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Digna B. French
Partner
Digna French is a member of the firm’s global board and chair of the Litigation Practice Group in Florida. She has over 23 years of legal experience and focuses her practice on complex, commercial and multidistrict litigation, as well as cross-border litigation and international litigation in both state and federal courts. Digna also maintains an active appellate practice. She has specialized in defending sovereign nations and multinational corporations, including officers and directors, particularly in issues relating to expropriations and seizures, international claims, domestication of foreign judgments, and general business issues, including breach of contract, fraud, breach of fiduciary duty and interference with business advantage. Additionally, Digna has experience in issues having to do with internal and money laundering investigations and judicial proceedings as a result of the investigations.
Digna's representative clients include Petroleos de Venezuela, S.A., The Republic of Ecuador, numerous Latin American governmental entities, Florida Power and Light, a major US chemical company, international pharmaceutical companies, a tobacco company, an international cosmetics and fragrance manufacturer, a leading maker of implantable biomedical devices, a manufacturer of top-of-the-line computer devices, one of the world’s leading producers of shaving and dental care products, a national building products company, a worldwide manufacturer of HVAC products and one of the largest banks in the US.
Digna is the chair of the Litigation Practice Group in Florida, the Miami office hiring partner and co-chair of the Miami-Latin America Task Force. She served as editor for the state of Florida in the Product Liability Desk Reference (1999-2003) and authored “Economic Sanctions Imposed by the United States Against Cuba: The Thirty-Eight Year Old Embargo Culminating with the Cuban Liberty and Solidarity (Libertad) Act of 1996,” published in the University of Miami Yearbook of International Law.
- Representing a foreign sovereign in an effort to recover hundreds of millions of dollars embezzled by the owners and administrators of a foreign bank, including the successful and unique application of the federal Act of State Doctrine in Florida state court.
- Representing a state’s largest public utility in a class action involving over 4 million class members stemming from alleged damages as a result of a hurricane, including allegations of failure to properly maintain and upgrade the utility’s equipment.
- Successfully represented a major chemical manufacturer in a multidistrict litigation involving claims of drinking water contamination by perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) that resulted in serious personal injuries.
- Secured dismissal in the representation of the world’s largest operator of wind energy facilities and several of its subsidiaries in a federal class action involving claims of nuisance and negligence.
- Successfully represented a state’s largest public utility in a class action relating to certain “incentive programs” and including claims of negligence, breach of implied warranty, failure to follow building codes, vicarious liability, negligent supervision, and Florida’s Deceptive and Unfair Trade Practices Act.
- Successfully represented a foreign state-owned oil company in federal court in proceedings under 28 USC § 1782 seeking discovery from a US entity in Houston for use in legal proceedings and investigations abroad.
- Achieved successful settlement following dismissal of a complaint against a foreign entity and its US-based affiliate in federal court from allegations of false advertising by its competitors in the pet supplement industry. Among other claims, plaintiffs alleged false and misleading advertising under the Lanham Act, Florida’s Deceptive and Unfair Trade Practices Act and Florida’s misleading advertising statute.
- Successfully represented a manufacturer and distributor of beauty-related products and a distributor and specialty retailer of perfumes and fragrances in a breach of fiduciary duty and insider trading shareholders’ derivative class action.
- Successfully represented healthcare defendants to a successful settlement in claims involving Florida statutory securities fraud, fraudulent misrepresentation, negligent misrepresentation, fraudulent omissions and constructive fraud.
- Secured dismissal of claims brought by several companies and two individuals against a foreign sovereign on grounds of foreign sovereign immunity and the act-of-state doctrine.
- Secured dismissal with prejudice of claims brought against a foreign prosecutor regarding an online forensic investigation.
- Secured federal court summary judgment in the representation a foreign state-owned entity against the enforcement and collection of an international arbitration award.
- Achieved favorable settlement in the representation of officers and directors of a healthcare company against claims of breach of fiduciary duties brought by a creditors’ committee.
- Successfully represented a state’s largest public utility in an action seeking a mandatory injunction as well as claims for trespass, breach of covenants, and private nuisance.
- Successfully represented a foreign telecommunications entity in federal court in proceedings under 28 USC § 1782 seeking discovery from a US entity in New York for use in legal proceedings abroad.
- Successfully represented a foreign state-owned financial institution in federal court in proceedings under 28 USC § 1782 seeking discovery from a US entity in Florida for use in legal proceedings abroad.
- Secured the dismissal in the representation of a state’s largest public utility in a class action involving claims of negligence, negligent supervision and vicarious liability, as well as under Florida’s Deceptive and Unfair Practices Act.
- Represented a foreign sovereign in defending against the misuse of a number of patents derived from species and other genetic resources obtained from and belonging to the client.
- Represented defendants in a negligence and breach of contract matter involving significant personal injuries as an alleged result of abnormal microbial growth and exposure to harmful contaminants.
- Obtaining favorable settlements in disputes concerning breach of licensing agreements on behalf of foreign entities.
- Defended numerous product liability actions and obtained numerous dismissals and summary judgments in representation of pharmaceutical and medical device companies.
Education
- University of Miami, J.D., cum laude, Phi Delta Phi, 1998
- University of Miami, B.A., cum laude, Phi Kappa Phi, Provost Honors, 1995
Admissions
- Florida, 1998
Courts
- U.S. Ct. of App., Eleventh Circuit
- U.S. Dist. Ct., Middle Dist. of Florida
- U.S. Dist. Ct., N. Dist. of Florida
- U.S. Dist. Ct., S. Dist. of Florida
Languages
- English
- Spanish
- Recognized by Chambers USA 2024 for commercial litigation in Florida.
- Recognized by The Best Lawyers in America 2023 and 2024 for Commercial Litigation.
- Selected to Florida Trend’s Legal Elite NOTABLE Women Leaders in Law 2023.
- Selected by Daily Business Review, a Florida legal publication, to its inaugural list of 2019 Florida Trailblazers; Digna was a lead partner in a firm team that was recognized for their innovative litigation strategy in a decades-long legal saga that has spanned Miami and Ecuador.
- Recognized by Latino Leaders magazine to its 2019 Top Latino Lawyers list; Digna was selected for her leadership in the Latino community through career achievements, community involvement and a successful career path.