Ocean Ridge Personal Injury Lawyers

MATTHEW K. SCHWENCKE began his legal practice as a defense attorney, where he gained experience in all facets of civil litigation. Defending hospitals and healthcare providers against multi-million dollar claims has given him insight into defense strategies and tactics, especially in medical malpractice litigation. Mr. Schwencke earned his law degree from Stetson University College of Law, where he was a member of Stetsons award-winning Moot Court Board. While in law school, he served as intern to a federal magistrate judge, and prosecuted misdemeanor criminal offenses as a Certified Legal Intern for the Pinellas County State Attorney’s office. As an undergraduate,...

Florida personal injury lawyer Christopher Speed joined Searcy Denney Scarola Barnhart & Shipley PA as a Shareholder in 1994 after representing plaintiffs in Virginia for 20 years. He has spent his entire career pursuing justice for victims of personal injury, medical and legal negligence, aviation accidents and defective products.

DAVID P. VITALE, JR. is an experienced trial attorney who has litigated cases throughout the state of Florida. Mr. Vitale was recently recognized for his achievements by The National Trial Lawyers, as a Top 40 Under 40 Civil Plaintiff attorney in Florida. In addition to pursing personal injury, wrongful death, and medical malpractice claims on behalf of injured victims, Mr. Vitale also handles complex commercial and business litigation matters. As a result of his prior career as a Certified Public Accountant in the State of New York, Mr. Vitale has a unique business perspective in developing strategies that are efficient, effective,...

James S. Cunha, Esq. is the Managing Attorney at the Law Offices of James S. Cunha, P.A. Mr. Cunha primarily focuses his practice on family and marital law. As a result of his background in Finance and Economics, Mr. Cunha has become a highly sought-after divorce and family law attorney in South Florida particularly in complex or high asset divorce cases involving asset valuation and alimony issues. Since the inception of his firm, Mr. Cunha has represented corporate executive officers, professional athletes, business owners, medical, legal and financial professionals, homemakers, working men and women–(or their spouses)–in divorce cases,...

BORIS ZHADANOVSKIY brings to the Searcy Denney team not only a law degree, but an undergraduate degree in business administration and fluency in both English and Russian. He draws upon his experience in complex insurance litigation to make sure that insurance companies keep their promises to policyholders who have been harmed.

William E. Johnson is a highly successful civil trial lawyer who began practicing in his native West Palm Beach in 1983. He is the third generation of his family to practice law in West Palm Beach. Mr. Johnson's grandfather was one of the early pioneers of West Palm Beach. His father, Thomas H. Johnson, was a long time circuit court judge in Palm Beach County, who also served in the Florida Senate and as the State Attorney for Palm Beach County. Mr. Johnson is a graduate of Florida State University, where he received his B.A. degree in 1980. He...

Richard is Board Certified by The Florida Bar in Civil Trial Law since 1991, and Recertified consistently since becoming Board Certified. Richard has achieved a national reputation through his representation of clients as lead counsel in more than ten states, and as a result of over thirty years of outstanding results in trial and by obtaining substantial settlements for his clients. He has consistently received an “AV” Rating which is the highest rating of legal ability and ethics by the Martindale -Hubbell Law Directory. He has consistently been listed in the prestigious peer reviewed book, The Best Lawyers...

I am a personal injury attorney that practices law with tenacity and an uncommon compassion that comes from surviving a catastrophic plane crash in 2011 that the FAA and NTSB determined was caused by pilot error. Because of my experiences coping with, and recovering from, serious, life threatening injuries, I practice with an understanding and compassion that few injury lawyers possess.

Ms. Stover is an attorney with extensive knowledge and experience in a wide variety of legal matters including family law (divorce, custody, child support), criminal and traffic (DUI/DWI, theft, Post-Conviction Petitions), personal injury (auto accidents, pedestrian accidents, slip and falls), and immigration (naturalization, adjustment of status, and asylum).

After graduating law school, Ms. Stover clerked for the Honorable Marielsa A. Bernard of the Circuit Court for Montgomery County, MD. Throughout her clerkship, Ms. Stover not only gained knowledge of the law and the inner workings of the courthouse, but she also gained extensive insight into a wide variety of family law...

Edward Kone has a Bachelor of Arts Degree from Lafayette College, 1984, and a J.D. Degree from University of Miami Law School, 1987. He was admitted to the Florida Bar in November of 1987. He has conducted numerous Jury Trials and is in Court in Palm Beach, Broward and Dade counties on almost a daily basis. In over twenty-five years of practice, he has handled over a thousand criminal cases, over 500 personal injury cases, and close to 10,000 traffic tickets.

