James "Jim" Guarnieri

J.D. is a business litigation attorney and trial lawyer who represents companies and individuals in a wide variety of high-stakes commercial disputes across state and federal courts in Florida. His litigation practice focuses on breach of contract claims, business torts, non-compete and restrictive covenant enforcement, trade secret misappropriation and intellectual property matters, partnership and shareholder disputes, class actions, and administrative or regulatory issues. With experience ...

Michael L. Chapman is a member of Holland & Knight's senior management team, serving as the firm's general counsel. In this role, Mr. Chapman is legal advisor to management and the firm's Directors Committee and works to ensure that the firm operates in full compliance with all legal requirements, bar ethics standards, its partnership agreement and core principles. For more than 20 years, Mr. Chapman has practiced as a commercial trial lawyer. He has extensive experience handling disputes...

Noel R. Boeke is a business lawyer who focuses on solving a wide range of business problems. He specializes in bankruptcy, creditors' rights litigation, commercial litigation, mergers and acquisitions, and documenting loan transactions. He also has experience in business contract negotiations and Uniform Commercial Code issues. Mr. Boeke has represented various types of business clients, financial institutions and other creditors, including commercial banks, private equity funds, finance subs...

Richard D. Eckhard is the head of the Tampa office real estate group. Mr Eckhard's practice focuses on office and retail real estate development, leasing, acquisition and disposition. He represents national and regional landlords and tenants in connection with office buildings, shopping centers and mixed–use properties. He also handles synthetic and leveraged leases. Mr. Eckhard is the incoming chair of The Florida Bar Real Property Leasing Committee. Since 2007, he has served as a memb...

Michelle Bartels is a partner in Cole, Scott & Kissane, P.A.’s Tampa office and a Board Certified Civil Trial Attorney. Ms. Bartels' practice focuses in the areas of catastrophic and personal injury, general civil litigation, premises liability, trucking defense, professional malpractice, security negligence, vehicle negligence, significant wrongful death, defective products, foster care lead agency and community based care defense. Ms. Bartels earned a Bachelor of Arts degree, magn...

An aggressive litigator, Karina Perez Ilić has diverse expertise in civil litigation, including premises liability, Tampa motor vehicle accidents , and catastrophic workplace accidents . She is not afraid to be a fierce advocate for clients who have been wronged or injured. A Florida native, she ventured to New Orleans to receive her bachelor’s degree in business law with a minor in French language at Tulane University. She continued her legal education in New Orleans, graduating from L...

Brent G. Steinberg is a Florida Bar board-certified appellate specialist, a distinction achieved by only 216 of the more than 100,000 members of The Florida Bar. He is recognized by Best Lawyers in the practice areas of Appellate Practice , Insurance Law, Litigation – Insurance, and Personal Injury Litigation – Plaintiffs. He handles catastrophic injury , insurance bad faith , legal malpractice, and insurance coverage cases throughout Florida and Georgia, at both the trial and app...

Brian Gaudet is a top attorney recognized by Best Lawyers in the practice area(s) of Business Organizations (including LLCs and Partnerships). Brian, who practices law in Tampa, Florida, has been recognized since 2026. This recognition is based on an exhaustive peer-review survey, reflecting the high esteem in which Brian is held by other top lawyers in the same geographic and legal practice area.

Kevin Knowlton is a top attorney recognized by Best Lawyers in the practice area(s) of Commercial Litigation and Health Care Law. Kevin, who practices law in Lakeland, Florida, has been recognized since 2025. This recognition is based on an exhaustive peer-review survey, reflecting the high esteem in which Kevin is held by other top lawyers in the same geographic and legal practice area.

Stacy D. Blank practices primarily in the area of appellate and general commercial litigation. She has litigated appeals in the Florida District Courts of Appeal, the Florida Supreme Court, and the United States Circuit Courts of Appeals for the Fifth and Eleventh Circuits. She has handled appeals and trial court litigation in numerous subject areas including trust and estates, antitrust, employment law, state and federal taxation, environmental law, family law, administrative law, intellectu...