Anitra is a partner in the Product Liability, Class Actions and Complex Litigation practice groups. In her national practice, Anitra works on all stages of individual, multi-district, and class action litigation, including trials and appeals. She represents businesses in a variety of industries including automotive, consumer goods, distribution, insurance, pharmaceutical and technology. Dedicated to understanding long-term business goals, she keeps client values top of mind while solving problems creatively and efficiently.
Anitra is consistently recognized by leading legal publications as a top litigation lawyer including but not limited to Best Lawyers in America, Florida Super Lawyers, Florida Trend and Lawdragon 500.
Anitra is passionate about serving the community. For example, she is the 2024 President of the Tampa Bay Chapter of the Federal Bar Association, a Trustee of the Hillsborough County Bar Foundation and a loyal volunteer with Meals on Wheels of Tampa. Anitra also devotes a portion of her practice to pro bono service especially for the interest of children and families. Her pro bono service has earned her awards such as Shook’s 2017 William G. Zimmerman Pro Bono Award.
Representative Matters
Lead counsel in defending class actions alleging unfair business practices by insurance companies in relation to premiums charged.
Co-lead counsel on behalf of an automobile company in two national class actions (in Florida and California) alleging consumer fraud in relation to vehicle autonomous technology feature disclosures.
Local counsel in multiple pharmaceutical cases alleging product defects in the Middle District of Florida.
Part of the national leadership team in defending a docket of automotive class action opt out cases, primarily in California federal and state courts. In doing so, drafted successful summary judgment, Daubert, and arbitration motions thus disposing of fraud-based claims.
Lead and local counsel in various prosecutions of non-compete agreements in Florida state and federal courts for insurance companies, local businesses, and product manufacturers.
Defense for a multi-state automotive class action alleging transmission performance defects in the Northern District of California.
Defended personal injury and wrongful death Engle-progeny cases, including at trials.
Obtained favorable result at mediation as lead counsel in defending a local business in unjust enrichment and contract disputes in Florida state courts.
Defended Fortune 50 corporation in an unjust enrichment lawsuit in Florida state court.
Secured early dismissal for Fortune 500 company in a catastrophic wrongful death trucking accident in Florida federal court.
Secured early dismissal for local business defending claims pursuant to Florida Telephone Solicitation Act class action.
Secured dismissal for Fortune 50 corporation in tortious interference with contract, tortious interference with prospective advantage, and defamation lawsuit in Maryland federal court.
Presentations and Publications
Panelist, Nuclear Verdicts: How Outside and Inside Counsel Should Collaborate to Defeat Them, National Bar Association Commercial Law Section, October 16, 2024.
Panelist, Leading with Purpose: Cultivating Leadership in the Legal Profession, Virgil Hawkins Florida Chapter National Bar Association, September 20, 2024.
Panelist, Best Trial Practices, National Bar Association Young Lawyers Division’s International Leadership Conference, April 12, 2024.
Co-Editor, Florida Mediation Best Practices Handbook, Third Edition, September 1, 2023.
Panelist, “True Confessions Part 1” – What Trial Lawyers and their Clients Really Want from Mediators, The 31st Annual Florida Dispute Resolution Center Conference, August 4, 2023.
Co-Author, Adoption By the Numbers: Two Years Later, How Should the Florida Courts Navigate the “Not-So-New” Florida Summary Judgment Rule?, The Florida Bar Journal, September 2023.
Moderator, Civil Ligation – Best Practices, U.S. Middle District of Florida Tampa Division Summer Internship Program, May 25, 2023.
Panelist, Third Annual Litigator Mediator Decision Maker Forum, Hillsborough County Bar Association, April 5, 2023.
Co-Author, The Early Bird Gets the Worm: How the First-to-File Rule Can Determine Venue for Similar Subsequently Filed Cases, and Recommendations for Motion Practice, Perspectives, Younger Lawyers Division, Federal Bar Association, pages 5-8, Winter 2023 (with Sarah O'Rourke).
Presenter, Witness Ethics: Avoiding the Minefields, American Bar Association, December 14, 2022.
Moderator, Federal Practice Seminar Judicial Panel, Tampa Bay Chapter of the Federal Bar Association, November 3, 2022.
Panelist, Finding Your Niche in the Florida Bar, Florida Bar's Leadership Academy Class X, October 21, 2022.
Speaker, PACE Center for Girls Street Law Graduation, ACC Tampa Bay, October 18, 2022.
Panelist, Leveraging Your Seat: Maximizing Access and Cultivating Success, Hillsborough County Bar Association’s Diversity Symposium, March 4, 2022.
Panelist, Hot Topics in Litigation, National Bar Association’s 35th Annual Corporate Counsel Conference, February 25, 2022.
Panelist, The COVID-19 Experience: Lessons Learned and Changes Made, 21st Annual Chartering Your Own Course Conference, December 6, 2021.
Guest Speaker, 1L Introduction to Lawyering Class: Making the Most of Your Law School Career and Beyond, University of Florida Levin College of Law, October 6, 2021.
Moderator, Path to the Bench: District, Magistrate, and Bankruptcy Judges, U.S. Middle District of Florida Tampa Division Summer Internship Program, May 27, 2021.
Panelist, So You Want to Clerk? An Overview of the Application Process for the Federal Judiciary, Southern Black Law Students Association, March 10, 2021.
Moderator, Federal State of the Courts COVID Edition, CLE Webinar, Florida Bar Federal Court Practice Committee, February 11, 2021.
Moderator, Path to the Bench: District, Magistrate, and Bankruptcy Judges, U.S. Middle District of Florida Tampa Division Summer Internship Program, July 1, 2020.
Speaker, I Don't Have a Sponsor Yet. What Do I Do?, Corporate Counsel Women of Color Fifteenth Annual Career Strategies Conference, September 25, 2019.
Speaker, "What? Like, It's Hard?" The Millennial Perspective on Securing a Civil Protective Order, National Federal Bar Association Annual Meeting & Convention, September 5, 2019.
Keynote Speaker, Black Law Students Association Annual Virgil Hawkins Gala, University of Florida Levin College of Law, April 13, 2019.
Panelist, Admitted Students Day Alumni Panel, University of Florida Levin College of Law, March 15, 2019.
Panelist, The Law Clerk Experience: From Applying to Clerking for a Federal Judge, Tampa Bay Federal Bar Association Young Lawyers Division, July 10, 2018.
Media Coverage
“People to Know in Law," Tampa Bay Business Journal, April 16, 2021.