Jon Szabo
Biography
Jon Szabo is a partner in our West Palm Beach office and handles the defense of catastrophic trucking, automobile, and bodily injury and wrongful death cases across the state of Florida. He is part of a “rapid response team” often called to accident scenes within hours of a crash or incident to preserve evidence, interview witnesses, and put clients in the best position to evaluate a case early on. His other primary areas of practice include premises liability, negligent security, medical malpractice, and other general liability defense matters.
Prior to joining HBS, Jon was a partner at a civil litigation defense firm where he worked for over 12 years. There, he handled his own cases from pre-suit through trial, defending well-known self-insureds and insured trucking companies and retailers. Jon earned his Juris Doctor from Nova Southeastern University and his Bachelor of Arts, cum laude, in History from the University of South Carolina.
Experience
Jon prides himself on 24/7 availability and has the knowledge, experience, and resources to defend any type of bodily injury claim. He emanates from a family of doctors and nurses and is known to have a better understanding of the medicine, or medical issues involved in a claim, than most of his adversaries.
He works tirelessly defending those claims that need to be litigated, leaving no stone unturned. He is not afraid to defend his clients against the most aggressive or well-funded plaintiff firms and has successfully tried cases to verdict in numerous venues across Florida.
Recent trials and/or results are as follows:
- February of 2023: Tried a negligent security case in Broward County, Florida, with a $40 million demand and a request for same at trial, resulting in a low seven-figure verdict.
- Minor v. Beall’s, 2021: Summary judgment granted in favor of Defendant.
- Archer v. Three Rivers Xpress, Inc., 2019: A rear-end trucking accident case involving an alleged impaired driver and a claim for punitive damages in Marion County, Florida, resulting in a Defense verdict.
- Denison v. CEMEX Construction Materials Florida, LLC, 2018: A turnpike trucking accident case in St. Lucie County, Florida, resulting in a Defense verdict.
- Meeker v. Better Roads, 2016: A wrongful death lawsuit in Highlands County, Florida, resulting in a Defense verdict.
Credentials
Admitted
State Courts:
- Florida
U.S. District Courts:
- U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Florida
- U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida
Education
- J.D., Nova Southeastern University, 2010
- B.A., cum laude, University of South Carolina, 2007
Memberships
- Florida Defense Lawyers Association
- Palm Beach County Bar Association
- Young Lawyers Division
Recognition
- The Best Lawyers in America® , Litigation – Personal Injury, Best Lawyers®, 2024