Two high-profile Miami architecture firms are duking it out in federal court over the design of the nearly completed Regalia, Daily Business Review reported.
Sieger Suarez Architectural Partnership Inc. has accused Arquitectonica International Corp. in a $70 million lawsuit of lifting plans and drawings for the luxury condo. Named as co-defendant in the lawsuit in U.S. District Court in Miami is Paul Murphy, principal of Regalia Holdings Inc., the Review said. The suit seeks $70 million in profits from the sale of Regalia condo units.
Sieger Suarez, which has its name on the Portofino in South Beach, was hired to design the building in 2000 by developers Abraham Cohen and Jerry Kaufman, the Review said.
Ultimately, the firm was replaced and a $150,000 invoice was never paid, according to the lawsuit.
“The lawsuit has no merit,” Arquitectonica attorney John Shubin, a partner with Shubin & Bass in Miami, told the paper. “It should have been filed years ago, and it is not only untimely but there is absolutely no similarity between the project that is out of the ground and the project that Mr. Sieger prepared and conceived.” [Daily Business Review] –Emily Schmall