Legal Services & Lawyers

Mr. Shestokas earned his B.A. in Political Science from Bradley University in 1975 and his Juris Doctor from The John Marshall Law School, cum laude, in June of 1987. He also studied law at Trinity College in Dublin, Ireland.

Mr. Shestokas is the author of Get Your Illinois Suspended License Back. He has appeared in court on cases involving suspended/revoked driver's licenses more than 10,000 times as a prosecutor or a defense attorney. He is the feature writer in the area of Law, Crime & Justice for the online magazine, Suite 101.



Mr. Shestokas founded the Law Office of David Shestokas in November, 1987. After practicing in areas such as criminal defense, corporate law, real estate, and business financing, he later served as Assistant State’s Attorney for the Cook County State’s Attorney’s Office in Chicago, IL, from 1994 to 1998, involved in over 5,000 criminal prosecutions. During that time he also worked on the Felony Review Unit, participating in police investigations and making charging decisions in over 400 felony matters.


Mr. Shestokas has been admitted to practice law before the Illinois Supreme Court in 1987, the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois in 1988, the Supreme Court of Florida in 2004, and the United States District Court for the Middle District of Florida in 2006. Additionally, he has participated in numerous activities and associations; for instance, he has been a member of the Lemont Law Enforcement Association (1998-2004), Lemont Public Library Trustee (1995-2004), Lemont Township Board of School Trustees (1998-1999), the Chicago Bar Association (from 1999 to the present), the Baltic Bar Association (1991 to the present), and has been a contributor to RWSCC Insider from 2005 to the present.


Mr. Shestokas was also the Republican nominee for the United States Congress (5th District) in 1990 and a Republican candidate for the U.S. Congress (13th District) from 1997-1998. He has studied Spanish in both Cuba (2005) and Costa Rica (2006).


Shestokas and Raines was established in November of 1998 and continues its practice concentrating in criminal and traffic defense, as well as residential real estate

Florida criminal defense lawyer Shlomi Presser has an extensive background providing outstanding criminal defense services in both state and federal courts. Attorney Presser completed his undergraduate studies at Florida State University, majoring in Criminology and Criminal Justice. He received his Juris Doctorate from Nova Southeastern University College of Law and is a member of the Florida Bar Association.

Following law school, Attorney Presser served as an Assistant Public Defender for the 17th Judicial Circuit Court of Florida. During his time as a Public Defender, he defended countless misdemeanor and felony cases, while honing his skills as a criminal defense lawyer. His experience as a criminal defense attorney includes handling thousands of cases ranging from misdemeanor driving while license suspended, all the way up to attempted 1st degree murder cases. He has a trial success rate of over 80%, and has been able to get many cases dismissed prior to trial through motions.

As a committed defense attorney, Shlomi Presser is a true asset to the Musca Law team. His years of experience and knowledge of the law make him an effective advocate on behalf of our clients. Attorney Presser believes in fighting his clients case before it goes to court by bringing to light any false evidence, lying witnesses, exaggerated charges, illegal searches or illegal arrests. He makes every attempt to prevent charges from being filed and aggressively negotiates on behalf of his clients for bail reductions, jail alternatives, dismissals, reduced fines, or reduced jail time.

Shlomi Presser provides his clients with a high level of professionalism, strong work ethics, a reputation for honesty and integrity, and a track record of success. Given the facts and circumstances of each particular case, Attorney Presser works hard to formulate a rigorous defense strategy to protect the rights of his clients. As an experienced criminal defense attorney, he understands the high stakes and unique nuances of each case. Attorney Presser has developed a reputation with judges and prosecutors for taking an aggressive, proactive, yet tactful approach to each case. Musca Law clients have consistently expressed gratitude for having such a talented, tenacious criminal defense lawyer represent them.

Emphasizing our Firm Philosophy, Attorney Presser has worked diligently to indentify benchmarks and strategic planning for the entire legal staff at Musca Law, adding to the strength of representation we provide our clients. His insightful team recommendations and mentoring skills have proved to be a key advantage in our team approach of effective, yet affordable client services.

Maintaining the highest level of professionalism with all of his clients is a priority for Attorney Presser and his staff of legal assistants. As with all of our Musca Law legal professionals, we use due diligence in providing updates to our clients on the progress of their cases, so that they are able to make informed decisions.

* Admitted to: Florida Bar, 1993; Tennessee Bar, 2007; U.S. District Court, Middle District of Florida, 2000; U.S. Supreme Court, 2006.

