Maria Tejedor graduated from the University of South Florida, Magna Cum Laude, in 1992. In 1993, she commenced law school at Stetson University, the number one ranked law school in trial advocacy. In 1994, she participated in a college-wide competition and was selected by her peers at Stetson to join the law school’s prestigious and exclusive trial team. She spent the following two years representing Stetson College of Law in national and statewide trial competitions. Throughout the years she competed, Stetson College of Law maintained its number one national ranking in trial advocacy. In 1995, Maria Tejedor was the first-place winner of the American Criminal Defense Bar National Trial Competition . Ms. Tejedor secured second place in both the Florida Bar’s State Trial Competition and the Academy of Florida Trial Lawyers State Competition. She was the 1996 Regional Champion in the American Bar Association National Trial Competition and was awarded the American College of Trial Lawyers Medal for Excellence in Trial Advocacy. In 1996, upon graduation, Stetson University College of Law presented her with the Harris Ferrell Competition Award for Individual Excellence in Intercollegiate Trial Competition. In 1996, she joined the law firm of Martinez, Manglardi and Diez-Arguelles. In 2004, she became one of the youngest women to be board certified in the state of Florida. That same year she was named a full partner at the law firm and the name was changed to Martinez, Manglardi, Diez-Arguelles & Tejedor. In 2009, fueled by a passion for helping women and children, she founded the law firm of Diez-Arguelles & Tejedor and became its managing partner. That passion and focus have led to her numerous successful statewide appellate and Supreme Court decisions, which have established laws that protect the rights of the most vulnerable. Those include: The Supreme Court of Florida affirmed a $2,000,000.00 verdict for the parents of a baby boy who died due to the negligence of a hospital. Pub. Health Tr. of Miami-Dade Cty. v. Acanda, 71 So. 3d 782, 783 (Fla. 2011). The appellate court held that a negligent healthcare provider could not get a vulnerable patient to sign away their right to bring a lawsuit in the event of malpractice. Crespo v. Hernandez, 151 So. 3d 495, 496 (Fla. Dist. Ct. App. 2014), approved, 211 So. 3d 19 (Fla. 2016). The appellate court ruled the victim of medical malpractice had a right to their day in court. The courts had to provide one upon request. Garcia v. Lincare Inc., 906 So. 2d 1268, 1269 (Fla. Dist. Ct. App. 2005). The court held that a child who has suffered brain damage due the negligence of her hospital has a right to sue that hospital and that a law imposing a three-year limitation on such a right was not applicable. Exposito v. Pub. Health Tr. of Miami-Dade Cty., et al., 141 So. 3d 663, 664 (Fla. Dist. Ct. App. 2014). Reversing a lower court’s dismissal of brain-injured infants’ claim against a negligent hospital and proceeding to trial later resulting a several million dollar jury verdict in favor of the injured child. Mobley v. Homestead Hospital, 291 So. 3d 987 (Fla. 3 Dist., 2019) Reversed lower court’s order dismissing an injured child’s medical negligence claim based on the statute of limitations. The appellate court determined the statute of repose had not expired and allowed the case to proceed to recovery. Reyes v. Baptist Hospital et. al., 360 So. 3rd 438 (Fla. 3 Dist., 2023) Reversing a lower court’s dismissal of a brain-damaged minor child’s claim based on the statute of limitations. The appellate court ruled in favor of the injured child and allowed the claim of the child to proceed to trial. Over her career she has successfully tried numerous medical malpractice cases throughout the nation recovering over $500 million in awards for injured families. She has been awarded record verdicts in medical negligence cases, many of which are the highest ever recovered by a woman trial lawyer in her state. In the state of Florida, she has successfully tried cases in almost every county, including Dade, Orange, Osceola, Seminole, Hillsborough, Clay, Polk, Leon, Broward, and Alachua. She has also been admitted to practice and has litigated cases to success on a national level. She was awarded a judgment over $64 million in a medical negligence case, making that judgment, the largest judgment entered by a jury to a single plaintiff in a medical negligence case in Orange County history. She was also awarded over $40 million dollars by a jury in a brain damage in fact case, also reflecting a record verdict for an injured child in the state of Florida. Her jury awards in medical negligence death cases have also been record-setting. In 2019, she obtained an $18 million award for the death of mothers during a delivery and 2012 an $11,600,000.00 verdict in Volusia County, which is the highest medical malpractice wrongful death verdict in the county’s history. She was elected to serve on the Board of Directors of the Florida Justice Association. During that time, she successfully testified before Congress and passed legislation to protect the rights of the women and children injured from malpractice. In 2011, after much success before the Florida Senate, she was appointed to the governing body of the Florida Justice Association. Ms. Tejedor focuses on medical malpractice cases, including injuries to children, as well as mass torts and dangerous drugs. She is a member of the National Million Dollar Advocates Forum. She has served as Treasurer of the Hispanic Bar Association. In 2009, she was appointed to the Orange County Grievance Ethics Committee and served as its chairperson in 2011. She is also a frequent speaker on medical malpractice. She has served on the Board of Directors for the Florida Justice Association, and in 2011 was appointed to their Executive Committee. Board certification recognizes Ms. Tejedor as a specialist in personal injury trial work. Board certification is an achievement acquired by less than 3% of all lawyers in the state of Florida. She is also recognized as an AV rated lawyer, which means she has been recognized by her peers as having reached the highest levels of professional excellence, skill, and integrity a lawyer can achieve.

