Florida

Ben Crump

Tallahassee, FL

Listed amongst the Most Influential People of 2021 by TIME100, Ebony Magazine’s Power 100 Most Influential African Americans, The National Trial Lawyers Top 100 Lawyers, and the 2014 NNPA Newsmaker of the Year, Attorney Ben Crump is referred to as Black America’s Attorney General. Through a steadfast dedication to justice and service, renowned civil rights and personal injury attorney Benjamin Crump has established himself as one of the nation’s foremost lawyers and advocates for social justice. His legal acumen has ensured that those marginalized in American society are protected by their nation’s contract with its constituency. He is the founder and principal owner of Ben Crump Law. Crump’s tireless advocacy has led to legislation preventing excessive force and developing implicit bias training and policies. He has represented families in several high-profile civil rights cases including Trayvon Martin, Michael Brown, and Stephon Clark. He also represented victims in the Holtzclaw Oklahoma City Police rape case and worked on the Robbie Tolan excessive police force case. More recently, he represented the families of Ahmaud Arbery, Breonna Taylor, George Floyd, the residents of Flint, Michigan, who were affected by the poisoned water of the Flint River, as well as the family of Henrietta Lacks in a landmark reparations case. Crump has helped reach historic settlements and verdicts for families that have faced injustices, including a $411 million verdict for Duane Washington, a $641 million settlement for Flint, Michigan, a $27 million settlement for George Floyd's family, a $12 million settlement for Breonna Taylor's family, and over $200 million in banking while Black cases. Crump is the President of the National Civil Rights Trial Lawyers Association and previously served as President of the National Bar Association. He was the first African-American to chair the Florida State University College of Law Board of Directors and is the founder and director of the Benjamin Crump Social Justice Institute. In 2023, the College of Law at St. Thomas University in Miami, Florida, became the Benjamin L. Crump College of Law. He has been recognized with the NAACP Thurgood Marshall Award, the SCLC Martin Luther King Servant Leader Award, the American Association for Justice Johnnie Cochran Award, and the Alpha Kappa Alpha Eleanor Roosevelt Medallion for Service. He hosted legal docudramas and served as executive producer and writer for a documentary. He is a frequent contributor to MSNBC, CNN, and USA Today. Crump’s book, published in October 2019, Open Season: Legalized Genocide of Colored People, reflects on the landmark cases he has battled, and how discrimination in the courthouse devastates real families and communities. Crump graduated from Florida State University and received his law degree from FSU College of Law. He is married to Dr. Genae Angelique Crump.

Stuart Grossman

Boca Raton, FL

Stuart Grossman is recognized as one of America’s preeminent trial lawyers concentrating on catastrophic personal injury and wrongful death, products liability, aviation accidents, and professional negligence, including medical, legal, accounting, and engineering malpractice. His successful career is distinguished by a number of favorable verdicts that are among the largest awarded by Florida juries.

Michael A. Haggard

Coral Gables, FL

Compassionate, empathetic and a fervent advocate for victims of crime, Michael Haggard has dedicated his career to the pursuit of justice on behalf of his clients in the courtroom securing unprecedented awards and as an activist who continuously lobbies for permanent solutions and change through local, statewide and federal legislation. Specializing in pool drowning, negligent security, wrongful death, unsafe premises and products liability, Haggard has established himself as a powerful force in the legal community as the Managing Partner for The Haggard Law Firm.

John Elliott Leighton

Orlando, FL

John Elliott Leighton is a board-certified trial lawyer and the Managing Partner of Leighton Panoff Law, P.A., with offices in Miami and Orlando, Florida. He has 40 years of experience successfully trying major personal injury and wrongful death cases, and has won some of the largest verdicts and settlements in Florida, including a $49 million verdict and two $24 million verdicts. He is recognized as a national expert in negligent security and violent crime litigation, authoring 'Litigating Premises Security Cases'. He received the Advocate of Justice Award from the National Crime Victim Bar Association and was recently elected President of the National Crime Victim Bar Association. He is a frequent lecturer and teacher at legal programs, including ATLA’s 'Ultimate Trial Advocacy College' at Harvard Law School. Mr. Leighton believes in educating the public and giving back to the community, regularly appearing on media outlets like NBC’s Today show and CNN. He continues to represent victims of sexual assault and sex abuse. He recently received the Daily Business Review 2015 'Verdicts Hall of Fame Award' and American Lawyer Media’s 'Top 100 Verdicts of 2017' and National Law Journal’s 'Elite Trial Lawyer Top 50 Verdicts' in 2018. He also represents victims of legal malpractice. He has served as Chairman of the Association of Trial Lawyers of America’s Motor Vehicle, Highway and Premises Liability Section, chairs the Inadequate Security Litigation Group, and sat on the Executive Committee of the National College of Advocacy Board of Trustees. He is Chairman of the Academy of Trial Advocacy and President of the National Crime Victim Bar Association. He is a member of ABOTA (American Board of Trial Advocates) and has been selected for inclusion in The Best Lawyers in America continuously since 2008. He has been voted into Florida SuperLawyers every year since 2006 and was honored as one of the Top 100 Florida SuperLawyers since 2009. He has been selected as a 'Top Lawyer' in the South Florida Legal Guide for 13 consecutive years and is listed in Florida Trend magazine’s 'Florida Legal Elite.' He was named 'Orlando Legal Elite' by Orlando Style magazine three years in a row. He has an A-V preeminent rating by Martindale-Hubbell and a 10.0/10 rating from AVVO.com. He is a board certified specialist in civil trial law by the Florida Bar Board of Legal Specialization. He received both his J.D. and B.A. degrees with honors from the University of Florida.

Joe Zarzaur

Destin, FL

Joe Zarzaur is a fearless and intense personal injury trial lawyer, dedicated to representing victims of wrongdoing. He is a Board Certified Civil Trial Lawyer, a designation held by only about 1% of Florida lawyers, and has achieved record jury verdicts in Escambia ($9.3 Million) and Santa Rosa ($16 Million) Counties. He is AV Rated by Martindale-Hubbell and has a 10.0 Superb rating by AVVO. He founded Zarzaur Law in 2007.