Tampa

Associate

David B. McClelland

Mr. McClelland is an associate attorney focusing his practice primarily on subrogation, representing insurers in matters related to products liability, premises liability, negligence, construction defects, and contract disputes.

Mr. McClelland graduated from Stetson University College of Law in May of 2011. While in law school, Mr. McClelland interned for the Honorable Alexander L. Paskay in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court, Middle District of Florida. Prior to joining the Tampa office of Groelle & Salmon, P.A., Mr. McClelland practiced corporate bankruptcy, business litigation, and represented businesses making claims under the BP oil spill settlement agreement. Mr. McClelland is licensed to practice in all state courts of Florida and the United States District Court for the Middle District of Florida.

Professional Background:

Groelle and Salmon, P.A.
Tampa, Florida

Education:

Stetson University College of Law, J.D.

University of Florida:

B.A. Criminology and B.S. Public Relations

Bar Admissions:

Florida Bar

Partner

Jayson A. Serrano

Jayson Serrano graduated from The John Marshall Law School in Chicago, Illinois in 2011. Since then he’s been practicing civil law and has successfully litigated numerous jury and bench trials. He was admitted to the Florida Bar in May 2018 and joined our firm soon thereafter. He practices in our Tampa office and focuses on first party property insurance defense and contract disputes.

Bar Admissions:

Florida Bar

Education:

University of Central Florida, B.A.

John Marshall Law School, J.D.

Partner

Keith G. Shevenell

Mr. Shevenell is a Partner in the Tampa office of Groelle & Salmon, P.A., focusing his practice primarily on first party property and insurance coverage matters. During his legal career, Mr. Shevenell has represented insurance companies and corporations in a variety of insurance-related matters throughout the State of Florida and New Jersey. He has also successfully represented condominium and homeowners’ association clients as both litigation and in-house counsel. Mr. Shevenell oversaw his prior firm’s expansion into New Jersey following Superstorm Sandy. Aside from his extensive civil litigation background, Mr. Shevenell has further represented clients in appeals before the Second District Court of Appeal. Mr. Shevenell is licensed to practice in all state courts in Florida, as well as Maine and New Jersey.

Associate

Aja N. Williams

Aja Williams is an associate in the Tampa office where she primarily defends insurance carriers in first-party property claims. Prior to joining Groelle & Salmon, P.A., Mrs. Williams gained valuable litigation experience representing insurance carriers in first party property cases with damages resulting from hurricane, windstorm and water damages.

Aja obtained her B.A. in Political Science from the University of South Florida in 2014. She went on to attend Stetson University College of Law in 2016 graduating cum laude. While earning her degrees Aja worked full time in property management and has years of experience in understanding the needs and importance of risk mitigation for property owners.

During her time at Stetson she served on the Student Bar Summer Advisory Committee and was Vice-President of Phi Delta Phi, International Legal Honor Society. In addition to her leadership roles she received the Victor O’Wehle Award for Excellence in Trial Advocacy and the William F. Blews Pro Bono Award.

When not serving clients and spending time in the office, Aja enjoys spending time with family and friends, traveling, and serving as the President of the Pinellas Park Youth Sports Association, a not-for-profit that focuses on providing sports and academic mentorship to children in the community.

Education:
Stetson College of Law , J.D.
University of South Florida, B.A.

Bar Admissions:
Florida Bar

Office Location: Tampa, FL

Associate

Annie S. Antos

Annie Antos joined the firm in 2022 and is an associate in the St. Petersburg office in the insurance defense and first-party property litigation practice group.

During law school, Annie was a law clerk with Louison, Costello, Condon, & Pfaff, working with litigation lawyers with significant experience in state and federal trial and appellate courts. Annie also served as a Senior Staff Member for the Suffolk University Transnational Law Review, Team Captain for the 2020 Suffolk Law Bankruptcy and International Insolvency Law Moot Court Team at the Annual Ian Fletcher International Insolvency Moot Court Competition, Vice President of Suffolk’s Federalist Society, Admission Ambassador for the Suffolk University Law School Admission’s Office, and teaching assistant to Business Entities Professor Carter Bishop.

