Tom Seider is board certified in appellate practice—a distinction achieved by fewer than one percent of all Florida lawyers. Tom handles appeals of all types, from personal injury cases to complex commercial disputes. Tom has successfully defended multi-million-dollar verdicts on appeal and has earned reversals of orders entered in favor of major corporations. In 2018, he argued and won two cases at the Florida Supreme Court.
Tom is a past chair of the Hillsborough County Bar Association’s Appellate Practice Section, and he is the current Chair of the Appellate Practice Section’s Publications Committee. Tom also serves on the Florida Supreme Court Committee on Standard Jury Instructions in Civil Cases. Tom has been repeatedly recognized as a Super Lawyers “Rising Star” and a Florida Trend “Up and Comer.” Tom is also a frequent writer and lecturer on appellate topics. Before joining Brannock Berman & Seider, Tom was an associate at Buchanan Ingersoll Rooney, P.C. (formerly Fowler White Boggs, P.A.), where he served on the Writing Committee.
Tom lives in Tampa with his wife—also an appellate lawyer—who he met while attending law school at the University of Virginia. They have two children. Tom enjoys reading and cooking in his spare time.
Education
• University of Florida, B.A., with honors
o Phi Beta Kappa
• University of Virginia School of Law, J.D.
o Dean’s Scholarship
Certifications and Bar Admissions
• Board Certified by The Florida Bar in Appellate Practice
• United States Supreme Court
• United States Court of Appeals, Eleventh Circuit
• United States District Court, Middle and Southern Districts of Florida
• All Florida Courts
Honors and Distinctions
• Florida Super Lawyers, Rising Stars, 2013-2022
• Florida Trend’s Legal Elite, Up and Comers, 2015 & 2018 & 2020
• Best Lawyers: Ones to Watch in America™, Appellate Practice, 2021-2023
• Best Lawyers: Ones to Watch in America™, Personal Injury Litigation – Plaintiffs, 2022 & 2023
• The National Trial Lawyers: Top 100 Civil Plaintiff Trial Lawyers in Florida Member
Professional Associations
• Florida Supreme Court Committee on Standard Jury Instructions in Civil Cases
o Committee Member
o Former Reporter for the Committee
• Appellate Practice Section of The Florida Bar
o Chair of the Publications Committee
o Member of the Executive Council
o Past Editor of the Section’s submissions to the Florida Bar Journal
• Florida Justice Association
o EAGLE Member
o Chair-Elect of the Appellate Practice Section
• Hillsborough County Bar Association
o Former Chair of the Appellate Practice Section
o Former Chair of the Appellate Practice Section’s Pro Bono Subcommittee
• American Association for Justice
o Appellate Litigation Group
o President’s Club Member
• Pound Civil Justice Institute, Fellow
• Florida Supreme Court Historical Society
• Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals Historical Society
• J. Clifford Cheatwood American Inn of Court
• Manasota Trial Lawyers Board
• Second District Court of Appeal Historical Society
• Tampa Bay Trial Lawyers Association
Lectures
• “Brief Writing: All the Stuff You Never Realized You Didn’t Know,” Florida Justice Association’s Annual Convention (June 16, 2022)
• “Making Your Record Before, During, and After Trial,” Florida Justice Association’s Annual Convention (June 25, 2020)
• “Jury Instructions, Verdict Forms, Jury Questions and Conduct, and Jury Verdicts,” The Florida Bar Appellate Practice Section’s Art of Objecting Seminar (June 5, 2019)
• “Location, Location, Location—Where to Litigate and Related Ethical Issues,” Cheatwood Inn Of Court (January 8, 2019)
• “The Dos and Don’ts of Oral Argument: An Interactive Discussion with a Judicial Panel from the Second District Court of Appeal,” Moderator, The Hillsborough County Bar Association’s Appellate Practice Section CLE (October 17, 2018)
• “A View Towards the Bench—Appellate,” Moderator, HCBA 2017 Bench Bar Conference (October 25, 2017)
• “Sweating the Small Stuff: A Debate Over The Little Things That Can Make Your Good Appeal Great,” The Hillsborough County Bar Association’s Appellate Practice Section CLE: An Appellate Medley: Diverse Perspectives on Appellate Advocacy (April 5, 2017)
Publications
• “The Florida Bar Appellate Practice Section’s Art of Objecting Seminar,” Published Materials, Co-Author, June 5, 2019
• “A Voice For Children in Need: Volunteer for a Guardian Ad Litem Appeal,” 29 Lawyer (Hillsborough County Bar Association) 26, September/October 2018
• “Challenging the Challenge: How Florida Law Protects Against Discriminatory Peremptories,” Journal (Florida Justice Association) #603, July/August 2018
• “Saying the Magic Words: Protecting Your Cause Challenges by Asking the Right Questions,” Journal (Florida Justice Association) #596, May/June 2017
• “Appealing Post-Judgment Orders: The Path to Appellate Review Under the New Rule 9.130(a)(4),” 89 Florida Bar Journal 42, October 2015
• “Investing in State Tax Liens: Understanding the Mechanics of Acquisition,” Co-Author, The Journal of Corporate Renewal, Vol. 24, No. 4, May 2011
• “Administrative Freezes Unfrozen: In re Young as Validation of Automatic Holds on the Bank Accounts of Chapter 7 Debtors,” The Cramdown (Tampa Bay Bankruptcy Bar Association), Winter 2011
• “One is the Loneliest Number: Olmstead Diminishes Refuge in the Single-Member LLC,” The Cramdown (Tampa Bay Bankruptcy Bar Association), Fall 2010
