State of Florida v. Zoltan Barati and Motorola, Inc.

I respectfully dissent. Because the Attorney General’s dismissal of this action deprived the trial court of jurisdiction, we should grant the writ of prohibition.

The action here was filed in 2009. Under section 68.084(2)(a), Florida Statutes (2009), the Legislature has granted the Attorney General the sole power to dismiss a qui tam action: “The department [of Legal Affairs] may voluntarily dismiss the action notwithstanding the objections of the [relator].” (Emphasis added.) There is no time limitation or other substantive limitation whatsoever on the Attorney General’s authority to control…