attorney

Elaine D. Walter Partner & Appellate Practice Group Chair

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Background

Elaine D. Walter is Board Certified by The Florida Bar in Appellate Practice. Elaine was born in Detroit, Michigan, and grew up in Western Pennsylvania. Elaine moved to Miami attending the University of Miami School of Law, where she graduated Magna Cum Laude. Elaine leads the firm’s appellate practice group and focuses on appeals and trial support. Before landing at Boyd Richards Parker & Colonnelli, Elaine was a staff attorney at the Florida Supreme Court. Elaine’s prior experience also includes working at a small Miami firm focusing on appeals in land use, planning, and zoning cases, briefly working at an international law firm, and practicing all appeals at a mid-sized firm that did predominately insurance defense work.

Elaine is regularly recognized by Super Lawyers Magazine for appellate practice and rated AV Pre-Eminent by Martindale Hubbell. She is the secretary of The Florida Bar Appellate Practice Section. Elaine was also appointed by The Florida Bar’s President to the Appellate Court Rules Committee, currently acting as the committee’s Chair. As a Board Member of the Florida Defense Lawyers Association, Elaine helps to set policy for that defense-related organization and is a frequent brief writer for its Amicus Curiae Committee. She is currently the President-Elect of the FDLA.

Education/Admissions

Elaine holds a Bachelor’s degree in Restaurant and Hotel Management (Purdue University) and a Master’s degree in Counseling and Educational Psychology (Slippery Rock University). Elaine earned her Law degree from the University of Miami.

Representative Cases

A list of Elaine’s representative published opinions appears below:

Diocese of Palm Beach, Inc. v. Gallagher, 249 So. 3d 657 (Fla. 4th DCA 2018) (reversing ordering denying motion to dismiss on ecclesiastical abstention doctrine in defamation case and remanding for dismissal of case);

Acosta v. Tower Hill Signature Ins. Co., 245 So. 3d 882 (Fla. 3d DCA 2018) (affirming summary judgment in favor of insurer and dismissing appeal from non-final order on attorney’s fees);

Am. Alternative Ins. Corp. v. Logan, 639 Fed. Appx. 624 (Fla. 11th Cir. 2016) (affirming order of dismissal, because insureds had not established entitlement to coverage by estoppel);

Moustafa v. Omega Ins. Co., 201 So. 3d 710 (Fla. 4th DCA 2016) (holding that insurer properly rescinded insurance policy because one homeowner made material misrepresented on the application);

Firestone v. Sholom, 183 So. 3d 1225 (Fla. 3d DCA 2016) (affirming final judgment entered based on statute of limitations);

Campbell’s Foliage, Inc. v. Fed. Crop Ins. Corp., 562 Fed. Appx. 828 (11th Cir. 2014) (affirming district court’s order denying motion to vacate arbitration award);

Axis Ins. Co. v. Farah & Farah, P.A., 503 Fed. Appx. 947 (11th Cir. 2013) (affirming summary judgment in favor of insurer because there was no duty to indemnify law firm in malpractice action where prior member of firm had prior knowledge);

Zodiac Group, Inc. v. Axis Surplus Ins. Co., 542 Fed. Appx. 844 (11th Cir. 2013) (Affirming dismissal of declaratory judgment action because policy did not cover defense of indemnity of lawsuit);

Choy v. Faraldo, 120 So. 3d 92 (Fla. 4th DCA 2013) (reversing new trial order and reinstating jury verdict in favor of client in vehicle collision and alleged total permanent disability case);

King v. Baptist Hosp. of Miami, Inc., 87 So. 3d 39 (Fla. 3d DCA 2012) (reversing order of dismissal in medical malpractice case);

Hanson v. Fowler, White, Burnett, P.A., 117 So. 3d 1127 (Fla. 3d DCA 2012) (affirming summary judgment in favor of law firm in legal malpractice dispute);

Forbes v. St. Thomas Univ., Inc., 456 Fed. Appx. 809 (11th Cir. 2012) (finding that there was no genuine dispute that the school accommodated student’s alleged disability and that those accommodations were reasonable);

Harris v. Grunow, 71 So. 3d 186 (Fla. 3d DCA 2011) (reversing new trial order and remanding for entry of jury verdict in mangrove cutting case);

Delgado v. Laundromax, Inc., 65 So. 3d 1087 (Fla. 3d DCA 2011) (affirming summary judgment in favor of client in transitory substance slip-and-fall case).