* Primary practice areas: Estate Planning (wills, trusts, Probate), Elder Law, Medicaid Planning, Real Estate (commercial and residential title closings, transactions, and Business Entities.

* A featured speaker for the 2007 Financial Professionals Expo, Tampa, Florida, and the 2000 Money Sense Live personal-finance seminar sponsored by the Tampa Tribune and the Financial Planning Association of Tampa Bay. Frequent seminar speaker on the topic of estate planning. Several appearances on local television shows, including FLA Law (cable), Eight on Your Side (NBC Ch. 8). 1995-1997 host of radio show Ask an Attorney.

* Member: Florida Bar Association (Real Property, Probate & Trust Law Section and Elder Law Section); Clearwater Bar Association; St. Petersburg Bar Association; The Florida Bar 6th Judicial Circuit Grievance Committee (2008-2011 term), Attorneys Title Insurance Fund, Inc.; Bay Area Real Estate Council.

Offices in Clearwater, Palm Harbor and Tampa

"We help good people get through bad times".
Currently my main efforts include Personal Bankruptcy in Chapter 7 & 13 and Business Bankruptcy in Chapter 11. Clients include retirees with limited social security incomes to international small charter jet companies; small to mid sized construction companies; and various other small businesses. Mr. Martin is also a member of the Turnaround Management Association, an organization whose members focus on helping businesses resolve financial difficulties and avoiding bankruptcy or at least getting the most value as a result.

President, CEO, Shareholder and Founding Partner of the firm in 1978, Richard D. Schuler has been actively involved in Civil Trial Litigation for 33 years. He has considerable experience in defending and prosecuting civil cases. For the past 28 years, his practice has been deveoted to representing injured plaintiffs in complex matters including medical malpractice, product liability, airplane crashes, construction accidents, automobile accidents and other types of personal injury claims.

Andres Montejo was born in Bogota, Colombia South America in 1959. Attended private boarding schools in Massachusetts. Earned a Technological degree in Computer Administration. In 1990 earned a Bachelors of Science in Business Administration, in 1992 earned a Masters in Business Administration, and in 2003 earned a Juris Doctor degree, all from Nova Southeastern University located in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. Was admitted in 2003 to the Florida Bar.

Andres is not only a member of the Florida Bar but also of the Washington D.C. Bar. He has also been admitted to the Federal Courts of Florida and Washington DC as well as the appellate Federal Courts for those jurisdictions.

Since incorporating his practice in early 2004, he has handled numerous cases in various branches of the judicial system. He has focused in Real Estate. His firm is a member of Attorney's Title Insurance Fund and thus conducts closings on a regular basis. Currently based on the market conditions, he is mainly focused on foreclosure defense.


At The Law Office of the General Counsel PA, a private Law Firm, we focus in Real Estate. Whether you are doing a closing or needing help in a Foreclosure matter, we are here to assist. We also take cases relating to Family Law, Criminal Procedure, Probate, Guardianship, or Civil Litigation.

We have represented clients from over 45 states and 20 foreign countries. While the diversity of our work mirrors the diversity of our clients, our primary areas of practice are civil litigation, real estate and title services, and estate planning and probate. We commonly work with other firms both to represent their clients in local matters and to obtain additional counsel in matters beyond our areas of practice.

Practice Areas
Local government law, including serving as general counsel for the St. Augustine – St. Johns County Airport Authority and the City of St. Augustine Beach, Florida. Mr. Burnett’s practice also includes real estate development, real property and construction litigation, land use planning, comprehensive planning and concurrency, development agreements, financing and transactional matters. Mr. Burnett has represented all participants in the real estate development business including landowners, developers, contractors, lenders and brokers. His experience includes management of sensitive and controversial applications for development approval. Mr. Burnett has also handled litigation of contested zoning matters before the trial and Appellate Courts.

