Jonathan T. Gilbert

Personal

Jonathan T. Gilbert is a trial lawyer and partner at Colling Gilbert Wright in Orlando, Florida. Since beginning to practice law in 2009, Mr. Gilbert has specialized in medical malpractice cases, providing top-notch legal representation to individuals who have suffered injuries or the death of a loved one due to medical negligence. As a specialist in medical practice, Mr. Gilbert regularly receives referrals from other law firms who entrust him with clients who have been victims of medical errors.

Having secured several multimillion-dollar verdicts and settlements for his clients, Mr. Gilbert is a distinguished member of the Million Dollar Advocates Forum. Since 2012, the National Trial Lawyers have recognized his accomplishments as well, listing him among the “Top 40 Under 40” and more recently among the “Top 100” for the State of Florida. He has also been named as a Florida Super Lawyer for Medical Malpractice every year since 2015, having most recently received the designation of Top 50 in Orlando.

In 2022, Mr. Gilbert was selected to attend Trial Lawyers College (TLC) in Estes Park, Colorado. This nearly month-long program requires acceptance by TLC’s selection committee for plaintiff and criminal defense lawyers to hone their trial skills through arduous and intense work on both legal cases and themselves. Mr. Gilbert completed the program and is a proud graduate of TLC, staying active in their mission and continuing to attend TLC’s graduate-level workshops and programs.

Actively involved in his legal community, Mr. Gilbert is an Eagle member of the Florida Justice Association (FJA) and the former chairperson of FJA’s Young Lawyers Section. He is currently the President-Elect of the Central Florida Trial Lawyers Association (CFTLA), where he has continuously served on the Board of Directors since 2018. He will ascend to the role of President of CFTLA in 2026.

Mr. Gilbert is the author of several articles appearing in the Florida Bar News & Journal and the Florida Justice Association Journal, including:

• Twelve Ways to Avoid a Determination of NICA Compensability in a Medical Malpractice Case, The Florida Bar Journal, Dec. 2011
• A Young Lawyer’s Recommended Reading List, FJA Journal, Sept. 2012
• Practical Tips for Conducting an Attorney Fee Hearing, FJA Journal, October/November 2014
• On the Horizon and Behind Me Now, FJA Journal, May/June 2017
• Mickey Smiley Award Winner, FJA Journal, July/August 2021

Mr. Gilbert has also been actively engaged in teaching trial practice throughout Florida and even nationwide as a speaker, workshop leader, and moderator, including the following events:
All the Apps You Need for Personal Injury Litigation, FJA Annual Convention, 2015

• Damages: Diminished Earning Capacity, FJA Workhorse Seminar, 2016
• Young Lawyer Boot Camp: Case Intake Practices, FJA Young Lawyers Webinar, 2018
• Young Lawyer Boot Camp: Case Intake Practices, FJA Young Lawyers Webinar, 2019
• My First Time as First Chair, Joint Meeting of FJA Young Lawyers Section & PBCBA, 2020
• Career and Life Chats with Andrea Yang, Ep. 16, Andrea Yang’s YouTube® Channel, 2020
• Evaluating and Litigating Obstetrical/Birth Injury Malpractice Claims, Connectionology, 2021
• How to Assess/Litigate Neonatal Brachial Plexus Birth Claims, 2021 FJA “Masters of Justice” Seminar
• Florida Justice Association, Mock Trial Program, 2016-2018
• Florida Justice Association, Workhorse Seminar, 2018, 2019, 2022
• Orange County Bar Association, Bench Bar Conference, 2020
• Securities Law Claims and Disputes, Connectionology, 2021
• Al J. Cone Mock Trial Workshop, August 2024

Born and raised in Orlando, Mr. Gilbert graduated from Winter Park High School as part of the International Baccalaureate program. From there, he received a full academic scholarship to the Honors Program at the University of Florida.  After three years, Mr. Gilbert graduated magna cum laude from UF with a bachelor’s degree in political science and a minor in English.

After undergrad, Mr. Gilbert earned his Doctor of Jurisprudence from Stetson University College of Law, graduating with honors. In recognition of his exceptional pro bono service during law school, he was awarded the William F. Blews Pro Bono Service Award, among other designations.

Mr. Gilbert has held a license to practice law in all Florida state courts since 2009. He is also qualified to appear before the U.S. District Courts for the Northern, Middle, and Southern Districts of Florida and the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit.

After law school, Mr. Gilbert worked at a few law firms handling personal injury and medical malpractice cases before proudly joining CGW in 2013. Yet, as proud as he is to be part of this firm and obtain the results that he has for his clients, he is prouder of his two children, Avery (9) and Maddox (7).

Education

Jon attended the University of Florida on a full academic scholarship where he focused his undergraduate studies on political science and graduated magna cum laude in just three years.  From there, he attended Stetson University College of Law in St. Petersburg, Florida, where he was inducted into the Phi Delta Phi Honor Society.  Upon graduating from Stetson cum laude in 2008, Jon received the William F. Blews Award for exceptional Pro Bono Service and the Certificate of Leadership.

Practice Areas

Jon focuses his practice on representing those who have suffered a personal injury, been a victim of medical malpractice, or lost a loved one due to wrongful death.  Jon’s practice is devoted to litigation in these areas, where he actively practices with the aim of providing his clients with a valuable recovery for what they have endured.

Jurisdictions and Courts Admitted to Practice

Since 2009, Jon has been a member of the Florida Bar, and he is admitted to practice in every Florida state court, the Southern, Northern, and Middle Federal District Courts, and the Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals. Jon has also practiced in other states on a special admission basis called pro hac vice.

Publications

Jon has been published in the Florida Bar Journal’s December 2011 edition for his article “Twelve Ways to Avoid a Determination of NICA Compensability in a Medical Malpractice Case.”  Additionally, Jon has been published for his article “A Young Lawyer’s Recommended Reading List” in the September 2012 edition of the FJA Journal.

Awards, Recognition, and Professional Associations

Since 2009, Jon has also been a member of the Florida Justice Association (FJA), Florida’s statewide plaintiff civil litigation organization aimed at protecting the rights of those injured or wronged.  In fact, Jon is an Eagle member of FJA and was the Chair of the Young Lawyers’ Section from 2016-2017, helping to get young lawyers involved in this organization’s quest and putting on the annual Earle Zehmer Mock Trial Competition for students of all the Florida law schools.  Jon is also involved locally as a member of the Orange County Bar Association and sitting on the Board of Directors for the Central Florida Trial Lawyers Association.

Honors

Jon received the honor of being inducted as one of the National Trial Lawyers “Top 40 Under 40” for the State of Florida.  This is an honor bestowed upon the top forty civil and criminal defense trial attorneys under the age of forty in each state.  His membership in the NTLA has been ongoing each year since being initially inducted in 2012.

Additionally, Jon has been named as a Super Lawyer Rising Star and more recently as a Super Lawyer in the area of Medical Malpractice each year since 2015. Jon has also been designated as a Legal Elite Up and Comer each year since 2019.

Publications and Speaking Engagements

Jon has been published in the Florida Bar Journal’s December 2011 edition for his article Twelve Ways to Avoid a Determination of NICA Compensability in a Medical Malpractice Case.  Additionally, Jon has been published numerous times in the FJA Journal. Jon has spoken at seminars and conventions on the topic of medical malpractice and personal injury, including those put on by Central Florida Trial Lawyers, Florida Justice Association, Connectionology, and others.