Newsmakers (Tampa)

Newsmakers (Tampa)

Richard Agster joins Foley

& Lardner's Tampa office

Richard Agster is a new associate in the Tampa office of Foley & Lardner LLP. He joins the business law department and transactional and securities practice group.

Agster had worked as an associate in the Tampa office of Bryant Miller & Olive. Prior to that he was an associate at New York's Sidley Austin Brown & Wood. He practices in the areas of public and private mergers and acquisitions, securities offerings and venture capital financings.

A graduate of the University of Central Florida, he earned a master's degree in business administration from Rollins College and a law degree from Northwestern University School of Law.

Melissa Thalji certified

as circuit civil mediator

The Florida Supreme Court has certified Melissa Miller Thalji as a circuit civil mediator.

Thalji works in the commercial litigation practice group at Tampa's Fowler White Boggs Banker PA. She focuses on probate, trust and estates, business torts, noncompete, trademark-service mark infringement, trade secrets and unfair competition law.

Kimberly Brenner joins

Bush Graziano & Rice

Kimberly Brenner is a new associate at Tampa's Bush Graziano & Rice PA. She was the principal partner at the Brenner Law Group and had worked in the Tampa office of Shumaker Loop & Kendrick LLP.

At Bush Graziano, Brenner focuses on long-term care, products liability and medical malpractice defense law. She earned a law degree in 2000 from the Stetson University College of Law.

National academy invites

Rafael Gonzalez as member

Attorney Rafael Gonzalez joined the National Academy of Social Insurance, a nonpartisan group. Members focus on insurance public policy issues such as workers' compensation and Social Security.

Gonzalez practices workers' compensation and Social Security law as a shareholder at Tampa's Barrs Williamson Stolberg Townsend & Gonzalez PA. He serves a chair of the Florida Bar's practice management and development section and is a former chair of the bar's workers' compensation section.