GuynnMemmer&Dillon

Theresa J. Fontana

Theresa Fontana - AttorneyTelephone: (540) 387-2320
Fax: (540) 389-2350
E-mail: theresa.fontana@gmdlawfirm.com

Theresa Fontana is a local government attorney with experience advising officials and government employees with regard to a variety of government related matters. She recently served as assistant city attorney for the City of Port St. Lucie, Florida where she represented the Port St. Lucie Utility Systems Department. In addition to her utility work, she created and implemented the City's Nuisance Abatement Program which was subsequently adopted by numerous other localities within Florida. She also advised the City's Community Services Department and was responsible for purchasing approximately 150 foreclosed homes as part of the federally funded Neighborhood Stabilization Program. She enjoys contract work and reviewed the majority of the City's procurement contracts and franchise agreements. Most recently, she successfully worked with St. Lucie County, Florida in negotiating a revenue sharing agreement between the City and the County for the St. Lucie County Baling & Recycling Facility, the first of its kind in Florida. This agreement was an important step in enabling St. Lucie County to become the first in the nation to build a plasma gasification plant at its landfill that will vaporize trash into electricity.

Bar Admissions:

  • Virginia State Bar 2010
  • Florida Bar 2003
  • U.S. District Court for the Western District of Virginia
  • U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida
  • U.S. Supreme Court

Education:

  • Nova Southeastern University, Ft. Lauderdale, Florida, 2002, J.D., Summa Cum Laude
  • Florida Atlantic University, Boca Raton, Florida, 1995, B.S. Nursing

Professional Associations, Memberships and Community Service:

  • Virginia State Bar
    • Local Government Section
    • Real Property Section
  • Florida Bar
    • Local Government Section
    • Real Property, Probate, and Trust Law Section

Articles and Presentations:

  • "City of Port St. Lucie Nuisance Abatement Program," Florida League of Cities Annual Conference, 2009
  • "Easements and Legal Issues", Port St. Lucie Utility Systems Department Training Seminar, 2006
  • "Patient Safety 2003", Palmetto General Hospital and Hialeah Hospital, 2003
  • "Infection Control and the Law", Miami Children's Hospital, 2003
  • "Proving Employer Intent: Turner v. PCR, Inc. and the Intentional Tort Exception to the Worker's Compensation Immunity Defense," 25 Nova L. Rev. 365 (2000)

Awards:

  • City Manager's Employee of the Year, City of Port St. Lucie, 2007
  • Excellence in Health Law, Bureau of National Affairs, 2003