Katherine Neal was born in San Antonio, Texas, and grew up throughout the United States and overseas as an “Army Brat”. She learned the value of hard work and commitment to excellence from her father, a Brigade Commander and Colonel in the United States Army.

Ms. Neal is a Board Certified Civil Trial Lawyer, which means The Florida Bar recognizes her as an expert in her field. This honor is only bestowed on approximately 7% of the lawyers in the State of Florida. When Ms. Neal became Board Certified in Civil Trial Law, she was the youngest lawyer in the history of the State of Florida to have ever achieved the status.

Ms. Neal has spent her entire legal career as a trial lawyer, concentrating only in the areas of personal injury, wrongful death, and crematory/funeral home/cemetery malpractice. As such, she has spent nearly 20 years perfecting her trial skills to maximize verdicts. Ms. Neal has also spent her career honing her pre-trial settlement strategies and has achieved numerous multi-million dollar settlements. Ms. Neal is the managing partner of Carey Leisure & Neal. She enjoys presenting speeches around the country to groups such as the American Association of Justice and the Southern Trial Lawyers Association. She has won the “TOP 10” Client Satisfaction Award from the American Institute of Personal injury Lawyers multiple times.

Ms. Neal received her Bachelor of Arts degree in Broadcast Journalism from Penn State University in 2002 and her Juris Doctor degree, cum laude, from Stetson University College of Law in 2004. While in law school, she was a senior associate of The Stetson Law Review and won the St. Petersburg Times Award for the Best Competition Paper. Ms. Neal also served as a Stetson Ambassador, wherein she assisted new law students as a mentor and advisor.

Areas of Practice

• Personal Injury
• Wrongful Death
• Crematory and Funeral Home Malpractice

Bar Admissions

• Florida – Since May 2005

Education

• Stetson University College of Law, St. Petersburg, Florida
  • J.D. (Cum Laude) – 2004
  • Law Review: Stetson Law Review, Senior Associate

• The Pennsylvania State University
  • B.A. – 2002
  • Major: Broadcast Journalism
  • Minor: Political Science

Honors and Awards

• St. Petersburg Times Award for the Best Competition Paper
• 10 BEST 2016 – Client Satisfaction Award – American Institute of Personal Injury Lawyers
• Best Lawyers, Best Law Firm 2016 – US News & World Report
• Board Certified Specialist in Civil Trial Law 2014 – The Florida Bar
• Top Scoring Writer / Stetson Law Review’s Competition 2014 – St. Petersburg Times

Professional Associations and Memberships

• The Florida Bar – Trial Lawyers Section
• American Association of Justice
• Tampa Bay Trial Lawyers Association
• Florida Justice Association – Women’s Caucus
• Southern Trial Lawyers Association
• CrispX