Florida Chief Financial Officer (CFO) Blaise Ingoglia and the Florida Department of Financial Services (DFS) have filed an Amicus Curiae brief with the Third District Court of Appeal in support of the District Board of Trustees of Miami-Dade College (MDC) in the ongoing legal battle over the land conveyance for the proposed Donald J. Trump Presidential Library.
The brief, filed on Monday, November 17, 2025, backs MDC in its appeal against a temporary injunction that halted the transfer of a 2.63-acre parcel of land in downtown Miami to the State of Florida.
The injunction was issued following a lawsuit filed by Appellee Dr. Marvin Dunn, which alleged a violation of Florida’s Sunshine Act (public meeting laws) during the conveyance process.
CFO Ingoglia characterized the underlying lawsuit as a “blatant political attack against our President and a weaponization of Florida’s court system.”
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“As Chief Financial Officer of Florida, and a member of the Florida Cabinet, it is my duty to protect the financial interests of our state, the taxpayers, and the publicly funded Miami-Dade College,” Ingoglia stated. He affirmed the purpose of the brief was to ensure that “the state of Florida’s operational and financial interests are properly represented to the court in this case.”
The DFS argues that the temporary injunction causes monetary harm to the state, citing increased operational expenditures for MDC to maintain the downtown property, which would otherwise be transferred and become the responsibility of private ownership. This continued ownership, the brief contends, requires the CFO’s office to expend resources reviewing invoices and issuing payments for a property that should be out of the state’s financial purview.
The Amicus brief centers its legal argument on two main points:
Breaking Precedent on Sunshine Act Compliance: The brief argues that the temporary injunction requires public meeting notices to include “specific and detailed subject matter” beyond the “reasonable notice” contemplated by the Sunshine Act. Ingoglia’s office argues this ruling “breaks from established precedent” and would result in increased costs, decreased efficiency, and confusion for government entities across the state, potentially leading to increased litigation.
Failure to Meet Injunction Requirements: The DFS asserts that the Appellee (Dr. Dunn) failed to meet the required elements for a temporary injunction. Specifically, they argue the injunction does not serve the public interest—as it causes harm to the state’s finances and operational efficiency—and that an adequate remedy at law already exists under the Sunshine Act, which allows for wrongful actions to be declared void ab initio (from the beginning) later in the case.
The brief warns that if left to stand, the temporary injunction “will inevitably require frequent rescheduling or postponement of specific topics” for state boards and commissions, creating a bureaucratic logjam.
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