Nationally recognized civil litigator Michael Dolce joined Colodny, Fass, Talenfeld, Karlinsky & Abate in 2010 as an Associate in its Foster Care/Disabled Persons Damages Division.  He brings extensive experience in personal injury and the representation of crime victims and other vulnerable persons to the Firm.

In 2009, he achieved one of the highest jury verdicts in Florida history for a child sexual abuse victim:  over $19 million.  That verdict was recognized by The National Law Journal as one of the top 100 verdicts nationwide for 2009.

Mr. Dolce has successfully spearheaded efforts to reform Florida’s statutes of limitation for civil and criminal prosecution of child sexual battery, testifying numerous times before legislative committees and founding and chairing the political committee, Protect Our Kids First, Inc.

His work has also been recognized with awards from the National Center for Victims of Crime, the Florida Council Against Sexual Violence and the Florida Justice Association.  He has likewise addressed conferences of the Survivors Network for those Abused by Priests, the National Center for Victims of Crime and the Palm Beach County Victims Rights Coalition, and has appeared on radio and television addressing victims’ rights issues.

Previously, he served four years on Florida Senator Walter “Skip” Campbell’s staff, where he was instrumental in designing and helping passage of significant children’s rights legislation for foster and adoptive children and consumer protection legislation for customers of “payday” lenders and intrastate household movers.

Since being admitted to The Florida Bar in 1995, Mr. Dolce has litigated numerous state and federal court cases involving child sexual abuse and other intentional torts, institutional neglect, premises liability and employment discrimination.

In 2008, he was named in Florida Trend magazine’s “Legal Elite,” resulting from a survey of lawyers asked to name the peers they hold in the “highest regard.”

Mr. Dolce is the author of several publications, including multiple articles on the needs of society’s most vulnerable members, including “A Better Day for Children: A Study of Florida’s Dependency System,” published in the Nova Law Review; and “Pope Offers Hope, But Church Has to Act,” published in the Palm Beach Post in 2008.  He also has written various articles on insurance-related litigation.

He earned a Bachelor’s Degree, summa cum laude, from Lynn University and a law degree from Stetson University College of Law, where he was a Florida Bar Foundation Public Service Fellow and received both the Walter Mann Award for leadership and the Victor O’Wehle Award for Excellence in Trial Advocacy.  He began crime victim advocacy in law school, where he volunteered some 1,500 hours in the domestic violence unit of Gulfcoast Legal Services.

Mr. Dolce continues to serve on the Advisory Board of Florida’s Children First, a leading foster child advocacy organization; on The Florida Bar’s Legal Needs of Children Committee; and on the governing board of Holy Trinity Episcopal Church in West Palm Beach.

Practice Areas

• Foster Care/Disabled Persons Damages
• Personal Injury / Wrongful Death
• Sexual Abuse
• Crime Victim Representation

Bar Admissions

• Florida Bar, 1995
• U.S. District Court for Southern District of Florida, 1995
• U.S. District Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit of Florida, 1997

Education

• Lynn University – B.S. Summa Cum Laude, 1990
• Stetson University College of Law, J.D. degree, 1994

Awards & Honors

• 2010 Survivor Activist Award, Florida Council Against Sexual Violence, June 2010
• Distinguished Service Award, National Center for Victims of Crime, June 2010
• Award for Special Contribution to the Advancement of the Civil Justice System, Florida Justice Association, June 2010
• Top 100 Verdicts of 2009, The National Law Journal/Verdict Search
• Walter Mann Award for Leadership – Stetson University College of Law
• Victor O. Wehle Trial Advocacy Award – Stetson University College of Law
• Alfred Oussani Award – Lynn University
• Public Service Fellow – Florida Bar Foundation
• Florida Trend magazine’s – Legal Elite

Professional Associations and Leadership Activities

• Member: Florida Bar Association
• Eagle Member: Florida Justice Association
• Member: Palm Beach County Bar Association
• Member: Palm Beach County Justice Association

