A pro bono case that temporarily cost Coffey Burlington partner Paul J. Schwiep his seat on the Miami-Dade Citizens’ Independent Transportation Trust has proved worth the trouble, as a Tallahassee judge found that Miami-Dade County’s plans to build a highway into the Everglades are not viable.

After a July 2019 trial, Administrative Judge Suzanne Van Wyk found the highway would damage the environment, risk contaminating drinking water and destroy wetlands.