Mr. Cook is a business lawyer. He is one of the few lawyers with experience on both the transaction side and litigation side of business deals. He has litigated and continues to litigate business disputes throughout the state and federal courts of Florida. Mr. Cook has extensive experience litigating contract and M&A disputes, including letters of intent, due diligence, earnout disputes, management and shareholder disputes, restrictive covenant cases, and a wide variety of other pre- and post-closing disputes.
His experience litigating business deals, along with his pre-law school business experience, led him to the transaction side where he regularly advises businesses in ways to not only maximize the value of the deal, but also structure the deal and perform the necessary diligence to avoid subsequent litigation. Mr. Cook has the both the courtroom and boardroom experience business people need in a trusted legal advisor.
Mr. Cook has been recognized by several independent and peer review legal services including Best Lawyers in America (Business Litigation and Commercial Litigation), Florida Legal Elite, and Super Lawyers, and he is AV-Rated by Martindale-Hubbell. Mr. Cook is very active in community and professional associations. He is the immediate past-chair of the Rules of Civil Procedure Committee and remains an active member of that committee. Mr. Cook represented the Fourth Judicial Circuit serving on The Florida Bar Board of Governors YLD for six years and he is a past-president of the Jacksonville Bar Association YLS.
Prior to law school, Mr. Cook graduated with a business degree from the Culverhouse School of Commerce and Business Administration with a concentration in international marketing. He worked in the transportation and logistics industry for a freight forwarding company in Atlanta primarily exporting to South America and Asia, and later worked for a shipping line in Jacksonville before returning to law school where he graduated with high honors from the University of Florida.
Mr. Cook is married and has three sons.
Professional and Community Involvement
•Chair, The Florida Bar Civil Rules Committee, 2014-2015
•Leadership Jacksonville, Class of 2009
•fellow, The Florida Bar Foundation
•Beaches Episcopal School Board of Trustees
•Downtown Jacksonville Rotary
•The Florida Bar, YLD Board of Governors, 2005-2012
•Jacksonville Bar Association, YLS President, 2007-2008
•Fourth Judicial Circuit and Jacksonville Bar Association
•Mentor Program Committee Chair
Awards and Distinctions
•AV Rating, Martindale-Hubbell
•Best Lawyers in America (Commercial Litigation), 2016-2017
•Florida Trend's Legal Elite, “Legal Elite”, Commercial Litigation, 2013-2015, Business Law, 2016
•Florida Super Lawyers “Rising Star”, Business Litigation, 2009-2011
•Florida Super Lawyers, Business Litigation, 2013-2016
