David J. Abbey

Bob served as a Law Clerk to Honorable William Terrell Hodges, United States District Judge, U.S. District Court, Middle District of Florida from 1982 – 1984. From 1988 to 1998 he handled catastrophic child and infant injury cases throughout the United States and Canada. While clerking he learned of Johnson Pope’s well-known reputation for quality legal work and ended up joining the firm in April 1999. He is the author of “The Primary Carrier Caught in the Middle with Bad Fa...

Joel has over 40 years of experience in tax, business, asset protection, and estate and gift tax planning for high net worth individuals and entrepreneurs. He consults on business entities, including limited liability companies (LLCs), S corporations and limited liability partnerships (LLPs). He structures and prepares shareholder agreements, operating agreements and other business agreements. He also routinely handles sophisticated estate planning including the preparation of wills, revocabl...

Sandra Fascell Diamond is a top attorney recognized by Best Lawyers in the practice area(s) of Trusts and Estates. Sandra Fascell, who practices law in St. Petersburg, Florida, has been recognized since 2020. This recognition is based on an exhaustive peer-review survey, reflecting the high esteem in which Sandra Fascell is held by other top lawyers in the same geographic and legal practice area.

PRACTICE AREAS Real property law Estate planning Probate General commercial law Corporate law Commercial loans Real estate DISTINCTIONS AND MEMBERSHIPS Admitted to The Florida Bar – Admitted 1973 St. Petersburg Bar Association 1973, Florida, U.S. District Court, Middle District of Florida and U.S. Court of Appeals, 11th Circuit The Best Lawyers in America® for Real Estate Law, Since 2009 EDUCATION Stetson University, J.D. Harvard University, A.B. BIOGRAPHY Member, Editorial Board, S...

Rachael comes to Johnson Pope with diverse experience in employment law and trial litigation. While a student at Stetson College of Law, Rachael was a member of Stetson’s nationally recognized trial team and a member of the Stetson Law Review. Since being admitted to the Florida Bar in 2008, Rachael has represented clients in federal, state, and appellate courts on a variety of employment related matters. Rachael is an active member of the St. Petersburg Bar Association where she co-cha...

Colleen joined Johnson Pope in 2002 after practicing for five years in Chicago. Colleen practices in the areas of labor and employment law, public sector law and commercial litigation. In addition to representing employers in all aspects of employment litigation, Colleen advises clients on day to day employment and personnel policy issues. Colleen has extensive experience defending property owners from Title III ADA access cases. She also represents governmental entities not only in employmen...

Will handles a broad range of complex commercial real estate and corporate issues for his clients throughout Florida and the entire Southeast. His clients include developers, investors institutional private equity funds, EB-5 developers and funds, as well as high net worth individuals and their associated family offices. He also regularly counsels clients on corporate securities and financing related matters. Representative engagements include serving as lead counsel on the development of a 1...

William D. Bonezzi is a Shareholder as well as one of the founders of the firm. He has been a practicing attorney since 1973 and his legal career has been devoted to trial work. His competitive nature, developed in college athletics and honed in the U.S. Marine Corps where he served his country from 1965 to 1968, is ideally suited for confidently litigating the most difficult cases. Mr. Bonezzi is admitted to both the Florida and Ohio bar and currently possesses licenses to practice law in bo...

Nicholas joined Johnson Pope in 2014. Nicholas represents individuals and families with respect to estate planning, wealth preservation issues, business succession planning, state and local tax issues, the formation of businesses, and the purchases and sales of businesses. Nicholas also represents fiduciaries (personal representatives and trustees) and beneficiaries in the administration of probate estates and trusts.

Ryan is a partner in the firm’s St. Petersburg office. He is a state and federal trial lawyer as well as a certified civil court mediator. His litigation practice includes complex business disputes; construction law; corporate/partnership disputes; employment related litigation; hospitality law; probate litigation; appellate practice; and real estate law. His real estate matters encompass contract disputes, ad valorem tax challenges, commercial landlord/tenant matters and land use/zonin...