Chiquita Paramilitary Verdict Hangs Over Choice-of-Law Clash

Federal appeals judges are questioning whether jurors received faulty instructions, potentially undermining a first-of-its-kind jury verdict against Chiquita’s funding of paramilitaries in Colombia.

Eleventh Circuit Judges Robert J. Luck and Andrew L. Brasher—both appointees of Donald Trump—raised concerns during an oral argument in Miami on Friday. They said transcripts indicated that federal common law rules might have been applied instead of Florida rules when jurors signed on to a landmark $38.3 million verdict against the international food giant in mid-2024.

The trial judge had to fill in gaps when applying Colombian law to the case. But if he swapped in ...