Ms. Gallagher has practiced for 30 years, concentrating on state and federal civil appeals and insurance coverage litigation.  She has handled hundreds of appeals with published opinions in all areas of civil practice.  She regularly appears before all five of Florida's District Courts of Appeal, as well as, the Supreme Court of Florida and Eleventh Judicial Circuit Court of Appeals.  She also appears before trial courts, both state and federal, throughout the state.  Ms. Gallagher is recognized by her peers as being at the top of her field and presently handles appeals in all areas of civil practice including tort liability, products liability, professional malpractice and insurance coverage.

Regularly published, her articles have appeared in the Florida Bar Journal, The Trial Advocate Quarterly (the publication of the Florida Defense Lawyers' Association) and "The Record" (the publication of the Appellate Section of the Florida Bar) as well as the University of Florida Law Review.  She is presently on the Editorial Board for the Trial Advocate Quarterly, a member of the Executive Council and Chairman of the CLE Committee for the Appellate Section of the Florida Bar.  Ms. Gallagher is a past member of the Legal Needs of Children Committee of the Florida Bar and the Florida Bar's Appellate Rules Committee. She presently serves on the Florida Bar's Standing Committee on Continuing Legal Education. Ms. Gallagher was elected to the Board of Trustees for the University of Florida College of Law, effective September 2007.

Areas of Practice:

Appellate and Insurance Coverage

Appellate practice, civil appeals, all areas

Trial and Appellate practice, insurance coverage disputes

Litigation Support in complex legal matters

Bar Admissions:

Florida, 1977

U.S. District Court Middle District of Florida

U.S. Court of Appeals 5th Circuit, 1981

U.S. Court of Appeals 11th Circuit, 1982

U.S. Supreme Court, 1989

Education:

University of Florida College of Law, Gainesville, FL , 1976
J.D.
Honors:  Cum Laude,  Executive Editor, University of Florida Law Review

Cornell University, Ithaca, New York, 1974
B.S.
Honors:  Academic Scholarship Recipient

Published Works:

The Apellate Opinion is Out -- Now What Do I Do? 82 Fla. B. J. 29, May, 2008

Florida's Third District Court of Appeal - Balancing Justice May It Please the Court Ch. 8, Centennial Press, 2007

Preserving the Record for Appeal Ch. 30, The Defense Speaks, Florida Defense Lawyers Association, 2006

Revisiting The Use Of Declaratory Judgment Actions To Determine Insurance Coverage Issues Trial Advocate Q., Vol. 24, No. 3, Summer, 2005

Setting the Standard: A Fresh Look at Finding the Right Standard of Review The Record, Florida Bar Journal Appellate Practice Section, Winter, 2005

Preserving the Record for Appeal: Six Basic Steps Trial Advocate Q., Vol. 23, No. 4, Fall, 2004

Spreading the Pain: Suing Subsequent Tortfeasors in Nursing Home Cases Trial Advocate Q., Vol. 23, No. 4, Fall, 2004

Ten Signs That You Need an Appellate Lawyer 78 Fla. B. J. 65, May 2004

Confessions of an Abuser of Motions for Extension of Time and Other Stories The Record, Florida Bar Journal Appellate Practice Section, Fall, 2003

Third DCA Chief Judge Alan Schwartz - "A Most Happy Fella" The Record, Florida Bar Journal Appellate Practice Section, Spring, 2003

Using Declaratory Judgment Actions to Determine Insurance Coverage Actions - Lawyer Beware Trial Advocate Q., Vol. 14, No. 3, July, 1995

In Personam Jurisdiction: Expansion But Restrictions Trial Advocate Q., Jan., 1987

The Inseparable-Appellate Law and the Trial Lawyer 59 Fla. B. J. 43, March, 1985

Author: Comment, "Florida's Loitering Statute - Round Two" 29 Univ. of Fla. Law Review 250, 1975

Classes/Seminars Taught:

Speaker, Bridge the Gap Seminar, "Handling Your Case Once The Appellate Opinion is Out" The Florida Bar, October 5, 2007 - Present

Speaker, Bridge the Gap Seminar, "The Opinion's Out--Now What?", The Florida Bar  September 8, 2006

Speaker, 10th Annual Claims Conference, "Preserving the Record on Appeal or How to Keep Your Appellate Lawyer Employed", Florida Defense Lawyers Association  June 1, 2006

Speaker, "Everything (and More) That You Want to Know About Attorney's Fees in 45 Minutes or Less", Florida Defense Lawyers Association  August 5, 2004

Speaker, Investiture of the Honorable R. Fred Lewis, as the seventy-eighth Justice of the Supreme Court of Florida  February 5, 1999

Speaker, 10th Annual Third DCA Appellate Practice Seminar  May 7, 1993

Honors and Awards:

University of Florida College of Law, Board of Trustees, 2007

Listed, Florida Trend Magazine, Florida's Legal Elite, appellate practice area, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008

amed Florida "Super Lawyer" in Appellate Practice, Law & Politics Magazine - an honor awarded to only the top 5% of the attorneys in Florida; 2007, 2008

Listed Florida Super Lawyers, Top 50 Women Lawyers in Florida, 2007

Listed, Tampa Bay Magazine, Tampa Bay's Best Lawyers, Appellate Practice, 2008

Recipient, "Lawyer in the Spotlight Award," Hillsborough Assoc. of Women Lawyers, 2004

Listed, The Best Lawyers in America, Woodward/White, Inc., Appellate Law, 2008

Recipient, Best Amicus Brief Award, Florida Defense Lawyers Assoc., 1996

"AV" Rated by Martindale Hubbell

Professional Associations and Memberships:

The Florida Bar, 2007

Member, Standing Committee on Continuing Legal Education

The Florida Bar, 2004 - 2006

Member, Appellate Rules Committee

The Florida Bar, 1979 - 1981

Member, Appellate Rules Committee

The Florida Bar, 2003 - Present

Member, Legal Needs of Children Committee

The Florida Bar, 2004 - Present

Charter Member, Appellate Section; Member, Executive Council

The Florida Bar, 1984 - 1985

Vice Chairman, Grievance Committee

The Florida Bar, 1982 - 1985

Member, Grievance Committee

Florida Defense Lawyers Association, 2004 - 2006

Chairman, Editorial Board, Trial Advocate Quarterly

Florida Defense Lawyers Association, 2006 - Present

Member, Editorial Board, Trial Advocate Quarterly

Florida Defense Lawyers Association, 1992 - 1996

Member, Editorial Board, Trial Advocate Quarterly

Florida Defense Lawyers Association, 1985 - 1989

Member, Editorial Board, Trial Advocate Quarterly

Florida Defense Lawyers Association, 1988 - 1989

Member, Board of Directors

Florida Defense Lawyers Association, 1985 - 1986

Member, Board of Directors

Orange County Bar Association, 2007 - Present

Member, Appellate Practice Committee

Dade County Bar Association, 1985 - 1986

Member, Board of Directors

Dade County Bar Association, 1983 - 1984

Chairman, Appellate Court Committee

Dade County Bar Association, 1980 - 1981

Chairman, Appellate Court Committee

Dade County Defense Bar Association, 1988 - 1989

Member, Board of Directors

Dade County Defense Bar Association, 1985 - 1986

Member, Board of Directors

Hillsborough County Bar Association, 1994 - Present

Member

Florida Association of Women Lawyers

Hillsborough County Association of Women Lawyers

Hillsborough Community College

Adjunct Instructor & Advisory Comm. Member, Legal Assisting Program

Birth Information:

June 15, 1952, Summit, New Jersey