Stop Them from Stealing Your Business with an Orlando Tortious Interference Attorney
Tortious interference is when a third party intentionallyand without justification disrupts your contract or business relationship—poaching a client, inducing a breach, or sabotaging a deal. As an Orlando, Florida tortious interference attorney, Keough Law pursues competitors who cross that line and defends businesses wrongly accused of it.
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The fight isn't with the customer— it's with the interloper
A competitor undercutting your price is business. A competitor who uses your client list, pays someone to break a contract, or talks a key employee into walking out with your book of business is something else. That is tortious interference, and Florida law lets you go after the third party who caused it.
The claim sits alongside breach of contract, fraud, and trade-secret claims. We assess early which theory fits—and which one the other side is stretching.
- Poaching contracted clients
- Inducing a breach of contract
- Raiding key employees
- Sabotaging a pending deal
- Misusing confidential information
- Claims asserted against you
What you must prove to win
A Florida tortious interference claim has four elements. We build each one—and, on defense, look for the one that is missing.
A business relationship
An existing contract or an advantageous business relationship—not a mere hope of future deals.
Their knowledge
The defendant knew the relationship existed. You do not have to prove they read the contract word for word.
Intentional, unjustified interference
They acted on purpose, and without a privilege to compete, to disrupt that relationship.
Damages
The interference caused a measurable loss—lost profits, a broken contract, or a relationship that ended.
How interference claims are fought
Whether you are suing or being sued, these are the defenses that decide cases:
- Privilege of competition—lawful competition is not a tort
- No existing relationship, only a hope of future business
- No knowledge of the contract or relationship
- The interference was justified or privileged
- The relationship ended for independent reasons
- Damages are speculative or unproven
What a successful claim can recover
Lost profits
The money the relationship would have produced, proven with reasonable certainty—not a guess.
Consequential losses
Downstream harm caused by the interference: a lost account, a broken supply chain, a key employee gone.
Injunctive relief
A court order stopping the poaching, the solicitation, or the use of information they had no right to use.
Punitive damages
Available in egregious cases involving malice or improper means—fraud, threats, or deliberate sabotage.
Pursue the interloper—or dismantle the accusation
Interference cuts both ways. If a competitor raided your relationships, we build the claim. If you have been accused, we know how often these counts are bolted onto a contract fight to raise the temperature—and how to take them apart.
We have tried the defense side to a verdict. That is not a talking point. It is how we judge whether a claim has teeth.
Pursue
- Document the relationship & knowledge
- Seek an injunction to stop the poaching
- Prove lost profits with certainty
- Add companion fraud or contract claims
Defend
- Invoke the privilege to compete
- Attack missing elements
- Reframe as ordinary competition
- Try it when the claim overreaches
A no-liability verdict on tortious interference
We secured a no-liability verdict for a client sued for copyright infringement, tortious interference with business relationships, and trade secret misappropriation. When the claim is overpleaded, we try it. Prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome.
“Great lawyer. He helped me win my case when my old business partner took me to court. Very knowledgeable.”
Mark McCuddy
Partnership Dispute
From the raid to the remedy
Map the relationship
We identify the contract or business relationship, what the other side knew, and the improper means they used.
Preserve the proof
Emails, texts, solicitation records, and the money trail. Interference cases are won on the documents.
Demand or defend
We send a targeted demand—or move to dismantle a claim against you—before the dispute hardens.
Litigate if needed
Injunctions, damages, and trial. We have tried interference claims to a no-liability verdict.
Scoped to the interference, not the noise
Interference cases are billed hourly. Emergency injunction practice moves fast and is scoped up front. Where a demand can stop the poaching without a filing, we start there. We will tell you in the free consultation whether the facts support the claim—or whether you are looking at ordinary competition.
A boutique litigator who has tried it
You work directly with Shaun Keough. Tortious interference sits inside our business litigation and civil litigation practice, and often overlaps trade secrets and owner disputes. One lawyer, the whole board.
Tortious interference questions
What is tortious interference?
It is a civil claim against a third party who intentionally and without justification disrupts your contract or business relationship. Typical facts: a competitor poaches a client they knew was under contract, induces an employee to walk with your book of business, or sabotages a deal that was about to close. The target is the interloper—not the person who walked.
What has to be proven in Florida?
Four elements: (1) a business relationship, (2) the defendant’s knowledge of it, (3) intentional and unjustified interference, and (4) damages caused by that interference. Interfering with an existing contract is generally stronger than interfering with an at-will or prospective relationship, because Florida recognizes a privilege to compete for business that is not locked down.
Is competing for a customer illegal?
No. Lawful competition is privileged. The line is improper means—fraud, threats, defamation, misuse of confidential information, or inducing someone to break an existing contract. A competitor who undercuts your price is not a tortfeasor. A competitor who uses your client list, or who pays someone to breach, may be.
How long do I have to sue for tortious interference in Florida?
Generally four years from when the interference occurred or was discovered. Because the facts (who knew what, and when) get harder to prove as time passes, waiting is a strategic mistake even if the deadline has not run. Get the communications preserved early.
I’ve been accused of tortious interference. Should I be worried?
The claim is serious, but it is also frequently overpleaded to gain leverage in a contract or partnership fight. Many complaints skip the “unjustified” element and treat ordinary competition as a tort. We evaluate the relationship, the privilege, and the damages quickly—and we have taken an interference claim to a no-liability verdict.
Can I get an injunction to stop the poaching now?
Sometimes. If the interference is ongoing—soliciting your contracted clients, using your information, raiding employees—a temporary injunction can freeze the conduct while the damages case proceeds. Injunctions are fact-specific and move fast; call before the relationships are gone.
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