David Carter was born in Vero Beach, Florida, and joined Gould Cooksey Fennell in 1994, where he is a member on the firm's Executive Committee and sits as the Chair of the Personal Injury & Medical Negligence Group. Mr. Carter attended the University of Florida College of Law where he was a Senior Editor of the Florida Law Review and a member of the Order of the Coif.
After graduating with honors from law school, Mr. Carter accepted a position with the Tampa law firm of Trenam, Simmons, Kemker, Scharf, Barkin, Frye & O'Neill, gaining experience in the areas of complex personal injury, medical malpractice and commercial litigation. During that time, he was also selected by The Florida Board of Bar Examiners to serve as a writer and grader for The Florida Bar Examination.
Since returning to Vero Beach and joining Gould Cooksey Fennell, David M. Carter has been recognized for his work in litigating cases involving catastrophic injuries and death on behalf of his clients. Recent jury verdicts in his clients' favor rank among the highest awards in personal injury cases in the history of our community.
Mr. Carter is Board Certified by the Florida Bar as a specialist in Civil Trial Law. He maintains an "AV" rating by Martindale-Hubbell, the largest and most comprehensive ratings document of lawyers in the world. From 2006 through the present, he has been named a "Super Lawyer" by Law & Politics Magazine. In 2007 he was named in Law Dragon 3000, which lists the Leading 3000 Attorneys in America. For the last three years, Mr. Carter has been included in the U.S. News and World Reports Best Lawyer rankings and was named the 2015 Orlando area Personal Injury Litigation Plaintiff's Lawyer of the Year by that publication. In 2009, the Governor appointed Mr. Carter to serve on the 19th Judicial Circuit's Judicial Nominating Commission.
Mr. Carter has been an active member of the Florida Justice Association and served on the Board of Directors for nearly a decade. He was recently named a Distinguished Fellow by the organization and continues to speak at continuing legal education seminars on justice topics.
As a fourth generation Floridian, Mr. Carter is a member of one of Vero's pioneer families. His great-grandfather, a land surveyor who moved to the area in the early 1900's, is credited with staking out the original town of Vero Beach.
AV Rated, Martindale-HubbellBoard Certified Specialist in Civil Trial by The Florida BarBest Lawyers in America, Plaintiff's Personal Injury, 2012-PresentBest Lawyers, Lawyer of the Year, Personal Injury Litigation, 2015Super Lawyer, 2006 through presentThe National Trial Lawyers Top 100 Trial Lawyers
The Florida Bar
Indian River County Bar Association
Florida Justice Association, Senior Fellow
University of Florida (B.S., 1987)
University of Florida, College of Law (J.D., 1991)
Personal Interest or Leisure Activity
Diving
Fishing
Snow Skiing
Personal Injury & Medical NegligenceWill & Trust Disputes
