Patten Law Firm

Focus and the range of matters

The firm runs a litigation practice from Orlando and takes work across Florida. Its own site dates the firm to 2006 and describes a small office that represents both businesses and individuals. The common thread is trial work. Patten Law Firm presents itself as a trial firm, and the case types it lists tend to be contested.

The subject matter is broad for a small team. On one side the firm handles probate and family disputes for individuals. On the other it handles commercial and property litigation for companies. In my opinion that mix suits a firm built around courtroom procedure more than a single practice area.

The firm serves clients throughout Florida from its Orlando base, according to the site. Its 2006 start date gives it years in the local courts, though the site does not attach specific results to that history. What it does state is the shape of the work: litigation for individuals and businesses, handled by a compact team.

Family and probate disputes

The family law work covers divorce and divorce mediation. It also covers child support enforcement and modification, prenuptial agreements, marital settlement agreements, and dissolution matters. These are the everyday building blocks of family court in Florida.

Some general context helps a reader place this work. A Florida divorce begins with a petition for dissolution of marriage filed in circuit court. Child support follows state guidelines that weigh each parent's income and time with the children. A later modification asks the court to revisit those figures when circumstances change. A prenuptial agreement is signed before the wedding and sets terms in advance, which can shorten a later dispute.

Probate and estates

The firm also handles probate litigation and probate law. That covers estate disputes that arise after a death. Probate in Florida runs through the circuit court. A contested estate can involve the validity of a will, the conduct of a personal representative, or claims among heirs.

Family and probate matters share a feature. Both put private relationships in front of a judge, and both reward careful paperwork. In a dissolution, the marital settlement agreement records how property, support, and parenting are divided. In a contested estate, the record of the deceased's intent and the personal representative's actions carries the case. Clear documents tend to shorten either fight.

Business and property litigation

The commercial list runs wide. It includes business litigation, corporate law, and corporate and partnership disputes. It extends to securities litigation, insurance defense and coverage analysis, intellectual property litigation, and non-compete and employment litigation.

Property matters fill out the commercial side. The firm handles real estate litigation and construction litigation, along with evictions and foreclosures. Construction cases often turn on contracts, liens, and the order of who was paid and when. A partnership dispute can put the operating agreement and the books of the business at the center of the fight.

How commercial disputes usually start

Most commercial cases open with a written demand or a breach of contract claim. Securities litigation can involve disputes over investment products, brokerage conduct, or disclosures required under state and federal rules. Insurance coverage analysis asks a narrower question: whether a policy pays for a given loss, and on what terms. Intellectual property litigation protects trademarks, copyrights, and trade secrets, and the remedy often includes an order to stop the infringing use.

As a reviewer I read this range as general civil litigation across several fields. The firm keeps its focus on disputes that reach a courtroom.

Who runs the work

Lisa R. Patten is the managing partner. John Michael Timmel is an associate. The site names two paralegals, Sarah Francis and Alessandra Abrusci.

A team of that size keeps the client roster close to the named attorneys. Paralegals in a litigation office handle document management, filings, and scheduling, which frees the lawyers to concentrate on strategy and court appearances. For a client, a smaller team usually means fewer handoffs between the people who know the file.

How these cases tend to move

Civil litigation in Florida follows a set path. A case opens with pleadings. It moves through discovery, where each side exchanges documents and takes depositions. It then heads toward settlement or trial. Most disputes resolve before a verdict, though the trial posture shapes the negotiation.

Because the firm frames itself around trial work, its files can span that whole arc. A business client might start with a demand letter and finish in front of a jury. A family client might reach a marital settlement agreement and avoid a contested hearing. Either way the work stays inside the same civil courts.

Where Orlando cases are heard

Orlando sits in Orange County, within Florida's Ninth Judicial Circuit. Circuit court handles the larger civil disputes, probate, and family matters. County court takes smaller claims and many evictions. A firm rooted in one city tends to appear in the same courthouses over time, and familiarity with local filing practice can help a case move.

The site records a start date of 2006 and an Orlando base for the firm. It lists probate, family, business, real estate, construction, securities, and intellectual property matters under the Patten name. Lisa R. Patten leads the firm as managing partner.

The Dr Phillips Boulevard office

The record gives 7575 Dr Phillips Blvd as the street address, while the fuller site entry identifies Suite 250 and the ZIP code 32819-7220. That complete address is the useful version for correspondence, document delivery, or an in-person appointment. The firm labels it as the main office rather than a separate meeting location.

The published telephone number is (407) 226-9115. The record presents that number alongside the Orlando office, giving prospective clients a direct contact tied to the listed address. The suite number is especially relevant because the office sits within a multi-unit property rather than at a stand-alone street address.

Advisory and contested work within the same subjects

The directory classifications add detail to the litigation description. Securities law has its own category alongside securities litigation. Intellectual property receives the same treatment, with a general intellectual property category and a separate IP litigation category. These pairings indicate that the listing recognizes subject-area work as well as disputes filed under those subjects.

Business law is also distinct from business litigation in the directory categories. Partnership disputes receive a separate classification, which identifies owner-level conflict more precisely than the broad business litigation label. The firm's own description adds corporate disputes to that part of the practice. Taken together, the entries distinguish general business counsel from contested matters between companies or their owners.

Insurance and employment assignments

The commercial description separates insurance defense from coverage analysis. Defense concerns the handling of a claim made against an insured party, while coverage analysis examines the policy terms that determine whether an insurer must respond. Listing both assignments gives the insurance work a clearer shape than a general insurance-law category would provide.

Employment litigation is paired with non-compete work. That wording identifies restrictive-covenant disputes as a stated part of the employment practice rather than leaving the category open-ended. The combination fits matters in which a business seeks to enforce an agreement or a worker contests its application. The supplied record places those cases within the firm's commercial dispute work.