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EDUCATION & BAR ADMISSIONS

brian d. burgoon - attorney profile


 

Brian Burgoon is a trial attorney with over 26 years' experience practicing law. He founded The Burgoon Law Firm in 2007 after practicing for over 10 years with one of Atlanta’s largest and most reputable law firms. He is licensed to practice law in Georgia and Florida and has extensive experience in state and federal courts and arbitration. He has handled a wide variety of complex litigation matters, including business and commercial litigation, contract disputes, business torts, real estate litigation, employment/non-compete/trade secrets, competitive procurement and bidding disputes, insurance coverage, commercial collections, injunctions, mediations and appeals. Brian’s clients have included individuals, governmental entities, small businesses and large private and public corporations, including several Fortune 500 companies.  Brian also has corporate/mergers & acquisitions experience and has handled the start-up and legal needs of businesses and their owners.  He is an Adjunct Professor at the University of Florida College of Law.   


Brian is a Registered Mediator and Arbitrator with the Georgia Office of Dispute Resolution. He is an arbitrator with the American Arbitration Association (AAA), serving on the Large/Complex Case Panel, Commercial Panel, and Consumer Panel, and he has been appointed arbitrator in over 200 arbitrations administered by the AAA.  In addition, he serves on the International Institute for Conflict Prevention & Resolution (CPR) Panel of Distinguished Neutrals as both an arbitrator and mediator.  Brian also is a Hearing Officer for employment matters for both the Atlanta Board of Education and the Fulton County Board of Education.  Additionally, the Georgia Supreme Court has appointed Brian to serve as a Special Master to preside over disciplinary proceedings concerning alleged lawyer misconduct.


Aviation is of particular interest to Brian, both personally and professionally.  Along with being an instrument-rated commercial pilot, he is also a Panel Attorney with the Aircraft Owners & Pilots Association (AOPA), which represents pilots in FAA enforcement proceedings, NTSB investigations, and other aviation law matters.  He is a member of the State Bar of Georgia Aviation Law Section and the Florida Bar Aviation Law Committee.

Brian has a strong commitment to the advancement of the legal profession and has been active in professional organizations and public service from the earliest days of his career.  At age 28, Brian became the youngest person ever elected to the Florida Bar Board of Governors and is currently serving his 24th year representing the Florida lawyers who live out-of-state on the bar’s governing board, which sets policy for the over 111,000-member regulatory bar, implements rules and regulations for lawyers, and oversees lawyer ethics and discipline as well as a $43 million+ budget.  He is serving his 9th term on the Florida Bar Executive Committee, and is Chair of the Board Review Committee on Professional Ethics, responsible for reviewing lawyer ethics and advertising issues, and Vice Chair of the Disciplinary Procedure Committee.  Brian previously served five terms chairing the Disciplinary Review Committee, which oversees the prosecution and appeals of lawyer disciplinary violations, chaired the Program Evaluation Committee, Technology Committee, and Rules Committee, and served on a statewide commission to review the Florida lawyer disciplinary system.  

Brian is Chair-Elect of the University of Florida College of Law Board of Trustees.  He previously served as President of the University of Florida Alumni Association, President of the UF College of Law Alumni Council, member of the UF Foundation Board, and member of the UF Vice President for Student Affairs Search Committee. Additionally, Brian served as an inaugural member of the Leadership Council for UF’s Machen Florida Opportunity Scholars Program which provides full need-based financial assistance to first generation college students.

Brian has received a number of prestigious awards and honors for his leadership and service.  In 2021, University of Florida’s Student Government created the Brian Burgoon Outstanding Mentorship Award, to be given annually to a student, faculty member, or alumnus who has dedicated time, knowledge, and energy for the purposes of guiding, nurturing, and supporting University of Florida students.  In addition to being honored as the namesake of the award, Brian also was the inaugural recipient.  He also was recognized for his service to the University of Florida College of Law with the 2021 S. Austin Peele Distinguished Trustee Award.  In 2019, Brian received the Myra Morgan Outstanding Mentorship Award from Florida Blue Key.  Additionally, in 2014, Brian was awarded the Florida Bar’s Tony Boggs Excellence in Discipline Award in recognition of his efforts on behalf of the Florida lawyer discipline system.  In 2009, Brian was honored with the Outstanding Young Alumnus Award from the University of Florida, a recognition of UF alumni under age 40 who have distinguished themselves in business, community, and public service.  


Brian is AV-Preeminent® rated by Martindale-Hubbell, the peer review rating for the highest level of professional excellence.  He has been named to the “Top 100” Georgia Super Lawyers list every year since 2015, and he was selected by his peers for inclusion in The Best Lawyers in America in the area of Commercial Litigation (2020-24).  In addition, Brian has been recognized as one of the “Legal Elite” by Georgia Trend magazine in both Business Law and Trial every year since 2010, and in 2015, was profiled by Georgia Trend as a "Legal Elite" top vote receiver in Business Law.  Brian also was named a Georgia Litigation Star in Euromoney’s Benchmark Plaintiffs.

Brian earned his law degree, with high honors, and his bachelor’s degree, with honors, from the University of Florida, where he distinguished himself as a student leader.  He served as University of Florida’s Student Body President in 1996-97 and was elected by his counterparts at Florida’s public universities to represent and advocate on behalf of the approximately 220,000 students statewide as Chair of the State Council of Student Body Presidents.  In recognition of his efforts on behalf of the university, Brian received UF’s Outstanding Leader Award for his graduating class, the university’s most prestigious leadership award, and he was inducted into the University of Florida Hall of Fame, Phi Beta Kappa, Order of the Coif, and Florida Blue Key.  ​

Education

J.D., with High Honors, University of Florida College of Law, 1997; Order of the Coif


B.A., with Honors, University of Florida, 1994;

Phi Beta Kappa


Bar Admissions

Georgia

Florida


Court Admissions

U.S. Supreme Court

U.S. Court of Appeals, 6th Circuit

​U.S. Court of Appeals, 11th Circuit

U.S. District Court, Northern District of Georgia

​U.S. District Court, Middle District of Georgia

U.S. District Court, Northern District of Florida

U.S. District Court, Middle District of Florida

​U.S. District Court, Southern District of Florida

All Georgia state courts

All Florida state courts


Additional Licenses & Registrations

Registered Mediator and Registered Arbitrator with the Georgia Office of Dispute Resolution


Commercial Pilot, with Instrument Rating and Private Seaplane Rating (FAA)


Remote Pilot Certificate, with Small Unmanned Aircraft Systems (sUAS) Rating for commercial purposes (FAA)

​Alternative Dispute Resolution Panels
American Arbitration Association

  • Large/Complex Case Panel - Arbitrator
  • Commercial Panel - Arbitrator
  • Consumer Panel - Arbitrator


International Institute for Conflict Prevention & Resolution (CPR) Panel of Distinguished Neutrals

  • Mediator
  • Arbitrator