Annie is licensed to practice law in the state of Florida and is also a member of the St. Petersburg Bar Association. She received her Bachelor’s degree from the University of Georgia in 2015 and earned her Juris Doctor from Suffolk University Law School in 2021.

Education:
Suffolk University, J.D.
University of Georgia, B.A.

Bar Admissions:
Florida Bar

Partner

K. David Kelly

David Kelly is an associate attorney at the Tampa office of Groelle & Salmon, PA, focusing on first party property liability defense.

Mr. Kelly obtained his Bachelor’s degree from the University of Pittsburgh, and in 1996 his Juris Doctor from the Cleveland-Marshall College of Law. He later received an LL.M. in International Law, from the University of Miami School of Law.

Mr. Kelly has served as a trial attorney in the Tampa Bay Area and other venues throughout Florida, handling all phases of litigation in both state and federal court. Along with a variety of other legal areas, he also has experience in third-party insurance defense, including litigation involving catastrophic injury claims. In addition to handling numerous first-party property cases in both law firm and in-house settings, Mr. Kelly defended hundreds of personal injury protection lawsuits as a staff attorney for an insurance company.

Associate

AlaEldean A. Elmunaier

AlaEldean Elmunaier handles matters related to first-party property insurance defense.

Prior to working at the firm, AlaEldean worked at a statewide law firm defending insurance carriers in first-party property matters. AlaEldean has successfully defended his clients in an array of matters, brought by policyholders and contractors pursuant to an alleged assignment of benefits agreement.

AlaEldean has been able to prevail on dipositive motions, such as motions to dismiss under Florida Statutes 627.70152 and 627.7152. AlaEldean has also been successful prevailing on motions for summary judgment, having his clients being awarded fees, and disposing cases quickly when needed.

AlaEldean received his Bachelor of Arts in History and Political Science, cum laude, as an Honors College Graduate, from the University of South Florida. He then received his Juris Doctor degree from Barry University, Dwayne O. Andreas School of Law, where he was a recipient of the Merit-based Scholarship and the Dean Award Scholarship. In law school, AlaEldean was selected to be a part of the Child and Family Law Journal, Trial Team, and The Florida Bar Foundation Summer Fellowship.

Associate

Leila Castro Moya

Leila Castro Moya has more than 17 years of experience in civil litigation, Mrs. Castro has worked civil rights, political discrimination, medical malpractice, institutional reform, personal injury and property damage cases.

Mrs. Castro was born and raised in San Juan, PR. She obtained a BA from the Sagrado Corazon University and a Juris Doctor from the Inter American University of Puerto Rico, School of Law in 2002. She is an active member of the Florida Bar since 2021 and is also admitted to the Northern, Middle and Southern District Courts of Florida. Mrs. Castro is also an active member in Puerto Rico Bar, the Federal Bar for the District of Puerto Rico, the United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit since 2003 and the Texas Bar since 2016. She is fluent in Spanish.

Partner

Chioma H. Michel

Ms. Michel is a graduate of the United States Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland. She received her commission in 1996 and served five years as a Surface Warfare Officer onboard the guided missile destroyer, USS Ross (DD-71) and the strike destroyer, USS John Hancock (DD-981). She obtained her juris doctor from University of Miami School of Law in 2004. In 2004 she became licensed to practice in Florida as well as the Northern, Middle, and Southern Districts Courts of Florida and in 2005 she became licensed to practice in Illinois.

Ms. Michel started her legal career as a prosecutor in Charlotte County and was quickly promoted to Drug Court Prosecutor and Domestic Violence Liaison Officer and given the responsibility of a felony docket.

In 2007 she joined the Tampa office of Hinshaw & Culbertson, LLP where she handled matters in the areas of professional liability claims, Fair Debt Collection Practices litigation, Employment Law, Workers Compensation, and other insurance defense litigation.

In 2011, Ms. Michel opened her own practice where she focused on complex commercial litigation matters, the defense of insurance claim disputes, foreclosure defense, and administrative law matters with the Department of Professional Business Regulation. As a sole practitioner, Ms. Michel became Of Counsel to Alliance Legal Group, heading their contested foreclosure defense department and, subsequently, Of Counsel to the firm of Moriarty & Chiofalo, P.A. to introduce the foreclosure defense practice area to their firm as her specialty, and handle all trust and estate litigation and complex business litigation for the firm.

