A lobbyist is seeking more than $492,000 in legal fees after courts rejected a lawsuit filed against him by former Florida Office of Financial Regulation Commissioner Ronald Rubin.
Attorneys for lobbyist R. Paul Mitchell filed a motion last week in Leon County Circuit Court seeking $492,311 in legal fees and $35,639 in costs related to such things as depositions.
The motion came after the 1st District Court of Appeal in September upheld a Leon County circuit judge’s rejection of a lawsuit stemming from Rubin’s firing in 2019.
In the lawsuit, Rubin accused Mitchell of tortious interference, defamation and violation of the Florida Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organization, or RICO, Act.
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Mitchell, a lobbyist with The Southern Group, an influential Tallahassee firm, had ties to state Chief Financial Officer Jimmy Patronis, who nominated Rubin to become commissioner of the Office of Financial Regulation.
The state Financial Services Commission, made up of Gov. Ron DeSantis and Cabinet members, hired Rubin in early 2019. But Rubin was suspended in May 2019 after an employee filed a complaint about alleged sexual harassment.
That prompted an inspector general’s investigation and, ultimately, Rubin’s firing. Rubin disputed the sexual harassment accusations, which he contends Mitchell used to help get him fired after a falling-out about issues such as the hiring of a general counsel for the agency.
Leon County Circuit Judge John Cooper last year granted summary judgment to Mitchell, prompting Rubin to appeal. The motion filed last week includes fees in the circuit-court case and the appeal.
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