Senior Associate in the Appellate Practice and Litigation Support Division

Conducted legal research and drafted bench memoranda to advise circuit court judges on a variety of legal issues, including criminal postconviction motions as well as criminal and civil appeals from county court.

Observed and assisted The Honorable Michele Towbin-Singer in courtroom proceedings and pretrial conferences. Conducted legal research and drafted bench memoranda on a variety of legal issues. Drafted an order denying defense motion to suppress evidence. Witnessed jury selection and trials for felony cases ranging from burglary and grand theft to felony murder. Observed oral arguments in the Fourth District Court of Appeal and assisted in drafting judicial opinions for civil and criminal cases.

Founded a privately held for-profit real estate investment venture to build attractive, affordable, and energy-efficient rental housing to assist the Gulf Coast of Mississippi in its recovery from Hurricane Katrina. Developed a comprehensive investment program including applicable state and federal fiscal incentives for investors. Personally designed three energy-efficient housing plans ranging from 1106 sq. ft. to 1579 sq. ft. to be offered in the investment program. Established a comprehensive network of affiliates and coordinated their efforts to optimize returns on investments ranging from $119,000 to $160,000 each.

Acted as Division Estimator for all new plans and communities. Developed material take-offs and preliminary budgeting for the division in both multi-family and single-family projects. Estimated construction costs and negotiated all contracts relating to a $16 million multi-family community within a 1.5% margin of accuracy. Collaborated with the Regional Product Development Team on a statewide value engineering effort to both revise current plans for cost effectiveness and develop new affordable housing plans.

Acquired negotiating skills by coordinating and managing the bidding process for newly initiated semi-custom communities. Created and maintained budgets for every plan in each of the three communities.

Employed strategic sales skills over 33 customer accounts while consistently remaining among the top three sales associates, averaging 55 to 60 hours per week, $212,000 in sales and generating 406 invoices per month. Acted as the commercial estimator for the Tampa, Sarasota, and New Port Richey markets. Translated engineered specifications for commercial construction projects into optimal monetary quotes for subcontractors. Maintained a delicate balance between quotations and sales by averaging 31 quotes and $43,000 in sales per month.