Named Top Small Litigation Firm in Florida by Super Lawyers
Selection is based on peer recognition, professional achievement and Super Lawyers' independent research. The result is an unsolicited and powerful endorsement of our firm.
Dedicated to the practice of law
For nearly thirty years, we've been handling a variety of complex business and civil litigation matters in state and federal court, both at the trial court level and on appeal.
A lawyer’s law firm
Our clients include many lawyers and law firms, who turn to us to help them resolve their most difficult and trying challenges and to meet their most significant litigation needs.
Six lawyers, one commitment
We take great pride in our work. As a leading boutique litigation firm, we provide a level of personal service and attention to our clients’ cases that we believe cannot be matched by larger firms.
Mr. King is the founding shareholder of King, Blackwell, Zehnder & Wermuth, P.A. Board certified by The Florida Bar as a Civil Trial Lawyer since 1983, Mr. King devotes a significant portion of his practice to complex commercial litigation, legal malpractice defense, and personal injury and wrongful death cases, in both state and federal courts. Originally, from Cookeville, Tennessee, Mr. King graduated with an LL.B. from Vanderbilt University in 1965. While at Vanderbilt, Mr. King was on the Board of Editors of the Vanderbilt Law Review. After serving in the United States Marine Corps and completing a tour of duty in Vietnam, Mr. King moved to Orlando in 1968, joined the Orange County Bar Association and served on its Executive Council from 1977-1982, and as its President from 1980-1981. In 1986, Mr. King was Chair of the Ninth Circuit Judicial Nominating Commission, and he served on the Board of Governors for The Florida Bar from 1988-1992, where he co-chaired the Disciplinary Review Committee overseeing lawyer discipline statewide. In May of 1994, Mr. King was selected as the inaugural recipient of the Orange County Bar Association’s highest award: the William E. Trickel, Jr. Professionalism Award. In 1998, Mr. King was inducted as a Fellow into the America College of Trial Lawyers, the premier professional trial lawyer organization in America.
Bar Admissions
Florida, 1965
U.S. District Court, Middle District of Florida
U.S. Court of Appeals, 11th Circuit
U.S. Supreme Court
Certifications
Board Certified Civil Trial Lawyer, The Florida Bar
Education
Vanderbilt University School of Law, LL.B., 1965
Vanderbilt University Law Review, Member, Board of Editors, 1963-1965
Tennessee Technological University, B.S., 1963
Honors and Awards
AV Rated – Martindale-Hubbell
Recipient, Orange County Bar Association William E. Trickel, Jr. Professionalism Award, 1994
Selected for inclusion in Chambers USA, Band 1, Leading Individuals in Commercial Litigation, 2010-present
Selected for inclusion in Best Lawyers in America in Civil Litigation and Bet-the-Company Litigation for 20 years
Recognized by Florida Super Lawyers as one of Florida’s Top 100 lawyers, 2007-2012
Recognized by Florida Super Lawyers as one of the Top 10 Attorneys in Florida, 2008
Recognized by Florida Trend Magazine as a member of the Legal Elite Hall of Fame, 2012
Professional Associations and Memberships
American College of Trial Lawyers, Fellow
American Bar Association, Member
Orange County Bar Association: Executive Council (1977-1982); President (1980-1981)
The Florida Bar, Member
Married
Marilyn McDaniel King
Children
David B. King, Jr. (deceased), Michael Houston King, and T. Christopher King
A fifth generation Floridian, Bruce B. Blackwell was raised in rural Marion County, graduated from Florida State University (FSU) with a B.A. in 1968, and served as an Officer in the United States Air Force from 1968-1972. In 1974, Mr. Blackwell graduated from FSU’s College of Law with Honors. Before entering private civil trial practice in 1981, Mr. Blackwell was an attorney for Southern Bell Telephone & Telegraph Co., and later an antitrust attorney with AT&T. He is a founding shareholder of King, Blackwell, Zehnder & Wermuth, P.A., and devotes his practice to complex civil litigation. He has been admitted to practice in Florida, Georgia (presently inactive), and New York. Mr. Blackwell has served as President of the Orange County Bar Association (OCBA), as a member of the Board of Governors of The Florida Bar, overseeing the disciplinary system statewide, and as President of The Florida Bar Foundation and The Supreme Court Historical Society. He is listed in Best Lawyers, in Florida Trend’s Legal Elite Hall of Fame, and has received numerous local, statewide and national awards for his service to the legal profession. In 2003, Mr. Blackwell received the OCBA’s highest award, the William E. Trickel, Jr. Professionalism Award, and in 2011, he received The Florida Bar Foundation’s Medal of Honor, the highest award bestowed upon a Florida lawyer.
