News Detail
Three of Florida’s top 100 “influencers” from Pennington Law Firm
(10/15/2009, Pennington News Release )
TALLAHASSEE – Politics Magazine has named two Pennington Law Firm shareholders, Samuel P. Bell and Peter M. Dunbar, and Special Consultant Betty Castor in the top 100 “most important opinion brokers” in the State of Florida. The “Influencers,” a new list put fourth by Politics Magazine, catalogues the 100 most influential people in state-level politics. It breaks Florida down into two top 50 lists discerning both Democrats and Republicans. Peter M. Dunbar (R) and Samuel P. Bell (D) are listed as prominent lobbyists and former legislators. Betty Castor (D) is listed as former State Senator and Education Commissioner. Among others listed as Florida’s Influencers: the State Attorney General, a U.S. Senator and three U.S. Representatives. Mr. Bell's practice focuses on governmental affairs, health care, insurance, land use, local government and administrative law. As the former Chairman of the legislatively created Commission on Local Government II, Mr. Bell was charged with developing strategies that will make local governments more efficient and effective in an era of exploding demands and dwindling resources. For more than a decade, Mr. Bell served as State Representative for Volusia County. He held key positions in the Florida House including Majority Leader, Chairman of the Rules Committee and Chairman of the Appropriations Committee. He is the only legislator in Florida history to have received every award for effectiveness granted by his fellow legislators. Mr. Dunbar's practice focuses on administrative, real property, and governmental law. Mr. Dunbar began his long career in Florida government as a distinguished member of the Florida House representing Pinellas and Pasco counties in the Florida Legislature. Upon leaving the Legislature, he held the posts of General Counsel and Director of Legislative Affairs under Governor Bob Martinez and as General Counsel at the Department of Financial Services. He also served as Chief of Staff during the transition from the Martinez administration to the administration of Governor Lawton Chiles. Mr. Dunbar was admitted to the Florida Bar in 1972 and joined Pennington, Moore, Wilkinson, Bell & Dunbar upon leaving the Executive Office of the Governor. Mr. Dunbar is a member of the American College of Real Estate Lawyers and has recently been selected by his peers as one of the Top Florida Lawyers in Florida Trend's 2007 Legal Elite Survey. Betty Castor joined the Pennington Firm in 2009 to launch the Center for Education Policy, an advocacy center for education at all levels. Ms. Castor began her teaching career in Uganda, as part of the non-profit organization, Teachers for East Africa. In 1972, Castor was elected to Hillsborough County Commissioner. She subsequently served three terms in the Florida Senate representing the Tampa-area. In 1986, Castor was elected to the Florida Cabinet as the state’s Education Commissioner. After leaving the Department of Education, in 1994 Castor became the first woman president of the University of South Florida (USF). Following her tenure as President of the University of South Florida, Ms. Castor became the President and CEO of the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards located in Arlington, Virginia. She later returned to USF where she became the first Executive Director of the Patel Center for Global Solution.