In 2016, Ms. Michel joined HD Law Partners, PA where she was tasked with opening their Sarasota Bradenton office and continuing a general civil litigation practice, where she focused on complex business litigation, personal injury, family law, and insurance claim disputes.

Ms. Michel is a co-founder and sits on the Board of Directors of Open Door Mission, a non-profit organization located in Cameroon, Africa, which offers free medical services to the local communities and schools young men and women to become physician assistants with the hope that they will provide medical services to their communities

Associate

Chelsey A. Polgar

Chelsey Polgar did her undergraduate studies at Eckerd College in St. Petersburg Florida. She spent a significant portion of her career working for a Fortune 500 healthcare insurance company. She comes to us from Stetson University College of Law where she graduated in May of 2020. Ms. Polgar is licensed to practice law in the state of Florida.

Partner

David J. Salmon

David J. Salmon, born in 1966, St. Louis, Missouri. Admitted to the Florida Bar in 1995. Also admitted to the Missouri Bar, 1991, and Illinois Bar, 1993. Education: Boston College (B.A., 1988), Washington University School of Law (J.D. 1991). Also admitted to the United States District Courts for the Middle and Southern Districts of Florida.

Mr. Salmon is a founding partner in the law firm of Groelle and Salmon, P.A. After practicing law in Missouri and Illinois from 1991 to 1995, Mr. Salmon moved to south Florida, where he actively litigated Hurricane Andrew claims and developed his practice on suspicious first party property losses. In 2003, Mr. Salmon moved to St. Petersburg, Florida to open the firm’s first west coast office in Tampa. The firm now operates in six cities throughout Florida and has expanded practice areas, which include all aspects of insurance, construction defect litigation, commercial litigation, and the defense of charitable organizations and not for profits.

Mr. Salmon practices civil litigation, with his primary focus on first party insurance litigation, claims investigation and evaluation of coverage issues in property claims. Mr. Salmon has tried over a hundred cases in state and federal courts in Florida, Missouri, and Illinois. Mr. Salmon formerly handled and supervised subrogation recovery. While practicing in the Midwest, Mr. Salmon was the lead attorney on all litigation cases in the city of St. Louis and the State of Illinois.

Mr. Salmon is certified by the Department of Insurance as an instructor for continuing education courses. Mr. Salmon has participated in and delivered numerous educational seminars and presented case law analysis and commentary to the insurance industry and claim associations. These include the presentation of continuing education and instructional workshops and courses for the Windstorm Insurance Network and FIFEC. He has also presented case analysis and claim handling instruction at internal seminars for insurers throughout the United States.

Mr. Salmon is a member of the Council on Litigation Management, the Defense Research Institute, the Risk Management Society, the Florida Advisory Committee on Arson Prevention, the WIND Insurance Network, and the Florida Property Fraud Task Force.

Associate

Kimberly A. Salmon

Areas of Practice:

• Insurance Coverage and Defense

Admissions:

• Florida Bar
• U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Florida

Kimberly A. Salmon, Esquire is an Associate with Groelle & Salmon, P.A. and has worked in the insurance industry for over 30 years. Mrs. Salmon was born in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida, and graduated from Florida Atlantic University in Boca Raton, Summa Cum Laude. She was on the Dean’s List, graduated with Honors and was a member the National Society of Collegiate Scholars and the Golden Key National Honor Society. She began her career as a litigation paralegal for the principals of the firm in 1993, and worked as a law clerk while earning her law degree at Stetson University College of Law. Mrs. Salmon is a zealous oral advocate who has successfully litigated first and third party insurance disputes throughout Florida.