Levi Lawrence Wilkes is known as a well-reasoned advocate, protecting his client’s interests as though they were his own. Born in Corpus Christi, Texas, Mr. Wilkes spent most of his childhood between Texas, Utah, Kentucky and Idaho. Before pursuing a law career, Mr. Wilkes worked in a variety of industrial construction settings around the country, performing various roles, including: pipefitting, rigging, land surveying, boiler-making and commercial diving. After saying goodbye to the construction industry, Mr. Wilkes obtained his undergraduate degrees from Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi, where he majored in Political Science and obtained a minor in Criminal Justice....

Jensen Grant is a partner in Kanner & Pintaluga’s Personal Injury Practice and is the managing attorney of the Firm’s Florida Pre-Litigation Team. Jensen joined Kanner & Pintaluga in 2009. Since then, he has supervised or directly settled $150 million dollars in settlements for firm clients. Jensen is a member of the prestigious Million Dollar Advocates Forum, which recognizes lawyers for the resolution of a single case in excess of $1 million. He has also been recognized as one of the “Top 10 Under 40” by the National Academy of Personal Injury Attorneys and a “Top 10 Attorney” for client satisfaction...

I co-founded K/S, Attorneys at Law in April of 2002, and over the past fifteen years our firm has represented thousands of clients in matters stemming from corporate collections to complex business litigation, such as partnership disputes, receivership, fraud claims, and purchase/sale disputes. Our firm is a boutique civil litigation firm with five attorneys who handle various areas of practice, to include, business law, complex business litigation, real estate litigation, family law, personal injury and criminal defense. All of the attorneys in our firm are passionate over their legal representation of the firm's clients, and aim to reach...

Michael “Mike” Celeste, Jr. was born and raised in Milford, Mass. He received his B.A. in American Studies at Wesleyan University in Middletown, Connecticut in 1975, where he also played varsity football and lacrosse – with Bill Belichick, the head coach of the New England Patriots. Mike graduated with honors from Nova Law School in 1986, where he was the president of the student chapter of ATLA (American Trial Lawyers Association) and represented Nova Law in the Southern Regional Mock Trial Competitions. While attending Nova Law, Mike was the recipient of the first Krupnick & Campbell, P.A. award, which was...

Attorney Sergio D. Vichera has over 17 years of experience working with personal injury cases. He has extensive knowledge in automotive cases and that is one of the reasons why he is so successful at what he does. He has worked as a Tech in many Automotive Shops while going to college. He is fluent in Spanish and can help both English- and Spanish-speaking clients. Before opening his firm, Sergio spent nearly 9 years in a mid-size firm, and several years in two of the largest personal injury firms working as a personal injury lawyer in the State of Florida. During...

Mr. Weisser is a Partner and Shareholder of the firm. He has practiced law in South Florida since 1996. He began his professional career as Assistant State Attorney in Miami, Florida, prosecuting an extensive felony criminal caseload and tried forty jury trials with only 3 resulting in acquittals. Subsequently, he has been actively involved in Civil Trial Litigation handling all phases of civil cases involving Medical Malpractice, Motorcycle Accidents, Nursing Home Abuse, Trucking Accidents, Products Liability and Motor Vehicle Accidents. Mr. Weisser has handled cases that have generated over $50 million from jury verdicts or settlements...

Aggressive Advocate Focus on Trial and Appellate Litigation Represent Plaintiffs Multi-Jurisdiction Bar Admission in State and Federal Courts

Even though I'm a New York Native, having Graduated from St. Thomas University School of Law in 2006, I've been involved in South Florida and Litigating in the Personal Injury Field for over 10 years, representing Clients in all types of Accidents. Even though I Specialize in Truck Accidents, I'm also familiar with Automobile Accidents, Motorcycle Accidents, Bicycle Accidents and Dog Bite Cases. In my free time, I'm a full time baseball coach for my two sons and a dance partner for my daughter. I'm also a volunteer with Habitat for Humanity and was a awarded the Presidential...

ADAM HECHT, a veteran of more than 75 felony and misdemeanor jury trials as an Assistant State Attorney, now works with Searcy Denney Scarola Barnhart & Shipley, P.A. handling medical malpractice, personal injury, wrongful death and products liability cases.

With over 30 years of experience as a personal injury attorney, Mr. Ehrlich S. Ehrlich has represented thousands of clients in claims against insurance companies of all kinds.

MARA RITCHIE PONCY HATFIELD, who holds dual degrees in environmental law, began consulting with Searcy Denney Scarola Barnhart & Shipley on issues related to environmental and entertainment law in 2006 before becoming an associate with the firm in 2012. Since then, she has assisted the firm’s clients in obtaining recoveries for injuries arising out of environmental contamination, medical malpractice, nursing home neglect, catastrophic automobile crashes, defective products and premises liability (including but not limited to slip and falls). She continues to work on intellectual property and consumer-based class action lawsuits as well.