Stephen McGuire is a 2012 graduate of Ave Maria School of Law. Prior to law school, he graduated summa cum laude from West Virginia University in 2005, with a degree in political science, and earned an MBA with high honors from Duquesne University in 2007. He is also a ten-year veteran of the United States Army. Stephen's practice is primarily focused on business and real estate law, appellate practice, and general civil litigation. He provides escrow and closing services for a high percentage of the brokered business transactions in Lee County, Florida, and serves as registered agent for hundreds of Florida corporations and limited liability companies. Additionally, he provides general counsel services to numerous local businesses and franchises. Attorney McGuire is admitted to practice in Florida, West Virginia, the Middle District of Florida, the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals, and the United States Supreme Court.

Abraham received his first degree to practice law in his home country of Venezuela. When the country took a turn for the worse, Abraham decided it was time to look forward and began the immigration process himself to the United States. After obtaining his Juris Doctor (JD) degree and Master of Laws (LLM) in International Law degree at the University of Miami, Abraham focused his career on becoming an expert in business-related and employment-based immigration matters. As a multi-jurisdictional lawyer, Abraham has a deep understanding of estate planning, international tax, and corporate issues that visa applicants often deal with. This allows Abraham to give his clients a well-rounded service almost no other immigration attorney at his level can offer.

Kenneth Dorchak is a life long resident of South Florida. Mr. Dorchak graduated Magna Cum Laude from the University of Miami in 1988 and graduated with Honors from the Florida State University School of Law in 1991. In addition to being a member of the Florida Bar since 1991, Mr. Dorchak is admitted to practice before the United States District Court for the Southern District and has been admitted to practice before the United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit. During his 26 years of practice Mr. Dorchak has practiced in the areas of personal injury and automobile, homeowner’s, health and disability insurance disputes with a focus in trial practice. Mr. Dorchak has worked to protect the rights of individuals and medical providers as co-counsel and court appointed class counsel in several statewide insurance class actions which were brought against large automobile insurance companies. Mr. Dorchak has also handled appellate matters including an important precedent setting case wherein Mr. Dorchak successfully defended the rights of individuals to an award of attorney’s fees against insurers who failed to pay insurance benefits. Mr. Dorchak has protected the rights of injured clients not only against large insurance companies but also against large chain retail stores, utility companies, amusement parks, apartment buildings, municipalities, construction companies, and trucking companies, among others. When not working Mr. Dorchak enjoys playing golf, travel with his family and is an avid music and sport fan.

