Carlton Fields PA

We have arrived at a pivotal moment in the history of our country's struggle to provide equal justice and open arms to black Americans. To students of history, you may be reminded of the story of Emmett Till. He was a young black teenager lynched in 1955 for talking to a white woman. Only when his mother displayed his mutilated body in an open casket did the world finally take notice of the prevailing state of affairs in this country. This helped drive important civil rights reforms.

We have proclaimed success time and time again - with Emancipation, the adoption of the 13th and 14th Amendments to the Constitution, Brown v. Board of Education, Civil Rights Legislation, and on and on. But recent events make clear that true equality in this country remains more the exception than the rule - more of a dream than reality. The manner and circumstances of George Floyd's death, sadly, were not unique. But coming at this time, in this way, this was just too much to bear.

I reached out this week to all of our attorneys and professional staff to ask them to share their thoughts and their feelings with me about where we are in America at this time. They told me stories that broke my heart. We are all different, of course, and prejudice and cruelty have not been reserved for black Americans, but our country has an especially long and troubled history between our "white" and "black" people, and we are still not in a good place. My black friends and colleagues carry the pain, the scars, and the burden of being treated all too often like criminals, thugs, and inferior life forms merely for existing or for being present where very few blacks are seen--or welcome. All black parents must prepare their sons and daughters for the inevitability of being stopped, interrogated, frisked, handcuffed, or worse, without cause. Is this equality, America? Is this okay? This is most definitely not okay. This is not how anybody deserves to live, let alone any citizen of our country. This is not how any of us would want to live.

We can and must talk about law reform, government programs, legislation, and other means to address this injustice. Some of us can, should, and will contribute to institutional reform. We have been engaged in this as a law firm, and we have rededicated ourselves to continuing to do our part. But more than this, each of us holds the key in our own hands and hearts to making the biggest difference. We hold the key to love and hate. The choice is ours.

We view the world from our clients' perspectives, helping them to lead and innovate across industries and around the globe. Because legal challenges do not exist in a vacuum, we craft tailored solutions that prioritize our clients' overall business goals. Our focus is on building long-term collaborative relationships, and we are ranked among the nation's most collaborative law firms by BTI Consulting Group.

Collaboration is also an important aspect of our internal culture. Our attorneys, consultants, and staff work as teams to bring forth the most creative responses to challenges and opportunities. We have created a workplace that rewards good ideas sourced from diverse thinkers. As a result, our clients benefit.

We strive to be valued advisers, and our unusual business model reflects that mindset. Instead of employing the common "pyramid model" where numerous junior lawyers support the efforts of relatively few shareholders, at Carlton Fields shareholders outnumber associates. This arrangement benefits our lawyers as well as our clients, giving them the advantage of working with legal teams particularly suited to their needs and best able to provide value.

Carlton Fields was founded in 1901 in Tampa, the location of our original office. During the first decades of the 20th century, our clients were largely Tampa citizens and businesses. Today, the firm serves business clients in key industries across the country and around the world. Our Tampa lawyers provide the full range of legal services, in areas that include commercial litigation, class action defense, real estate and commercial finance, appellate and trial support, real property and title litigation, construction, securities, insurance, health care, tax, intellectual property, creditors' rights, cybersecurity, and product liability.

Locations	No. of Attorneys
Atlanta, GA	18
Florham Park, NJ	2
Hartford, CT	14
Los Angeles, CA	20
Miami, FL	75
New York City, NY	16
Orlando, FL	16
Tallahassee, FL	10
Tampa, FL	103
Washington, DC	31
West Palm Beach, FL	23

Practice Areas	No. of Attorneys
Bankruptcy	5
Corporate	23
Environmental and Land Use	3
ERISA/Executive Compensation	2
Finance - Banking	1
General Practice	2
Government	2
Health Care	8
Insurance Coverage	14
IP	9
Labor & Employment	9
Litigation	191
Real Estate	49
Tax	6
Trusts and Estates	1