The primary focus of her practice has been devoted to all types of first and third party insurance disputes, including complex litigation, arson and fraud, assignment of benefits and litigation-for-profit schemes. Her services include pre-suit investigation, coverage analysis, active litigation and motion practice, individual or mass settlement negotiation, trials and appeals. She has extensive experience analyzing issues of first impression, developing novel legal theories, and assisting clients with implementing internal claims and litigation procedures based upon industry issues and legislative changes. Mrs. Salmon was a pioneer in the defense of assignment of benefits cases and worked closely with lobbyists, legislators, and regulators for legislative reform for seven years. She was retained to testify as an expert on the legal issues relating to assignment litigation before the Office of Insurance Regulation. She served as a member of the Insurance Consumer Advocate’s Working Group in 2013 at the request of the Consumer Advocate to revise the Homeowners’ Policy and Claims Bill of Rights, which was later codified.

Mrs. Salmon manages a busy litigation practice, and also counsels CEOs, product managers, underwriters and lobbyists on claims handling, product development, and underwriting and identification of issues in need of legislative reform.

In 2014, Mrs. Salmon was recruited by one of our publicly traded insurance company clients, where she was hired as its first general counsel, chief legal officer, and corporate secretary of the company and its subsidiaries. There, she created the company’s legal department, oversaw all internal legal matters, including implementation of internal legal risk management, contract negotiation, and managed all outsourced legal functions, including responsibility for corporate governance, multi-state insurance regulation, business litigation, real estate development, mergers and acquisitions, and other financial transactional matters. Mrs. Salmon acted as liaison with regulators, legislators, and lobbyists and actively participated as an industry advocate, addressing pertinent topics of proposed legislation at every legislative session. She was actively involved with policy language revisions and form filings, including protection of trade secret information. Ultimately, Mrs. Salmon was also tasked with oversight of the company’s litigation department, where she worked closely with the internal litigation team and managed outside defense counsel. After almost 5 years in that role, Mrs. Salmon returned to Groelle & Salmon, P.A.

Mrs. Salmon is approved as an educational speaker with the Florida Bar and the Florida Department of Financial Regulation and has an impressive history of speaking engagements, including educational presentations for the Florida Chamber, presenting at the Annual Summit 2014 as a Panel Speaker (Cost Drivers in the Insurance Industry), USAA (A Survey of Florida Law), Olympus Insurance Company, Gulfstream Insurance Company, Paul Davis Restoration, Quality First Builders, Groelle & Salmon Annual Seminars (Civil Litigation and Rules of Procedure-A Roadmap to Becoming a Partner in Litigation Strategy; Premises Liability; Chipped Tile Claims; Assignment of Benefits Claims Handling), Paul Davis Restoration, United Property & Casualty Insurance Company, HSA Seminar (Avoiding Bad Faith Claims Handling), Rimkus Sixth Annual Seminar, Florida Insurance Fraud Education Committee Seminar, Sunshine Claims Conference, American Integrity Insurance Company (Defending Liability Claims), Colonial Claims, and Homeowner’s Choice Property & Casualty Insurance Company.

Associate

Laura M. Solis

Laura Solis, Esq. is an associate in the Tampa office. Ms. Solis has experience handling litigation of first party property cases with damages resulting from hurricane, windstorm and water damages. Ms. Solis also has experience on personal injury and general liability. Prior to being barred, Ms. Solis was a Foreign Trial Attorney, in a civil law jurisdiction specializing its practice in commercial and general liability litigation.

Prior to obtaining its Juris Doctor degree, Ms. Solis was a Certified Paralegal and Law Clerk in which she worked on insurance defense litigation. This supplied Ms. Solis with experience on Civil Litigation for common law jurisdictions. Especially on practice focused areas such as Commercial Litigation, First Party Property Insurance Coverage and Defense, Federal Practice Support, Premises Liability, PIP and General Liability.

Ms. Solis obtained her Juris Doctor from Nova Southeastern University – Shepard Broad School of Law. Ms. Solis is fluent in Spanish and French.

