Neisen Kasdin, Miami Office Managing Partner, and Grasford Smith are highlighted in Florida Trend’s 2020 Florida 500 listing, which recognizes the 500 most influential executives in different economic sectors throughout the state.
The publication noted, “Kasdin has been the office managing partner for Akerman’s Miami office, the firm’s largest, for nearly a decade. The nationwide firm, with more than 700 lawyers and business professionals in 25 offices, is known for its corporate/M&A, business litigation, real estate, and international practices. A former mayor of Miami Beach and a leader in the revitalization of South Beach, Kasdin says he was able to use his experience from the public sector “and apply it to my work as a land-use lawyer, particularly working on large-scale urban infill projects and neighborhood redevelopment, which is a passion.”
“Smith recently joined Akerman from Jones Foster. With a focus on commercial litigation and intellectual property, he has represented Fortune 500 companies, government agencies, athletic leagues, technology firms, and small and medium-sized businesses. In West Palm, Smith serves on the board of the American Heart Association, Anquan Boldin Foundation, and the Urban League of Palm Beach County. He currently serves as president of the National Bar Association’s Virgil Hawkins Florida Chapter. Hawkins was a former faculty member of Bethune-Cookman University whose decades-long efforts to be admitted to the University of Florida Law School led to the desegregation of UF’s graduate and professional schools. Smith has led efforts to enable African-American attorneys to serve on the judiciary and the state’s Judicial Nominating Commissions.”