchmark Litigation’s 2018 “Under 40 Hot List”
July 2018
In the Media:
10 Fla. Cities Join Challenge To Limits On Local Gun Control
Law360|May 2018
In the Media:
Fla. Cities Challenge State Gun Safety Law Preemption
Law360|April 2018
In the Media:
The Inside Story of Miami's New Climate Tax
Earther|December 2017
In the Media:
Fresh From Deluge, Miami Weighs Bonds to Gird for Climate Change
Bloomberg Markets|November 2017