The list of Legal Elite Notable Women Leaders in Law, it seems, is becoming even more distinctive and difficult for inclusion. Of course, the list has always been highly competitive, recognizing women in the legal industry who not only excel, but also are outstanding in multiple ways outside their offices.
Yet, simply, the numbers of women attorneys — as well as top performers — are steadily rising across the state. In 2023, more than one-quarter (28%) of all law firm partners in Florida were women, according to the National Association of Law Placement’s 2023 Report on Diversity in U.S. Law Firms.
By comparison, in 2013 women accounted for 20% of law firm partners nationwide.
And, during that same time in Florida, the number of active lawyers increased nearly 24%, the nation’s highest growth rate. The tally includes both men and women, but it doesn’t take much to draw a conclusion.
So, this year’s list? It’s filled with top performers today and the promise of much more to come in the future.
Jessica Alley
Porter Wright Morris & Arthur
Helen S. Atter
Lippes Mathias
Rikki Lober Bagatell
Shutts & Bowen
Donna DiMaggio Berger
Becker & Poliakoff
Ceci Berman
Brannock Berman & Seider
Kimberly Boldt
Ratzan Weissman & Boldt
Brooke Boltz
Boltz Legal
Robin Bresky
Schwartz Sladkus Reich Greenberg Atlas
Lea Bucciero
Podhurst Orseck
Peggy Smith Bush
Marshall Dennehey
Rachel A. Camber
Markowitz Ringel Trusty + Hartog
Heather Byrer Carbone
Marshall Dennehey
Jennifer Carroll
Fisher Phillips
Stephanie Casey
Colson Hicks Eidson
Christina Ceballos-Levy
Rivero Mestre
Johanna Clark
Carlton Fields
Abigail Cohen
Gladstone, Weissman, Hirschberg & Schneider
Tiffany Comprés
Pierson Ferdinand
Jennifer Compton
Shumaker, Loop & Kendrick
Stephanie Cook
Shuffield, Lowman & Wilson
Kamala “Kami” Corbett
Hill Ward Henderson
Hollie A. Croft
Nelson Mullins Riley & Scarborough
Amy Darby
Bush Ross
Elizabeth DeConti
GrayRobinson
Blair DeMinico
Lee County Legal Aid Society
Vivian de las Cuevas-Diaz
Holland & Knight
Christine Derr
Harris, Hunt & Derr
Tasha Dickinson
Day Pitney
Michelle Diffenderfer
Lewis, Longman & Walker
Kathleen DiSanto
Bush Ross
Sharon Quinn Dixon
Stearns Weaver Miller
Patricia M. Dodson
Lippes Mathias
Tara Duhy
Lewis, Longman & Walker
Iris Escarrá
Greenberg Traurig
Maria A. Fehretdinov
Stearns Weaver Miller
Barbara Fernandez
Hinshaw & Culbertson
Digna French
Squire Patton Boggs (US)
Julia Frey
Lowndes
Elissa Gainsburg
Pardo Jackson Gainsburg & Shelowitz
Michelle Gervais
Blank Rome
Vinette Godelia
Stearns Weaver Miller
Laura Gross
Donnelly + Gross
Denise Haire
Shubin Law Group
Linda Hartley
Hill Ward Henderson
Mya Hatchette
Maynard Nexsen PC
Shannon Hartsfield
Holland & Knight
Lori Heim
Bush Ross
JoLinda Herring
Bryant Miller Olive
Ilyse Homer
Berger Singerman
E. Holland “Holly” Howanitz
Tyson & Mendes
Elaine Humphreys
Block & Scarpa
Utibe Ikpe
Meland Budwick
Heidi Isenhart
Shuffield, Lowman & Wilson
Kimberly Held Israel
McGlinchey Stafford
Linda Worton Jackson
Pardo Jackson Gainsburg & Shelowitz
Vanessa Singh Johannes
Carlton Fields
Julie Braman Kane
