TAMPA, FL – Shumaker Partners Maria del Carmen Ramos and Jonathan Ellis have been named two of the Tampa Bay area’s top lawyers on Tampa Magazines’ 2021 Top Lawyers list. Tampa Magazine sent surveys to nearly 8,000 lawyers practicing in Hillsborough County, asking them to nominate lawyers they believe stand out from the rest. Tampa Bay lawyers chose 174 of their peers from 83 practice areas as this year’s Top Lawyers. Maria was voted by her peers as a top immigration lawyer, while Jonathan was voted as a top community associations lawyer. The 2021 Top Lawyers list is now available in the March 2021 edition of Tampa Magazine.
Maria devotes a substantial portion of her practice to counseling clients on immigration and related employment issues. In particular, Maria has extensive experience helping employers obtain H-1B and E visas, as well employment-based green cards, on behalf of foreign workers employed in specialty occupations. She also helps companies that have global operations obtain L-1 visas on behalf of their foreign-based employees so they can transfer to the United States. In addition to helping employers obtain visas for foreign workers, Maria routinely conducts audits for clients to ensure they are complying with their obligation to verify their employees’ eligibility to work in the United States.
Jonathan is board certified in condominium and planned development law by The Florida Bar and his clients turn to him for his experience in the many complex areas of community association law (Condo and HOA). The foundation of his practice stems from the fact he is president of his own homeowners association and he can relate to the issues his clients are facing. Jonathan represents associations from general collections and enforcement of covenants to revitalizations of convents and general corporate matters. He serves as general counsel for numerous community associations. His litigation experience ranges from foreclosure of liens, even through bankruptcy, to defending the Association’s officers and directors when sued. He has handled Housing Urban Development (HUD) and Americans with Disabilities (ADA) inquiries, construction defect cases, Marketable Record Title Act (MRTA) issues, turnover, injunction hearings, determination of covenant validity, contested elections and corporate control disputes to name just a few.