Numerous Jacksonville attorneys were recently recognized by Super Lawyers and Florida Trend Magazine’s Legal Elite. Both publications are respected for the peer review formulas used in selecting their honorees and those honorees will be listed in the Daily Record over the coming weeks.
Staff Writer
A number of Jacksonville lawyers received a pat on the back from two respected publications that evaluate performance through peer review processes, while a top peer review service received some bad news from the Florida Bar Association.
Florida Trend magazine publishes its list of “Legal Elite” annually and works with the Florida Bar to gain peer feedback on the legal community. Super Lawyers magazine is distributed to all attorneys in each state, lead corporate counsel of Russell 3000 companies and ABA-approved law school libraries.
It uses a formula that recognizes multiple votes from the nominee’s firm, lawyers that vote for each other and places more value on nominations from outside a nominee’s firm.
“It’s one of the highest honors you can receive in the profession,” said Howard Coker of Coker Schickel Sorenson & Posgay, who was selected as one of the top 100 lawyers in Florida by Super Lawyers magazine.
“It says that your fellow lawyers and peers have a high regard for your legal ability and integrity. We are particularly proud that all named members of the firm were named Super Lawyer. I consider it a high honor,” he said.
Lynn Pappas of Pappas, Metcalf, Jenks & Miller was selected as one of the top 50 women lawyers in Florida by Super Lawyers.
“It’s always rewarding to be recognized by your peers,” said Pappas. “Using a statewide peer review process, it just isn’t the local experiences that are being reported. It means you’ve had good experience with people from across the state who have thought enough of your work to nominate you.”
Most polled on the credibility of the awards felt peer review was the best method.
“It is an honor to be selected, particularly since our legal peers make the selections,” said Niels Murphy of Murphy & Anderson, who was recognized by Super Lawyers magazine in business litigation.
“The selection process seems to be conducted with integrity, as it does not require any payment or advertising fee. Now I just need to convince my wife of my apparent superness,” said Murphy.
The Jacksonville Bar Association President Courtney Grimm of the Bedell Firm also recognized the peer review process.
“It is quite an honor, and very special, to be named to Florida Super Lawyers as you are selected through peer nominations,” said Grimm, “and to me there is no better recommendation than from your peers.”
Peer review was also on the mind of the Florida Bar recently. Its board of governors approved a recommendation of its Communications Committee at its July 23 meeting to prohibit the listing of any ratings on the expanded Bar member profile pages on the Bar’s website.
The Bar had previously allowed only the Martindale-Hubbell rating on the profile pages, but received a request from Avvo.com to allow members to list the ratings of the lawyer review website also. Instead of taking on the responsibility of policing each rating system that requested to be included on the Bar website, the Bar decided to not allow any on the profile pages.
“For the non-lawyer looking for a lawyer, I think Martindale- Hubbell is still the gold standard,” said Joseph Milton, of Milton, Leach, Whitman, D’Andrea & Eslinger, who was selected to the Super Lawyers list. “They do a very thorough job in evaluating lawyers for the rating. They aren’t shy about telling people where they stand in the profession.”
Another lawyer recalled when Martindale-Hubbell’s “AV” rating was the golden seal of approval.
“When I was a young lawyer, Martindale-Hubbell was ‘the’ peer review standard,” said Timothy Volpe, of Volpe, Bajalia, Wickes, Rogerson & Wachs, selected to the Super Lawyers list. “There is so much more access and communication now with lawyers between the Internet, print advertising and television, that there are other tools in selecting a lawyer.”
