Mr. Howell is currently employed as Corporate Counsel for the Scott-McRae Group, a holding company for 8 automobile dealerships and several other business entities, including US Auto Credit Corporation, an automobile financing company, primarily managing all litigation, insurance issues, risk management and employment claims. He has held that position since 2007. Prior to going in-house with the Scott-McRae Group, for 40 years he was actively involved in the practice of law as a civil trial lawyer in Jacksonville, Florida, concentrating primarily on complex litigation in a variety of areas, including corporate and commercial issues, construction disputes, professional and medical malpractice, insurance coverage and bad faith, products liability, and catastrophic personal injury claims. During his career in private practice, he handled cases “on both sides of the fence,” ie., both plaintiff and defense. Since becoming Board Certified as a Circuit Civil Mediator in 1994, Mr. Howell has also mediated numerous cases in the areas in which has practiced
Mr. Howell started in private practice with his father, Charles Cook Howell, Jr., in 1966. When his father assumed the bench, he joined the state-wide defense firm of Howell, Kirby, D’Aiuto, Dean & Hallowes, shortly thereafter becoming a shareholder in that firm. In 1976, that firm split up, and he became a member of Howell, Liles, Braddock & Milton, a Jacksonville defense firm. In 1985, he joined as a partner the firm of Commander, Legler, Werber, Dawes, Sadler & Howell, which in 1991 merged with the national firm of Foley& Lardner. In 1993, he started his own firm, Howell & O’Neal, where he continued to represent both defendants and plaintiffs in a wide variety of areas, until joining a long-time client, the Scott-McRae Group, as its Corporate Counsel.
Education: Mr. Howell attended the Bolles School in Jacksonville. He graduated from the University of North Carolina in Chapel Hill in 1963 with an AB degree. He obtained his law degree (JD) from the University of Florida College of Law (Fred Levin College of Law) in 1966.
Admitted: Mr. Howell is admitted to the Florida Bar and is admitted to practice in all Florida State Courts, the United States District Court for the Middle District of Florida, the United States Fifth and Eleventh Circuit Courts of Appeal, and the United States Supreme Court (1970).
Memberships: The Florida Bar; The Jacksonville Bar Association (Board of Governors (1974-1976), Chairman of Trial Section (1985-19860, co-chairman (1989-1990); The Florida Defense Lawyers Association; The International Association of Defense Counsel; The Defense Research Institute; The American Board of Trial Advocates (Advocate status); The Florida Academy of Professional Mediators; Florida Association of Professional Mediators; and the Florida Chapter of the National Academy of Distinguished Neutrals.
Professional Certifications / Honors: Mr. Howell has been a Board Certified CivilTrial Lawyer for 30 years, becoming certified the first year such certification was offered, 1983. He was formerly (until he went in-house) a Certified Civil Trial Advocate, the National Board of Trial Advocacy. He has been a Florida Supreme Court Certified Circuit Civil Mediator since 1994 (Certification No.; 6199R). He is also a Federal Court Certified Mediator, and a Florida Supreme Court Qualified Court Appointed Arbitrator. He was named as one of Florida’s Super Lawyers in General Litigation from 2006-2009); and he is an AV Peer Review Rated lawyer by Martindale-Hubble.