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ABOUT OUR FIRM

About Eric Czelusta

Mr. Czelusta’s work history and legal career has been defined by one simple rule: In order to get the best possible result you must give your best possible effort. Throughout his 20 year legal career and even before he started practicing law, Mr. Czelusta has done just that. Starting at a very young age while being raised on his grandparents’ farm, Mr. Czelusta learned the value of hard work and he has applied that lesson throughout his adult life and he continues to carry that onward into his professional career.

​While attending college at Florida Atlantic University, Mr. Czelusta worked several jobs during the daytime to pay his tuition for night classes and at the same time he maintained a 4.0 grade point average. In 1995, Mr. Czelusta earned a bachelor’s degree in Political Science and then proceeded to enroll in law school. As a law student at Florida State University, and with the goal of ultimately becoming a trial lawyer, Mr. Czelusta participated in the State Attorney’s trial externship program where he tried seven jury trials as a law student. After graduating cum laude from The Florida State University College of Law in 1998, Mr. Czelusta continued to work at improving his litigation and trial skills as an Assistant State Attorney in Escambia County and later Palm Beach County. As a prosecutor, Mr. Czelusta tried over 50 jury trials to verdict ranging from misdemeanors to life felonies.

​In 2000, Mr. Czelusta joined a prominent medical malpractice defense law firm in Palm Beach County, and for the next 11 years he represented physicians, hospitals and other healthcare providers in the defense of medical malpractice lawsuits. In 2011, Mr. Czelusta joined a Pinellas County law firm where he continued his litigation and trial practice representing people who had been injured by medical negligence. In doing so, Mr. Czelusta’s work ethic has been the difference maker in achieving results for his clients. He has earned multiple seven figure verdicts at trial for his clients and even more seven figure settlements before trial.

Along the way, Eric Czelusta also earned a Florida Bar Board Certification in Civil Trial Law. This is an achievement that has been obtained by less than one percent of all lawyers in the State of Florida. Board certification is the highest level of recognition of competence by the Florida Bar and it involves a rigorous process of peer review, judicial evaluation, testing, and trial experience. Mr. Czelusta has also earned an AV rating by Martindale Hubble through its thorough peer review process.

Eric Czelusta joined The Patient’s Law Firm in 2019 and he plans to continue his track record of success for its clients by applying the same simple principles that have propelled him through his career up to this point.

 

About Christa Carpenter

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Ms. Carpenter knew she wanted to be a lawyer at age 15 when she went to court and watched attorneys advocate for an injured client in a courtroom. She knew she also wanted to be a nurse to impact patient lives as her parents had done. In 2006, she graduated from the University of Tampa with a 3.98 GPA and double major in criminology and nursing. She was the salutatorian of the school of nursing. She received the Outstanding Senior of the Year Award at the University of Tampa, and was awarded a scholarship to become a bachelors-trained nurse in the surgical trauma intensive care unit at Tampa General Hospital upon graduation. In 2007, while working full time as an ICU nurse at a large hospital, Ms. Carpenter enrolled in law school at Stetson University College of Law. She worked as an ICU nurse throughout law school at multiple hospitals, and began work as a law clerk at a prominent Tampa defense firm in 2008. While in law school and working two jobs, Ms. Carpenter earned top grades in Tort Law and Constitutional Law, became an editor of Stetson's Law Review, and graduated in the top 10% of her class.

Upon graduation in 2010, she defended healthcare providers, insurance companies, and major hospitals in the Tampa Bay area. In this capacity as a defense attorney, Ms. Carpenter gained invaluable experience.  She has taken cases from inception through trial, with remarkable results. She has represented clients in cases involving significant bodily injury and death. Ms. Carpenter remains current on both medical and legal practice standards through continuing education, seminars, and exposure to complex medical legal issues in cases. She harnesses this dual expertise for the benefit of her clients in their injury cases.

Ms. Carpenter is an active member in the Clearwater Bar Association, Clearwater Bar Young Lawyers Division, Florida Justice Association, Pinellas Florida Association for Women Lawyers, Florida Association for Women Lawyers, and Tampa Bay Trial Lawyers Association.

 

Consulting Physicians and Nurses

bio-pic At The Patient’s Law Firm, P.A., we have an in-house team of physicians and nurses who are available for consultation to assist with the review of cases. Such a feature is unique to The Patient’s Law Firm and is a rare and valuable asset in helping analyze medical-legal and personal injury cases.

PRACTICE AREAS

Medical Malpractice

Medical Wrongful Death

ABOUT OUR FIRM

At The Patient’s Law Firm, your case will be evaluated by a dually-licensed healthcare and legal professional, nurse attorney Christa Carpenter and attorney Eric Czelusta. Both Ms. Carpenter and Mr. Czelusta pride themselves on responsiveness, dedication, and specialized knowledge in healthcare law.