Profile
Harry A. Payton founded Payton & Associates and continues to lead its pre-eminent commercial litigation practice. A South Florida resident for most of his life, Mr. Payton represents various corporations, developers, entrepreneurs and financial institutions in business litigation matters ranging from contract disputes and business torts to real estate, construction, lender liability, foreclosures and bankruptcy adversary proceedings. Recognized by his peers as a diligent, persistent, ethical litigator, he has received consistent awards as Top Lawyer in Complex Commercial Litigation and Real Estate Litigation in the South Florida Legal Guide and Florida Super Lawyers. Mr. Payton also holds an *AV Preeminent rating and is one of only 97 attorneys statewide who has been certified as a specialist in both civil trial and business litigation by the Florida Bar Board of Legal Specialization and Education.
*AV Preeminent and BV Distinguished are certification marks of Reed Elsevier Properties Inc., used in accordance with the Martindale-Hubbell certification procedures, standards and policies. Martindale-Hubbell is the facilitator of a peer review rating process. Ratings reflect the anonymous opinions of members of the bar and the judiciary. Martindale-Hubbell peer review ratings fall into two categories: legal ability and general ethical standards.
About Harry Payton
Law School: Georgetown University Law Center
Admitted: 1966, Florida
Professional Webpage: www.payton-law.com/attorney-profiles/harry-payton/
Honors and Awards:
- Named in the South Florida Legal Guide as One of the Top Lawyers in Complex Commercial Litigation and Real Estate Litigation, 2005 - 2011
Special Licenses/Certifications:
- Board Certified Civil Trial and Business Litigation Lawyer, Florida Bar Board of Legal Specialization and Education
Bar/Professional Activity:
- Florida Bar Judicial Nominating Procedures Committee, three-year term beginning July, 2011
- Member, Judicial Administration and Evaluation Committee, The Florida Bar, 2008 - July, 2011
- American Association for Justice
- Florida Justice Association
- Dade County Bar Association
- Subcommittee on Billing and Budgeting, Corporate Counsel Committee, American Bar Association, Section of Litigation
- Co-Chair, American Bar Association, 1998 - 2004
- Vice Chair, American Bar Association, 1994 - 1997
- Chair, Business Litigation Certification Committee, Board of Legal Specialization and Education, 2000 - 2001
- Vice Chair, Business Litigation Certification Committee, Board of Legal Specialization and Education, 1999 - 2000
- Member, Business Litigation Certification Committee, Board of Legal Specialization and Education, 1997 - 2002
- Chair, Communications Committee, Board of Legal Specialization and Education, 2007 - 2008
- Member, Communications Committee, Board of Legal Specialization and Education, 2006 - 2008
- Member, Executive Committee, Board of Legal Specialization and Education, 2004 - 2007
- Member, Standards Committee, Board of Legal Specialization and Education, 2002 - 2005
- Chair, Board of Legal Specialization and Education, 2005 - 2006
- Vice Chair, Board of Legal Specialization and Education, 2004 - 2005
- Member, Board of Legal Specialization and Education, 2002 - 2008
- Member, Grievance Committee, The Florida Bar, 1976 - 1979
- Council on Litigation Management, 2009 - Present
- Advisory Board, Law Department Consortium, 2008 - Present
Scholarly Lectures and Writings:
- Speaker, "Lender Liability-The Small Practitioner's Viewpoint," American Trial Lawyers Association, Orlando, Florida, January 22, 1990
- CLE Lecturer, "Traps for the Unwary, Lost Profits and Valuation of Closely Held Corporations," St. Thomas University School of Law, June 17, 1993
- Speaker, "Current Trends in Accounting Liability," The CPA Club of Greater Miami, June 17, 1994
- Speaker, "The Agreement for Deed from Hell," Attorney's Title Insurance Fund Assembly, May 17, 1995
- Speaker, "Marketing Your Skills to Attorneys in Civil Litigation," Florida Institute of Certified Public Accountants, August 16, 1995
- Author, "Task-Based Billing -- Management Control Over the Litigation Process In House and Outside," Corporate Counsel Newsletter, Section of Litigation, American Bar Association, Vol. 43, August 1995
- Co-Author with Greg Nguyen, "The Corporate Provisional Director: Has Due Process Been Overlooked?" Florida Bar Journal, October 1998
- Author, "Task-Based Billing -- Overcoming Fear," Florida Bar Journal, January 1998
- Panelist, "Advice from the Experts: Successful Strategies for Winning Commercial Cases in Federal Courts," Florida Bar Business Law Section Seminar, Miami, September 27, 2002
- Speaker, "The Litigation Management Scorecard-What Law Firms Will Buy Into," Litigation Management Scorecard Symposium, Chicago, Illinois, Oct. 24, 2004
- Moderator, "The Rise and Fall and Future of Special Billing Arrangements Including Task Based Billing," American Bar Association, Section of Litigation, Corporate Counsel Committee, February 19, 2005
- Faculty Member, Law Department Consortium "Managing Litigation as a Business," Chicago, Illinois, October 29, 2008
- Faculty Member, Law Department Consortium "Managing Litigation as a Business," Washington, D.C., March 31, 2009
- Faculty Member, Law Department Consortium "Managing Litigation as a Business," Law Department Consortium: Royal Bank of Canada, Toronto, Ontario, June 9, 2009
- Speaker, "Managing Litigation Reference Model," Annual Conference of the Council on Litigation Management, Pointe Vedra, Florida, March 24-26, 2010
- Program Leader and Panelist, "2011 Florida Distressed Real Estate Summit.," re: "When Workouts Don't Work Out - Litigation, Receivers, Lender Liability and More," and "Workouts & Recapitalization." Sponsored by GreenPearl Events, Miami, Florida, January 27, 2011
Other Outstanding Achievements:
- Honorable Discharge, National Guard
Educational Background:
- Florida State University, B.S., Cum Laude, Phi Kappa Phi, 1961
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