Florida State University College of Law, Tallahassee, Florida, J.D. with Honors, 1974
Florida State University, B.A., 1968
Honors and Awards
AV Rated – Martindale-Hubbell
Recipient, American Jurisprudence Book Awards
The Florida Bar Award of Merit for Runner-up-Best Single Member Project Statewide, 1983
Judge J.C. "Jake" Stone Distinguished Pro Bono Service Award, 1996
Friend of FAWL Annual Award, Florida Association for Women Lawyers, 1997
The Florida Bar President's Ninth Circuit Pro Bono Service Award, 1997
The Florida Bar Foundation President's Award, 2002
OCBA William E. Trickel Jr. Professionalism Award, 2003
American Bar Association’s (ABA) Grassroots Advocacy Award, 2008
Florida Council of Bar Association Presidents, Outstanding Voluntary Bar President Award 2008
Judge James G. Glazebrook Memorial Outstanding Member Award, 2008
The Florida Bar Foundation 34th Medal of Honor, 2011
Selected for inclusion in The Best Lawyers in America, 2006-Present, 2009-2012 in the categories of Commercial Litigation, Bet the Company Litigation, and Litigation Real Estate
Selected for inclusion in The American Lawyer as a Top Commercial Litigator, 2006-2011
Recognized by the Orlando Business Journal’s “Best of the Bar”, 2006
Selected for inclusion in Florida Trend Magazine, 2004-2012, Legal Elite Hall of Fame, 2009-2012
Selected for inclusion in Florida Super Lawyers Magazine, 2007-2012
Professional Associations and Memberships
Orange County Bar Association: President (1987-1988); Executive Council (1983-1986); Member, Judicial Relations Committee (1992-1994); Gender Bias Committee Chair (1991-1993); Fair Judicial Campaign Practices and Co-Chair (1998-2001)
The Legal Aid Society of the Orange County Bar Association: Board of Trustees (1984-1987)
American Bar Association, Member
The Florida Bar: Board of Governors (1994-1998); Supreme Court of Florida Pro Bono Service Committee (1995-1996); Annual Meeting Chair (1997); Access to Courts Committee Vice-Chair (1996-1997); Special Committee on Solo/Small Firm Practice Chair (1997-1998); Supreme Court Special Committee on Need for Add'l Courts of Appeals (1998-1999); Statewide Disciplinary Review Committee Co-Chair (1997-1998); Ancillary Business Law Firms Special Committee (1998-1999); Ninth Circuit Fee Arbitration Committee Chair (1993-1994); Mid-Year Meeting Chair (1986)
The Florida Bar Foundation: President (2007-2008); Board of Directors (1998 - Present); Secretary (2005-2006); Treasurer (2004-2005); Administration of Justice Committee and Executive Committee Chair (2000-2003);
Florida Supreme Court Historical Society: President (2010-2011)
Florida Academy of Trial Lawyers, Member
First Central Florida Inns of Court #123, Master and Counselor
Central Florida Corporate Counsel Association, President (1980-1981)
Grievance Committee Panel "D" Chair, Ninth Circuit, (1985-1986)
Florida State University Alumni Association, National President (1985-1986)
Florida State University College of Law Alumni Association, President-Elect (2005-2006)
Orlando Touchdown Club, Inc., President (1996-1997)
Married
Julie McMillan Blackwell
Children
Blair Allison Blackwell and Brooke Blackwell Castino. Two granddaughters: Emma Kate Castino and Allison Marie Castino.
A shareholder with King, Blackwell, Zehnder & Wermuth, P.A., Mr. Zehnder has practiced primarily as a commercial litigator in Orlando since he graduated with honors from the University of Florida College of Law in 1995. Mr. Zehnder has represented both individuals and corporations in a wide variety of complex commercial matters in state and federal courts, in arbitration and on appeal. Throughout his legal career, Mr. Zehnder has been active in leadership positions with the Orange County Bar Association (OCBA), first serving in the Young Lawyers’ Section, including as President in 2005-06. In 2011-12, Mr. Zehnder served as President of the OCBA, and remains a member of the Executive Council. In 2006, Mr. Zehnder received the OCBA’s highest honor awarded to a young lawyer: the Lawrence G. Mathews, Jr. Young Lawyer Professionalism Award. In 2004, Mr. Zehnder received The Florida Bar’s Young Lawyers Division Pro Bono Award, a statewide service award presented by the Florida Supreme Court and The Florida Bar’s YLD that recognizes extraordinary contributions in the provision of pro bono services.