Awards & Honors

Dean List Certificate – Winter, 2020
Dean List Certificate – Fall, 2020

Bar/Court Admission

Florida Bar
Dominican Bar Association (CARD)
U. S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida

Education

Pontificia Universidad Catolica Madre y Maestra – Licenciada en Derecho – 2010
Pontificia Universidad Catolica Madre y Maestra – Magister in Legal Practice – 2012
Nova Southeastern University (NSU) – Shepard Broad School of Law – Juris Doctor – 2020

Professional/Civil Memberships

American Bar Association
Young Lawyers Division – Florida Bar

Languages

Spanish
French

Associate

Stephen N. Rampaul

Stephen N. Rampaul is an associate attorney, focusing his practice on subrogation litigation, representing insurers in matters related to products liability, premises liability, negligence, construction defects, and contract disputes. Prior to joining Groelle & Salmon, P.A. Mr. Rampaul served as an experienced litigation attorney at a law firm, practicing in first-party property insurance defense. Mr. Rampaul was also a managing attorney at a statewide law firm, where he handled various types of insurance related disputes.

Mr. Rampaul was born in Kingston, Jamaica, where he earned his Bachelor of Law (“LL.B.”), from the University of Technology. He then migrated to the United States and pursued his Juris Doctor (J.D.) and master’s degree in Intercultural Human Rights (“LL.M”) at St. Thomas University School of Law, where he received the CALI Book Award in Evidence. While pursuing his J.D., Mr. Rampaul interned at the Lawson E. Thomas Court Center, and clerked for a boutique law firm, working in insurance defense.

Professional Background:

• Groelle and Salmon, P.A.
Tampa, Florida

Education:

St. Thomas University School of Law- J.D., LL.M.
University of Technology, Jamaica, W.I- LL.B.

Bar Admissions:

Florida Bar
United States District Court, Sothern District of Florida

Associate

Vincent K. Cano

Vincent Cano is a seasoned legal professional with five years of experience practicing law in Florida. Prior to embarking on his legal career, Vincent was a standout athlete, starting on the offensive line for the Louisiana Tech Bulldogs Football Team while pursuing his Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science from Louisiana Tech University. He continued his academic journey by earning his Juris Doctor at Florida Coastal School of Law.

Vincent’s time on the football field instilled in him valuable qualities such as teamwork, discipline, and perseverance—traits that continue to inform his approach to the practice of law. After transitioning to the legal field, Vincent quickly established himself as a diligent advocate for his clients, specializing in First Party Insurance Defense matters.

As an active member of the Florida Bar Association, Vincent has demonstrated a strong commitment to providing high-quality legal representation to individuals and businesses alike. His comprehensive understanding of Florida law, coupled with his client-focused approach, has consistently yielded positive results for his clients.

Hailing from Kilgore, Texas, Vincent Cano maintains strong ties to his community. His upbringing instilled in him a deep sense of integrity and a dedication to providing quality legal service.

Vincent’s passion for staying updated with legal developments and his commitment to justice make him an invaluable figure in the legal field. Beyond his professional pursuits, Vincent continues to stay involved in sports and enjoys volunteering, actively participating in local community organizations, and cherishing quality time with his family.

Partner

Joseph Matera

Mr. Matera practices first party insurance defense. He has experience defending various homeowners’ property claims, including windstorm, water damage, and theft claims. He has also assisted insurance carriers with claims’ investigations, including conducting many examinations under oaths and coverage analysis.

Before joining Groelle & Salmon, Mr. Matera was an Assistant State Attorney seeking justice for victims of crimes in the State of Florida. He litigated thousands of cases from the initial inception of the case by making the charging decision through jury trial if necessary. He prosecuted various cases ranging from petit theft to armed burglary of a firearm, vehicular homicide, and driving under the influence-manslaughter.

Mr. Matera was raised in the Tampa Bay area where he attended high school in New Port Richey and earned his bachelor’s degree from the University of South Florida. Subsequently, he graduated with honors from the University of Florida Levin College of Law in May of 2012. While in law school, Mr. Matera was a legal extern for the Honorable Judge Martha Cook of Florida’s 13th Judicial Circuit.

He also was an extern at the State Attorney’s Office for the Eighth Judicial Circuit (Gainesville) for a semester and subsequently earned a pro bono certificate for his work as a volunteer at the State Attorney’s Office. Additionally, Mr. Matera was a Senior Research Editor for the Florida Journal of International Law and a Research Editor for the Florida Journal of Technology Law and Policy.

Mr. Matera is a member of the Florida Bar Association and is eligible to practice in all Florida state courts. He is also a member of the United States District Court, Middle District of Florida.

Associate

Layla K. McDonald