Robert “Rob” Eckard is the founding partner in this litigation firm. He established the firm in 2000 after leaving the State Attorney’s Office, 6th Judicial Circuit, Clearwater, Pinellas County, Florida, where he prosecuted both felony and misdemeanor criminal cases. Rob is Board Certified in Business Litigation by the Florida Bar (less than 300 lawyers in the State of Florida are Board Certified in Business Litigation), specializes in white-collar criminal investigations and defense, all areas of commercial/business litigation, professional licensing, and administrative proceedings for physicians, health-care professionals, attorneys, accountants, securities dealer/brokers, insurance agents etc. Rob’s background, training, and experience in both business litigation, government investigations, and criminal defense make him uniquely qualified to handle business crimes.

Drew is a business litigation attorney with his focus on complex business & commercial litigation. He is well-versed in matters involving contract disputes, business torts, partnership agreements, shareholder disputes and derivative actions, securities fraud matters, noncompete agreements, trade secret litigation, and unfair and deceptive trade practices cases. Drew has also handled several high-profile matters in pre-suit and active suit to help clients attack claims against them to receive a favorable result. In addition to his complex business & commercial litigation practice, Drew represents employers in a variety of cases involving employment and labor disputes. Drew’s experience in these matters includes representing employers in cases involving Florida’s Whistleblower Act, the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) collective action cases, and cases alleging discrimination and retaliation against the employer for violations of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), and the Florida Civil Rights Act (FCRA). Drew has litigated these cases in state and federal court. He also routinely handles Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) claims. Drew also has experience representing clients Administrative Cases and Government Investigations brought by agencies including the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), Florida Department of Business and Professional Regulation (DBPR), Federal Trade Commission (FTC), Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), and in forfeiture proceedings brought by Customers and Border Protection, and the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, Division of Licensing in concealed weapon license revocations. Drew serves as outside general counsel to a leading prepaid card company in the area of clinical research and study related payments. This representation focuses on convenience and inactivity fee issues, federal and state consumer credit regulatory impacts, consumer-facing disclosures, affiliate marketing, third-party contracts, bank regulatory applications, and prepaid card bank program agreements. Drew has experience in all phases of litigation, from inception through trial. Drew’s approach is pragmatic and effective, taking into account economic realities and offering practical solutions to clients. He is experienced representing a variety of businesses and individuals, from small businesses to large regional corporations.

For over three decades, medical malpractice lawyer Richard M. Shapiro has been working to defend the rights of injured individuals, children and families due to medical malpractice. Throughout his career, Richard has become a formidable adversary in the field of medical negligence. He takes pride in focusing a large portion of his legal practice to representing children injured by negligent healthcare. These children make up more than 90 percent of his client base.

Estefania Laurita, a partner at the Immigration Advocates, is a licensed attorney in Florida, holding a Bachelor’s degree in Political Science from Florida Atlantic University and a Juris Doctor from Barry University-Dwayne O. Andreas School of Law. Throughout her academic journey, Estefania demonstrated strong leadership in organizations such as the American Constitution Society and the Hispanic American Law Student Association. Her active involvement in the Immigration Clinic resulted in the successful prevention of a client’s deportation. Beyond her legal pursuits, Mrs. Laurita is deeply dedicated to community service. She dedicated her time to teaching Citizenship classes and assisting low-income immigrants with Temporary Protected Status and Naturalization. Estefania is determined to channel this commitment into serving clients at The Immigration Advocates, where she brings both her expertise and firsthand understanding to make a meaningful impact.

Founded in 2008, Gerben Perrott PLLC is a trademark and copyright law firm. The firm currently serves clients in all 50 states and from over 30 countries around the world. Founder Josh Gerben opened the firm with the goal of providing big-firm quality legal services to businesses and individuals at affordable prices. In furtherance of this goal, the firm has obtained more than 6,500 trademark registrations for its clients since opening, and has been involved in over 500 trademark enforcement and defense matters.

The Hilton Law Group, PLLC is a Central Florida-based law firm offering services in business law.