Biography
Monica is a Florida Supreme Court Certified Circuit Court Civil Mediator and a Qualified Arbitrator, and she dedicates her practice to alternative dispute resolution and real estate transactions. She has a background as a litigator in both the defense and plaintiff side of personal injury, negligence, premises liability, auto accidents, property damage, and third party and first party insurance claims.
Before law school, Monica taught English at both Miami Dade County Public Schools and Miami Dade College until she relocated to Indiana to attend law school at the University of Notre Dame. While in law school, she worked at the Notre Dame Legal Aid Clinic helping clients in cases involving mortgage foreclosure and real estate fraud issues. After law school, Monica clerked for Judge Kathleen Lang in LaPorte County Superior Court and later joined the Office of the Indiana Attorney General as a Deputy Attorney General in the Licensing Enforcement and Homeowner Protection Unit. She then began practicing insurance defense litigation until relocating to Southwest Florida, where she continued as a litigator on both the defense and plaintiff side before deciding to focus on alternative dispute resolution and real estate transactions. Monica also serves as the Special Magistrate for the Town of Fort Myers Beach. Monica is originally from Miami, Florida, and is fluent in Spanish.
When not working, Monica enjoys canoeing, kayaking, paddleboarding, and reading a good book on the beach with her husband, son, and daughter.
Education
University of Notre Dame School of Law, J.D., cum laude
Florida International University, B.A.
Honors
Best Lawyers in America: Ones to Watch, 2021-2024
Languages
Spanish
Professional Leadership
Past Chair, Fort Myers Beach Nuisance Abatement Board
Member, Notre Dame Club of SWFL
Member, Calusa Inn of Court
Representative Matters
Represent small, large, and local businesses in the defense of personal injury claims brought against them, many of which are brought by claimants with a history of multiple prior personal injury claims; vigorously investigate these claims and obtain favorable and efficient resolutions.
Obtained complete defense verdicts on multiple premises liability cases where Plaintiff was unable to prove that Defendant was negligent.
Obtained favorable jury verdict for Defendant where the jury awarded only reasonable medical expenses incurred by the Plaintiff after a minor motor vehicle accident rather than the hundreds of thousands of dollars of alleged past and future damages claimed by Plaintiff.
Won summary judgment for a business in a slip and fall case where Plaintiff could not prove that the business had notice of a small piece of produce on which Plaintiff claims to have slipped, where several employees had walked by the area minutes before the incident and did not recall seeing anything on the floor, and a witness had testified to seeing Plaintiff put the produce on the floor just before taking a seat onto the floor.
Defended World War II veteran landlord against claim by tenant who fell in his own apartment after bending over the bathtub; obtained a very favorable resolution for the client after filing a Motion for Sanctions against Plaintiff for bringing a frivolous and unsupported claim.
Represent homeowners or condominium associations against discrimination claims and contract claims made by residents.
Community
Serve as town magistrate for the Town of Fort Myers Beach.
Fort Myers Beach Woman’s Club
Board Member
Past President
Member, Ad Hoc Committee, Lee County School District
Past Treasurer and Advisor, Friends of Lowers Key (FOLKS) Boa
Presentations
Presenter, “Disciplinary and Industry Trends,” part of the 5-Hour Law and Ethics Course required for Florida Adjusters, Florida, 2021.
Presenter, “Regulatory Awareness,” part of the 5-Hour Law and Ethics Course required for Florida Adjusters, Florida, 2020.
Presenter, “Writing with Professionalism” CLE, Fort Myers, Florida, 2020.
Presenter, “Preparing Witnesses for Deposition and Trial” CLE, Fort Myers, Florida, 2019.
Presenter, “Bad Faith Traps for Carriers,” CE for Insurance Adjusters, Fort Myers, Florida
Publications
Featured, “How Attorney Monica Schmucker Tackles The Extreme Work Life Balance Of Being A Woman Business Leader During Covid-19,” Authority Magazine, 2020
Assisted with research and writing of “Time-Bars: RICO-Criminal and Civil-Federal and State” Notre Dame Law Review, by G. Robert Blakey, 2013