Meet The Team

Mark J. Upton

Mark was born in Century, Florida on August 21, 1960 and holds a B.S. degree(1982) and a J.D. degree(1985) from the University of Alabama. He is admitted to practice in Alabama (1985) and Florida (1986) and is a member of various local bar associations in Alabama and Florida. Mark is a member of the Alabama Defense Lawyers Association, the Defense Research Institute and the International Association of Arson Investigators. Mark maintains an active case load in the area of casualty, property, and products liability litigation in both State and Federal Courts in Alabama and Florida. His areas of practice specialty also include insurance coverage opinions and bad faith litigation.

Mark has tried over 80 jury trials to a verdict in 14 different courthouses in both State and Federal Courts in the States of Alabama, Florida and Mississippi. He has tried at least one jury trial in every State and Federal Courthouse between Panama City, Florida and Pascagoula, Mississippi. While handling a busy litigation practice, Mark also makes time to speak at insurance seminars presented to various insurance company employees in the areas of claims handing, fraud investigation and bad faith. He has also taught classes at the annual meetings of the Florida Advisory Committee on Arson Prevention in the areas of arson and fraud and insurance policy interpretation. Following Hurricane Ivan in 2004, Mark acted as lead counsel for the insurance industry before the Florida Supreme Court in the case of Cox v. Florida Farm Bureau which overturned an interpretation of Florida's Valued Policy Law which had allowed for a double recovery for flood damage and wind damage in claims made under homeowners' policies of insurance.