Bar Admissions
Florida, 1995
U.S. District Court, Middle District of Florida
U.S. Court of Appeals, 11th Circuit
Education
University of Florida College of Law, Gainesville, Florida, J.D. with Honors, 1995
Valparaiso University, B.S. in Business Administration with Finance Concentration, 1991
Honors and Awards
AV Rated – Martindale-Hubbell
Recipient of Award of Excellence, The Legal Aid Society of the Orange County Bar Association, 2009
Recipient of the Orange County Bar Association's Lawrence G. Mathews, Jr. Young Lawyer Professionalism Award, 2006
Recipient of The Florida Bar's Young Lawyers Division Pro Bono Award, 2004
Recipient of New Attorney Award of Excellence, The Legal Aid Society of the Orange County Bar Association, 2001
Selected for inclusion in Best Lawyers in America, 2013
Selected for inclusion in FloridaSuper Lawyers Magazine 2010-2012; Rising Stars Edition 2009
Selected for inclusion in Florida Trend Magazine “Legal Elite,” 2006, 2007, 2010-2012
Professional Associations and Memberships
The Florida Bar Civil Rules Committee, Member (2010-Present)
Orange County Bar Association: Immediate Past President (present); President (2011-12); President-Elect (2010-2011); Treasurer (2009-2010); Secretary (2008-2009); Executive Council (2005-Present); Co-Editor of "The Briefs"(2007-2009)
OCBA Young Lawyers' Section: President (2005-2006); President Elect (2004-2005); Treasurer
(2003-2004); Board Member (2001-2006)
The Legal Aid Society of the Orange County Bar Association: Board of Trustees (2005-2009)
American Bar Association, Member
The Florida Bar, Member
The Federal Bar Association, Orlando Chapter, Member
Mr. Wermuth is a shareholder with King, Blackwell, Zehnder & Wermuth, P.A. Mr. Wermuth represents primarily large- and mid-sized businesses in commercial litigation in federal court and state business court. Mr. Wermuth has over 12 years of legal experience in which he has handled complex civil litigation from various perspectives – as trial counsel for the U.S. Department of Justice, as a federal district court law clerk, and as a private practitioner. Mr. Wermuth’s selected work since 2007 includes: successfully defending motions for preliminary injunction in government contract-award protests in federal court and state business court; and developing and drafting successful dispositive motions in over 15 cases, including as to multi-million dollar damage claims in MCO Airport Concessions LLC v. Greater Orlando Aviation Auth., 11-cv-742 (M.D. Fla.) (constitutional claims); Pierson v. Orlando Health et al., 08-cv-466 (M.D. Fla.) (defamation and conspiracy claims), Sheils et al. v. Kuhn et al., 08-cv-1704 (M.D. Fla.) (securities, fraud and RICO claims), United States ex rel. Shurick v. Boeing, 07-cv-1765 (M.D. Fla.) (false claims act claim), Design Pallets Inc. v. GrayRobinson P.A., 07-cv-655 (M.D. Fla.) (RICO claims).
Bar Admissions
Florida, 1999
District of Columbia, 2005
U.S. District Court, Middle District of Florida
Education
University of Florida College of Law, Gainesville, Florida, J.D., 1999
Honors: Magna Cum Laude, Order of the Coif
University of Florida College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, Gainesville, Florida, B.A., History, 1996
Honors: Summa Cum Laude, Phi Beta Kappa
Cambridge University, St. Catherine’s College, Cambridge, United Kingdom
Professional Associations and Memberships
Orange County Bar Association, Member
The Florida Bar, Member
The Federal Bar Association, Orlando Chapter, First Vice President
An associate with King, Blackwell, Zehnder & Wermuth, P.A., Mr. Ford focuses his practice on general litigation, with an emphasis on commercial and business disputes. Mr. Ford has represented corporations and individual clients in a variety of matters including breach of contract, securities, business torts, class actions, patents, real estate disputes, antitrust, e-discovery, banking, and fraud. In addition to his background in federal litigation and procedure, Mr. Ford has worked on all aspects of state court litigation, from discovery and motion practice, to preparing cases for jury and non-jury trial.
Bar Admissions
Florida, 2007
U.S. Court of Appeals, 11th Circuit
U.S. District Court, Middle District of Florida
U.S. District Court, Northern District of Florida
U.S. District Court, Southern District of Florida
Education
Vanderbilt University Law School, Nashville, Tennessee, J.D., 2007
Moot Court Champion; Vanderbilt Journal of Entertainment and Technology Law, Notes Editor
Vanderbilt University, Nashville, Tennessee, B.A. in Classics, Minor in Financial Economics, 2004
Honors: Summa Cum Laude, Phi Beta Kappa
Professional Associations and Memberships
American Bar Association, Litigation Section, Member; Antitrust Section, Member
The Florida Bar Association, Member
Orange County Bar Association, Member
Federal Bar Association, Federal Litigation Section, Member; Antitrust & Trade Regulation Section, Member
American Finance Association, Member
Federalist Society, Litigation Section, Member; Corporations, Securities, and Antitrust Section, Member
An associate with King, Blackwell, Zehnder & Wermuth, P.A., Mr. Falcone focuses his practice on litigating complex commercial disputes at the trial court and appellate levels. Mr. Falcone’s practice involves a wide array of tort and contract claims including breach of contract, breach of fiduciary duty, tortious interference, deceptive and unfair trade practices, and legal malpractice defense. He also has experience litigating non-compete and trade secrets actions, corporate disputes, and securities law claims, including the defense of securities class actions.
