WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. (March 6, 2017) – Gunster, one of Florida’s oldest and largest full-service business law firms, is pleased to announce that, on Feb. 14, 2017, Florida Gov. Rick Scott appointed Gunster shareholder Fabienne E. Fahnestock to the judicial bench of the 17th Circuit Court in Fort Lauderdale. She fills a vacancy created by the retirement of Judge Thomas M. Lynch IV.
Fahnestock is expected to begin serving in a judicial capacity on March 9, 2017, in the family division. Her last day at Gunster will be March 8.
The 17th Judicial Circuit Court serves residents of Broward County, making it the second-largest jurisdiction in the state of Florida with a population of over 1.6 million, according to the court's website.
Fahnestock is a litigation attorney who focused her law practice on the areas of business, employment, appellate and health care law, as well as probate and trust litigation. She joined the firm in September of 2002 and worked out of Gunster's Fort Lauderdale office.
“I am honored by the privilege the governor has bestowed on me,” Fahnestock says of her appointment to the bench. “I will work hard to serve Broward County and its residents.”
“We are extremely proud of Fabienne,” Gunster Managing Shareholder Bill Perry says. “Fabienne follows a long line of Gunster attorneys who have been appointed to the bench. We are confident that Fabienne will serve the citizens of Broward County with same sense of fairness and professionalism that she exhibited as a Gunster attorney.”
"Fabienne received this good news on the 10th anniversary of her promotion to shareholder at Gunster," George S. LeMieux, chairman of board. "Our loss will be the gain of Broward County residents, as Fabienne takes her legal talent, integrity and good judgment to the bench."
Fahnestock received her J.D. from the University of Florida, her master's from Nova Southeastern University, and her bachelor's degree from the University of Miami.
Prior to joining Gunster, Fabienne served as a law clerk for the Honorable Gary M. Farmer of the Fourth District Court of Appeal of Florida.
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