Publications

• “Mere Formalities … Or Are They?  Substance Triumphs Over Form in Two Recent Insurance-Related Appeals,” Florida Justice Association Journal, August 2010
• “Enough Already!  Recent Insurance Coverage Cases Highlight When Timing, Language and Notice Are Enough and When They Are Not,” Florida Justice Association Journal, February 2010
• “Pairs of Insureds … Apples and Oranges Revisited; A Recent Case Reminds of Coverage Pitfalls That Joint Insureds May Face,” Florida Justice Association Journal, August 2009
• “The Power of Creativity … Or Not; Guidance for Insurance Practitioners From Recent Appellate Decisions,” Florida Justice Association Journal, February 2009
• “Uh Oh … Unintended Consequences in Uninsured Motorist Claims,” Florida Justice Association Journal, August 2008
• “A Better Day for Children: A Study of Florida’s Dependency System with Legislative Recommendations,” Nova Law Review
• “Searching for Wisdom of Solomon: A Commentary on the Responsibilities and Challenges Facing Public Policy Makers in Balancing the Interests of the Adoption Triad,” Commentator, Family Law Section, The Florida Bar, April 1999
• “Pope Offers Hope, But Church Has to Act,” Palm Beach Post, May 11, 2008
• “Some Notable Cases Creating Some Notable Opportunities,” Florida Justice Association Journal, April/May 2007
• “Wait! Not So Fast! Recent Insurance Coverage Decisions Underscore Key Matters of Timing,” FJA Journal, Feb. 2008
• “Apples and Oranges – Recent Insurance Decisions That May Surprise You,” FJA Journal Nov./Dec. 2007

Lectures / Presentations

• Presenter: “The Power of Civil Relief for Crime Victims,” Florida Coalition Against Domestic Violence and The Domestic Violence Council, West Palm Beach, Florida, October 14, 2010.
• Presenter: Annual National Conference, Survivors Network for those Abused by Priests, Chicago, Illinois, August 2010
  Keynote Address: 30th Annual Awards Luncheon, Palm Beach County Victims’ Rights Coalition, April 23, 2010
• Presenter: “Understanding Mental Health and Pain and Suffering Damages,” Paralegal Association of Florida, Ft. Lauderdale, Florida, January 2010
• Panelist: “Civil Justice for Victims of Crime in Florida,” National Crime Victim Bar Association, West Palm Beach, Florida December 2009
• Guest on The Radio Investigator, “Civil Rights for Crime Victims,” Palm Beach County, Florida, May 2009
• Key Note Address: “Appreciation for Volunteer Guardians,” Annual Banquet of the Second Judicial Circuit guardian Ad Litem Program, Tallahassee Florida, April 2001
• Address: “Building a Multicultural Movement,” Ninth Annual National Association for Public Interest Law Conference, Washington, D.C., October 30, 1993

Community Associations and Leadership Activities

• Advisory Board Member: Florida’s Children First (2005 – )
• Vestry Member: Holy Trinity Episcopal Church (2010-2012 term )
• Cursillo Group: Holy Trinity Episcopal Church (2000 – )
• Former Member (2001) and Steering Committee (2002): Broward Child Welfare Initiative
• Former Volunteer Counsel: Hope House of the Palm Beaches, Inc. (1997 – 1998)
• Member, The Florida Bar, Legal Needs of Children Committee and Chairperson, Protect Our Kids First, Inc.

Legislative Accomplishments

• Drafted the base legislation that became the Money Transmitter’s Code
• Oversaw comprehensive rewriting of Florida Statutes 63, adoption
• Proposed sales tax exemption for nonprofit fund raising organizations
• Proposed amendment to Florida’s Fair Housing Act for housing older persons to preserve the communities following adverse appellate decisions
• Promoted proposal for $1.25 million in funding to create a model dependency court pilot project (later added to recurring appropriations)
• Proposed legislation to expedite judicial administration of foster care cases
• Proposed legislation to regulate household movers
• Prepared an investigative white paper on the adverse effects of proposed legislation to privatize water resources in Florida, which contributed to the defeat of the efforts of an Enron subsidiary, Azurix.
• Testified before multiple Florida House of Representatives and Florida Senate committees regarding the medical and legal needs of adult survivors of child abuse

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