FLORIDA SUPER LAWYERS
Top 10 Florida Super Lawyers
Henry Coxe - Bedell, Dittmar, Devault, Pillans & Coxe
Top 50 Women Florida Super Lawyers 2010
M. Lynn Pappas - Pappas Metcalf Jenks & Miller PA
Top 100 Florida Super Lawyers
Stephen Busey - Smith Hulsey & Busey
Howard Coker - Coker Schickel Sorenson & Posgay
Henry Coxe - Bedell, Dittmar, Devault, Pillans & Coxe
John DeVault - Bedell, Dittmar, Devault, Pillans & Coxe
David Wells - Gunster
JACKSONVILLE SUPER LAWYERS
Administrative Law
Patrick Coleman - GrayRobinson
T.A. (Tad) Delegal - Delegal Law Offices
Harvey Jay - Saalfield, Shad, Jay, Stokes & Inclan
John Saalfield - Saalfield, Shad, Jay, Stokes & Inclan
Alternative Dispute Resolution
Michael Dewberry - Rogers Towers
Alexandra Hedrick - Alexandra Hedrick, P.L
John Schickel - Coker, Schickel, Sorenson & Posgay
Terrance Schmidt - Bledsoe, Jacobson, Schmidt, Wright, Lang & Wilkinson
RISING STAR
Blane McCarthy - Blane McCarthy
Antitrust Litigation
Francis Marino - Holland & Knight
Appellate
Allan Brooke - Bedell, Dittmar, DeVault, Pillans & Coxe
Rebecca Creed - Creed & Gowdy
Bryan Gowdy - Creed & Gowdy
Sonya Hoener - Florida Coastal School of Law
Harvey Jay - Saalfield, Shad, Jay, Stokes & Inclan
John Mills - The Mills Firm
Michael Tanner - Tanner Bishop
Elizabeth White - Sheppard, White, Thomas & Kachergus
RISING STAR
Michael Giel - Volpe, Bajalia, Wickes, Rogerson & Wachs
Jessie Harrell - Creed & Gowdy
Stella Lane - Marks Gray
Matthew McLauchlin - Volpe, Bajalia, Wickes, Rogerson & Wachs
Cristine Russell - Rogers Towers
Stuart Williams - Tanner Bishop
Aviation
Roger Dodd - Spohrer & Dodd
Donald Maciejewski - Zisser, Robison, Brown, Nowlis, Maciejewski & Cabrey
Sean Cronin - Cronin & Maxwell
Robert Spohrer - Spohrer & Dodd
Banking
Charles Commander III - Foley & Lardner
Frederick Kent - Marks Gray, PA
Halcyon Skinner - McGuireWoods
RISING STAR
David Barrett - Fowler White Boggs
Ivan Colao - Holland & Knight
Brian Krulick - Brennan, Manna & Diamond
Bankruptcy and Creditor Debtor Rights
Richard Thames - Stutsman, Thames & Markey
Ronald Bergwerk - Attorney at Law
Stephen Busey - Smith Hulsey & Busey
Robert Hyde - Rogers Towers
John Macdonald - Akerman Senterfitt
David Otero - Akerman Senterfitt
James Post - Smith Hulsey & Busey
Harry Wilson - Smith Hulsey & Busey
RISING STAR
David Barrett - Fowler White Boggs
Leslie Dean - GrayRobinson
Amanda Rolfe - Rolfe & Lobello
Ellsworth Summers Jr. - Rogers Towers
Business litigation
Marianne Lloyd Aho - Marks Gray
Mark Alexander - Holland & Knight
Graham Allen - Rogers Towers
Thomas Bishop - Tanner Bishop
James Bledsoe - Bledsoe, Jacobson, Schmidt, Wright, Lang & Wilkinson
Stephen Busey - Smith Hulsey & Busey
Scott Cairns - McGuireWoods
Joseph Camerlengo - Camerleng & Gonzalez Law Group
Patrick Coll - Bedell, Dittmar, DeVault, Pillans & Coxe
William Cooper - Cooper, Ridge & Safi
John DeVault - Bedell, Dittmar, DeVault, Pillans & Coxe
Thomas Dearing - Fowler White Boggs
Robert Dees - Milam Howard Nicandri Dees & Gillam
Michael Dewberry - Rogers Towers
Stephen Durant - Durant &
R. H. Farnell - Bedell, Dittmar, DeVault, Pillans & Coxe
Kyle Gavin - Liles Gavin Costantino George & Dearing
Braxton Gillam - Milam Howard Nicandri Dees & Gillam
Lawrence Hamilton - Holland & Knight
Corinne Heller - Attorney at Law
Robert Hyde - Rogers Towers.