Education

University of North Florida, B.B.A. 1994
Widener University School of Law, J.D. 1998
Experience

Former Assistant County Attorney in St. Johns County, Florida.
Former Assistant State Attorney in St. Johns County, Florida.
Former Shareholder at Rogers Towers, P.A.
Regularly serves as outside counsel to local governments.
Represents numerous landowners and developers in negotiating with local government to obtain Development Agreements and Impact Fee Credit Agreements.
Represents landowners and developers seeking amendments to the Comprehensive Plan and vesting under the Comprehensive Plan.
Successful plat and street vacations.
Extensive trial experience, including over thirty jury trials and non-jury trials, as well as mediation and arbitration.
Representation of owners, general contractors, subcontractors, and design professionals in disputes and litigation involving both commercial and residential contract and construction claims.
Professional Activities

St. Augustine Lighthouse (Board Member and Founding Lights Member)
St. Johns County American Cancer Society (Former Cattle Baron)
St. Johns County Bar Association (Past President)
St. Johns County Education Foundation (Board Member)
St. Johns County Salvation Army (Advisory Council Member)
Flagler College (Prior Visiting Instructor)
Bar Memberships

The Florida Bar
United States District Court for the Middle District of Florida

Steve Fahlgren is a general practioner in Hilliard, Florida. He handles most types of civil litigation but does not take cases against consumers and does not practice criminal law. For a listing of practice areas, please see them below.

Mr. Fahlgren also practices debt collection defense and credit litigation throughout Florida. He is AV rates (the highest) by Martindale-Hubbell, the oldest and most widely used lawyer rating service. Mr. Fahlgren recognizes that credit reputation is becoming even more important every day. For over four years, Mr. Fahlgren has represented consumers exclusively in consumer litigation matters. During his more than eleven years of experience, Mr. Fahlgren has represented consumers in litigation relating to the Fair Credit Reporting Act, the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, Florida's Consumer Collection Practices Act, Florida's Unfair and Deceptive Trade Practices Act, the Truth in Lending Act, the Consumer Leasing Act, the Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act, Florida's Motor Vehicle Retail Sales Finance Act, Florida's Motor Vehicle Repair Act, Florida's Title Loan Act, Florida's Motor Vehicle Lease Disclosure Act, Florida's False Advertising law, Equal Credit Opportunity Act, Fair Housing Act, and has also handled claims involving fraud, negligent misrepresentation, conversion, civil theft, breach of fiduciary duty, breach of express warranty, breach of implied warranty, assault, battery, false imprisonment, and restitution. Mr. Fahlgren has litigated credit report errors and is very experienced in all facets of Fair Credit Report Litigation from the credit dispute letters to the requirement that credit bureaus maintain reasonable procedures to ensure maximum possible accuracy.

Mr. Fahlgren handles cases in the following Florida counties and occasionally handles cases outside of those counties when the circumstances merit: Baker, Bradford, Clay, Columbia, Duval, Flagler, Hamilton, Nassau, Putnam, St. Johns, Suwannee, Union, Citrus, Lake, Marion, Sumter, Brevard, Orange, Osceola, Seminole, Volusia, Hardee, Hernando, Hillsborough, Manatee, Pasco, Pinellas, Polk, Sarasota, Charlotte, Collier, DeSoto, Glades, Hendry and Lee. Mr. Fahlgren handles cases in the following Florida cities, among others: Jacksonville, Bryceville, Hilliard, Orlando, St. Augustine, Gainesville, Ocala, Daytona Beach, Deland, Haines City, Altamonte Springs, Apopka, Bartow, Casselberry, Cocoa, Edgewood, Fort Meade, Atlantic Beach, Celebration, Deltona, Eustis, Eagle Lake, Fort Myers, Hawthorne, Holly Hill, Lady Lake, Lake Wales, Maitland, Neptune Beach, Palm Bay, Lake alfred, Lake Mary, Melbourne Beach, Mount Dora, Ocoee, Orange Park, Keystone Heights, Oviedo, Ponce Inlet, Indialantic, Kissimmee, Lakeland, Leesburg, Longwood, Minneola, Clermont, New Smyrna, Palatka, Port Orange, Brevard, St. Cloud, Tavares, Winter Garden, Winter Springs, Sanford, Tampa, Winter Haven, and Winter Park. Many of Mr. Fahlgren's clients cannot afford to pay on an hourly basis, so Mr. Fahlgren often takes cases on a contingency fee basis if the client's expectations are reasonable.

After graduating with Honors from the University of Florida College of Law, Mr. Fahlgren began his legal career practicing commercial litigation and collection law at Foster & Kelly, P.A. He then joined Fisher, Rushmer, et al and expanded his practice to the areas of consumer litigation and employment litigation. Mr. Fahlgren left Fisher, Rushmer et al. to form his own firm, Law Offices of Steven M. Fahlgren, P.A., to focus on consumer litigation. Mr. Fahlgren, who formerly served as a Counterintelligence Agent in the U.S. Army, is a member of the Florida Bar, the State Bar of Georgia, all state and federal courts in Florida, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit, and the Supreme Court of the United States. Mr. Fahlgren is a member of the National Association of Consumer Advocates, the Florida Academy of Trial Lawyers, and is a graduate of Leadership Orlando Class 48.