KAREN E. TERRY is a shareholder at Searcy Denney Scarola Barnhart & Shipley in West Palm Beach, and has been with the firm for 14 years. She recently received the highest honor of being chosen by the Daily Business Review as the "Most Effective Lawyer" in the State of Florida for products liability, along with Chris Searcy. She also was selected as one of The Best Lawyers in America. Ms. Terry has tried many big cases, but in August of 2007, Ms. Terry received a jury verdict of over 25 million dollars in Polk County, Florida against Walgreens for misfilling...

Ruben E. Socarras, Esq., a founding member of Chane Socarras, PLLC, focuses his practice in the areas of Complex Commercial Litigation, Business Law & Litigation, Employment Law & Litigation, Construction & Real Estate Litigation & general civil litigation. As an experienced litigator, Ruben often represents individuals and businesses in a variety of cases before state & federal courts, including cases involving contract disputes, temporary/permanent injunctions, torts, trade secrets, unfair competition, non-competition/non-solicitation agreements, fraud, breaches of fiduciary duty, employment related disputes, real estate and title claims, business dissolution, and shareholder/member disputes. Ruben also represents his clients before arbitration panels and in mediations,...

Benjamin Matthew Kurtz has been practicing in Maryland since 2016. During that time, he has successfully represented individuals and entities in a variety of cases, focusing most of his time on personal injury and criminal defense.

Personal Injury

Benjamin Kurtz successfully represents individuals who have been seriously injured. With compassion and confidence, he deftly navigates his clients through the legal maze to an outcome designed to mitigate their pain and suffering and maximize recoveries for clients in need. The fact that many of Benjamin's clients are referred to him by his former clients and other attorneys is a resounding testament...

Corey Leifer was born in Queens, New York and grew up on Long Island, New York. He attended college at the University of South Florida (“USF”) in Tampa, Florida, where he received a degree in Criminal Justice. Mr. Leifer was a member of the Dean’s List at USF and was the recipient of the prestigious Honors Convocation Award during his senior year. He earned his law degree at Thomas Cooley Law School in Lansing, Michigan. Mr. Leifer began his legal career as a Prosecutor at the Broward County State Attorney’s Office, where he served as lead counsel in...

Joseph Abdallah is a partner in the Firm’s Personal Injury Practice. Joseph received a B.A. from Binghamton University, where he received multiple honors for his academic excellence and his commitment to the community. He completed his J.D. at Nova Southeastern University. Prior to joining Kanner & Pintaluga, Joseph was a Judicial Clerk for the 17th Judicial Circuit Court of Florida in Broward County, Florida. There, he served as an advisor for the Circuit Court on original jurisdiction and appellate matters. Joseph was recently appointed by the President-Elect of the Florida Bar to serve as a member of the Judicial Administration and...

Corey, a Connecticut native, grew up in South Florida and Northern Virginia where he discovered an early interest in Law.

After graduating from high school, Corey served in the U.S. Navy onboard the U.S.S Harry S. Truman CVN-75 aircraft carrier as a Machinist Mate (MM) in Reactor Propulsion Division. As an MM, Corey helped operate and maintain vital equipment in the ship's nuclear power plant. Additionally, Corey participated in Command and Reactor Department drills to maintain mission readiness during the ship's 2010 Middle East Deployment. During the deployment the Truman provided close air support to coalition forces operating in...

Jonathan is an AV Rated civil trial attorney whose practice is dedicated to representing a wide range of clients in disputes before state and federal courts as well as in alternative dispute forums. Jonathan left a large, international law firm so that he could provide personal attention and the highest quality of legal services to his clients. In his practice, Jonathan represents individuals in civil litigation and construction litigation. In addition to his litigation practice, Jonathan is both a Florida Supreme Court Certified Circuit Civil Mediator and a Florida Supreme Court Qualified Arbitrator, where is serves as a neutral in...

Gregg Kone has a Bachelor of Arts Degree from Drew University, 1987, and a J.D. Degree from University of Connecticut Law School, 1996. He was admitted to the Connecticut Bar in November of 1996 and admitted to the Florida Bar in April of 1999. He has been in practice for over sixteen years and specializes in personal injury. He also brings to the table an extensive background in the insurance industry (claims investigator, claims examiner, and then In House Counsel for major insurance companies).

Lee Cohen is a partner in Kanner & Pintaluga’s Personal Injury Practice and the managing attorney of the litigation team. With nearly 30 years of legal experience, Lee is a distinguished litigator who has been fighting for the rights of victims his entire career. Lee received a B.A. from Tulane University and completed his J.D. at the University of Miami. He has been a member of the Florida Bar since 1989, the United States Supreme Court Bar since 2004, the United States District Court for the Southern District of Florida since 2012 and has been authorized to practice for numerous specific cases...

Gabriella Sarah Barr is a Partner at the Firm’s Personal Injury Practice. Gabriella received a B.S. in Accounting from Florida State University. She completed her J.D. at Nova Southeastern University. She currently has admissions to practice in Georgia, Florida, Texas, Arizona and Massachusetts.