Charles Johnston - Johnston & Hammond
Lee G. Kellison - Law Office of Lee G. Kellison
William E. Kuntz - Smith Hulsey & Busey
Eric L. Leach - Milton, Leach, Whitman, D’Andrea & Eslinger
Rutledge R. Liles - Liles Gavin Costantino George & Dearing
J. Michael Lindell - Lindell & Farson PA
Harold S. Lippes - Lippes & Bryan
John B. Macdonald - Akerman Senterfitt
Francis Marino - Holland & Knight
Edward McCarthy - Rogers Towers
James W. Middleton - Rogers Towers
Christine Milton - Fidelity National Title Group
Niels Murphy - Murphy & Anderson
David Otero - Akerman Senterfitt
James Post - Smith Hulsey & Busey
Nicholas Pulignano - Marks Gray
Jeffrey Regan - Regan Zebouni & Walker
James Rinaman - Marks Gray
Lanny Russell - Smith Hulsey & Busey
Carl S. Schuler - Law Offices of Carl Scott Schuler
Richard Stoudemire - Boyd & Jenerette
Michael Tanner - Tanner Bishop
Richard R. Thames - Stutsman Thames & Markey
Warren Tripp - Bedell, Dittmar, DeVault, Pillans & Coxe
Fred Tromberg - Law Offices of Fred Tromberg
John Tucker - Foley & Lardner
Timothy Volpe - Volpe, Bajalia, Wickes, Rogerson & Wachs
Alan Wachs - Volpe, Bajalia, Wickes, Rogerson & Wachs
Gerald Weedon - Marks Gray
David Wells - Gunster
Robert Winicki - Winicki Law Firm
RISING STAR
William Adams Jr. - Gunster
Gregory Allen - Allen Dyer Doppelt Milbrath & Gilchrist
Matthew Baggett - Murphy & Anderson
David Barrett - Fowler White Boggs
James Birr - Gunster
Brad Blair - Murphy & Anderson
Sally Anne Brown - Rogers Towers
David Burns - Tanner Bishop
Christopher Cobb - Tritt Henderson
Adrienne Conrad - McGuireWoods
Kevin Cook - Bedell, Dittmar, DeVault, Pillans & Coxe
Brian Davey - St. Denis & Davey
Leslie Dean - GrayRobinson
Popham Decunto - Durant & Schoeppel
Amanda Ferrelle - Bedell, Dittmar, DeVault, Pillans & Coxe
Christopher Garrett - Rogers Towers
Christian George - Liles Gavin Costantino George & Dearing
Robert George - Liles Gavin Costantino George & Dearing
Michael Giel - Volpe, Bajalia, Wickes, Rogerson & Wachs
Javan Grant - Rogers Towers
Brian Krulick - Brennan, Manna & Diamond
Lance Lucey - Interline Brands, Inc.
Ryan Maloney - Foley & Lardner
Whitney McGuire - Gunster
Mathew McClauchlin - Volpe, Bajalia, Wickes, Rogerson & Wachs
Andrew Moritz - Citigroup
Jacob Payne - Rogers Towers
Bryan Rendzio - Tritt Henderson
Amanda Rolfe - Rolfe & Lobello
Cristine M. Russell - Rogers Towers
Adrian Rust - Rogers Towers
Jonathan Smith - Naugle & Smith
Chris Strohmenger - Rogers Towers
Ellsworth Summers - Rogers Towers
Stuart Williams - Tanner Bishop
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