Mr. Fahlgren has published various articles on Consumer Law. Over the years, Mr. Fahlgren has lectured on computer law and internet related issues and has provided information in in numerous stories for television, radio and newspapers. For over a year, Mr. Fahlgren hosted a popular radio show entitled "For the Consumer" on AM 950 WTLN in Orlando.

Mr. Fahlgren also handles a very select few cases involving employment law matters. He has filed claims for age discrimination, sexual harassment, gender discrimination, retaliation, unpaid wages, Fair Labor Standards Act, and the Family Medical Leave Act. Mr. Fahlgren's jury trial experience includes a patent infringement trial lasting in excess of five weeks and a ground breaking same-sex sexual harassment trial in which Mr. Fahlgren's client obtained a jury verdict for an amount in excess of one million dollars.

In November 2007, Mr. Fahlgren and his co-counsel obtained a record $2.9 million dollar verdict against Equifax for violations of the Fair Credit Reporting Act.

Mr. Fahlgren is also a Certified Circuit Civil Mediator and has fulfilled the arbitrator training required by the Supreme Court of Florida for court appointed arbitrators. Having represented both sides in his career, Mr. Fahlgren is a successful mediator.

For more information, please feel free to contact Mr. Fahlgren's office by contacting me at (904) 845-2255 or my cell (407) 852-1711. My email for potential clients is stevefahlgren@gmail.com

In 1982, Mr. Felice began his career in Cincinnati, Ohio, as an attorney practicing in the areas of construction, real estate and consumer law. In 1988, he took a position as corporate counsel for Zaring National Corporation, a multi-state merchant builder/developer. During his tenure at Zaring, Felice worked in the areas of construction, site acquisition, land use and entitlement procurement, community development and community management.

Mr. Felice became licensed to practice law in Florida in 1990. He relocated to Florida in 1992. Thereafter, Felice joined Scarborough Corporation, a subsidiary of housing giant Weyerhaeuser Real Estate Company. During his tenure with Scarborough, Felice remained involved in both legal and business decision making as he directed the development and operation of the companyâs most highly regulated real estate projects, including the Rocky Point Harbor Development of Regional Impact and the Silverthorn Community Development District. Silverthorn utilized public bond financing in the construction of community improvements.

Mr. Felice joined Blair Communities as its Vice President of Acquisitions in 2000 and was appointed President in September of 2004. Blair Communities (an affiliate of Sembler Investments, Inc.), is a merchant home builder and developer of active adult lifestyle communities. In addition to operational oversight, Felice provided and supervised the delivery of legal services in the areas of contracts, construction, real estate, zoning, land use, community development and community management. While with Blair, Felice was instrumental in the establishment of the Arlington Ridge Community Development District and, as of the date of this writing, still serves as its Chairman.

In September, 2008, Felice stepped down as President of Blair Communities. He then reentered private practice, forming Terra Law Firm. P. A. Terra provides those legal services typically associated with community development and homebuilding industry as well work in the areas of community associations, foreclosure and bankruptcy.

Felice is a graduate of Kent State University (BBA), the University of Cincinnati (MBA) and the University of Akron School of Law (JD). He is a member of the Florida Bar, the Ohio State Bar, and is licensed to practice before the Supreme Court of Florida, the Supreme Court of Ohio, and United States District Courts for the Southern District of Ohio, Eastern District of Kentucky, and Middle District of Florida. He is a member of the Hillsborough County Bar Association, several construction trade organizations and holds a license as a Florida Certified Building Contractor (CBC 1255715).

My real estate practice focuses on the acquisition, lease and development of commercial and residential properties, including office buildings, retail centers, condominiums, apartment complexes and single-family homes. I regularly draft and negotiate purchase contracts and ground leases for my clients, and work closely in conjunction with the them and their respective project management teams to help anticipate and resolve any issues that may arise throughout the inspection and development of the properties. I also have practical experience in the areas of commercial lending, real estate financing, and the creation of condominium and homeowner associations. The clients that I represent are particularly appreciative of my ability to continuously keep them updated as to the most current status of their matters, and advise accordingly regarding what steps should be taken next to help ensure a smooth and successful transaction.