Colson Hicks Eidson
Courtney M. Keller
Greenberg Traurig
Rebecca Kibbe
MG+M The Law Firm
Jennifer Kilinski
Kilinski | Van Wyk
Lori Killinger
Lewis, Longman & Walker
Katherine Koener
Kelley Kronenberg
Jana Kolarik
Foley & Lardner
Tama Beth Kudman
Kudman, Tracten, Aloe & Posner
Sherry Lambson-Eisele
Boyd & Jenerette
Christi Lawson
Foley & Lardner
Julie Littky-Rubin
Clark, Fountain, La Vista, Littky-Rubin & Whitman
Melissa Tapanes Llahues
Bercow Radell Fernandez Larkin & Tapanes
Leslie Lott
Lott & Fischer
Gina Clausen Lozier
Clausen Choquette
Donna MacRae
Three Rivers Legal Services
Stephanie Martin
Lieser Skaff
Susan Roeder Martin
Nason Yeager Gerson Harris & Fumero
Jany Martínez-Ward
The Ward Law Group
Opal McKinney-Williams
Pittman Law Group
Kathy McLeroy
Carlton Fields
Lesley Mendoza
CABA Pro Bono Legal Services
Terri Meyers
Kluger, Kaplan, Silverman, Katzen & Levine
Meghan Moore
Flaster Greenberg
Michele Morales
Cole Scott & Kissane
Pamela Nelson
Boyd & Jenerette
Nicole Deese Newlon
Johnson, Newlon & DeCort
Felicia Leborgne Nowels
Akerman
Joanne M. O’Connor
Jones Foster
Marina Olman-Pal
Greenberg Traurig
Jennifer Olmedo-Rodriguez
Buchanan Ingersoll & Rooney
Melissa Pallett-Vasquez
Bilzin Sumberg
Luna Phillips
Gunster
Amy Pitsch
Sniffen & Spellman
Stacey Prince-Troutman
Akerman
Kimberly Prior
Winston & Strawn
Alisia Adamson Profit
HAWM Law
Shannon Puopolo
Henderson, Franklin, Starnes & Holt
Lauren Vickroy Purdy
Gunster
Marlene Quintana
GrayRobinson
Martha Rabbitt
Shutts & Bowen
Marnie Dale Ragan
Haber Law
Lauren Raines
Bradley Arant Boult Cummings
Jerilyn Reed
Hill Ward Henderson
Rebecca Rhoden
Lowndes
Aliette DelPozo Rodz
Shutts & Bowen
Christina C. Russo
Akerman
Erica Rutner
Moore & Lee
Linley Schatzman
Shapiro, Blasi, Wasserman & Hermann
Maria Santoro
Sniffen & Spellman
Stacie Schmerling
Kelley Kronenberg
Denise Schneider
Gladstone, Weissman, Hirschberg & Schneider
Lisa Schneider
Gunster
Sandra “Sandy” Sheets
GrayRobinson
Vanessa J. Skinner
Winderweedle, Haines, Ward & Woodman
Carolina Sznajderman Sheir
Eisinger Law
Jacqueline Simms-Petredis
Burr & Forman
Ghada Skaff
Lieser Skaff
Tracy Slavens
LSN Law & LSN Partners
Norma Stanley
Lowndes
Alessandra Stivelman
Eisinger Law
Lauren Valiente
Foley & Lardner
Viviana Varela
Foley Mansfield
Kelly Victor
The Evolution Law Group
Sasha Watson-Sankey
HAWM Law
Dawn Pompey Whitehurst
Sniffen & Spellman
Marisa Rodriguez Wilson
Polsinelli
Methodology: Individuals did not pay to be included. Profiles were written from nomination materials submitted. This list is not comprehensive. It includes only individuals from whom nominations were received and accepted after a review by editors. To qualify for the list, nominees must be in good standing with The Florida Bar; be based in Florida; be a practicing attorney with at least 15 years’ experience; and have made a significant impact in the field of law. Nominees must mentor or act as a role model for others, show leadership in professional organizations and in civic/community service initiatives.













Lisa Goldberg
Barbara Teresa Govea
Katianna Mazard