Bar Admissions
Florida, 2008
U.S. District Court, Middle District of Florida
U.S. District Court, Southern District of Florida
U.S. Court of Appeals, 11th Circuit
Education
Columbia Law School, New York, New York, J.D., 2008
Honors: James Kent Scholar, Harlan Fiske Stone Scholar,
Columbia Business Law Review, Managing Editor, 2006 - 2008
Boston College, Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts, B.A., Classics, 2004
Honors: Magna Cum Laude, Phi Beta Kappa, Wainer Award for Classics
Professional Associations and Memberships
Orange County Bar Association: Member (2010 - Present); Associate Editor, The Briefs (2012); Law Student Mentor (2012)
Published Works
Majority Voting in Director Elections: A Simple, Direct, and Swift Solution?, 2007 Colum. Bus. L. Rev. 844, 2007
Revisiting the Standard Attorneys' Fee and Cost Provision, Florida Bar Journal (Sep./Oct. 2011), 2011
Representative Cases
Razin v. A Milestone, LLC, 67 So. 3d 391 (Fla. 2d DCA 2011)
Durham v. Whitney Information Network Inc., 2009 WL 3783375 (M.D. Fla. 2009)
1700 Rinehart, LLC v. Advance America, 51 So. 3d 535 (Fla. 5th DCA 2010)
LSQ Funding Group, L.C. v. EDS Field Services, 2012 WL 3055560 (M.D. Fla. 2012)
Located in downtown Orlando, we represent plaintiffs and defendants in both state and federal court in complex business and commercial litigation, arbitrations, appeals, and significant personal injury and wrongful death matters. The firm has a wide range of clients, from local individuals, families and small businesses, to large publicly traded companies. We are also often retained by lawyers and law firms to represent them, and are proud of our reputation as a lawyer’s law firm.
Our attorneys are actively involved — not only in their local bar, with three past presidents of the Orange County Bar Association — but also statewide in The Florida Bar, with two shareholders having served on the Board of Governors.
The firm’s attorneys have also held leadership roles in The Florida Bar Foundation and The Legal Aid Society of the Orange County Bar Association. We are grateful for our success, and believe in giving back.
We have received local and statewide recognition for our pro bono service, and we continue to devote significant time and resources to providing pro bono legal services to those most in need through the OCBA’s Legal Aid Society.
Areas of Practice
For nearly thirty years, our clients have turned to us to resolve their most trying problems and meet their most significant litigation needs. At King, Blackwell, Zehnder & Wermuth, P.A., we handle a variety of complex and complicated civil matters in state and federal court, both at the trial court level and on appeal.
Complex Business and Commercial Litigation
We represent plaintiffs and defendants in complex business disputes and bet-the-company litigation
Our clients include local individuals and businesses, many high-profile local and national lawyers and law firms, international defense contractors, major financial services companies and banking institutions, and Fortune 500 corporations. We have enjoyed great success obtaining large verdicts and substantial settlements on behalf of our clients. We provide the highest quality legal representation and have a strong reputation for handling the most difficult and complex matters.
Appeals
We are often retained to handle high-stakes, complicated appeals in both state and federal court
Unlike most law firms, we also typically handle any appeals arising from the cases in which we served as trial counsel. This efficiency is passed on to our client, who benefits from our historical knowledge of the cases and avoids the unnecessary expense of bringing appellate counsel up to speed. We are also often retained to handle appeals of matters litigated by predecessor counsel, typically receiving those referrals from other attorneys and law firms.
Legal Malpractice Defense
We represent lawyers and law firms when they require legal services
Our firm has a long history of being retained by other lawyers and law firms, enhancing our reputation as a lawyer’s law firm. Over the years, we have represented law firm clients ranging from multi-national firms to solo practitioners, and in a variety of practice areas, from estate planning to family law to complex commercial litigation. We are proud to assist our colleagues whenever the need arises.
Significant Personal Injury and Wrongful Death
We have recovered large, including multi-million dollar, verdicts and settlements for our clients
We represent the victims of significant personal injuries, as well as the family members of those who have lost their lives due to the fault of others. We have been in the practice of personal injury law in Florida for over 40 years.
