Litigation shareholder Joanne M. O’Connor was a featured panelist at the Historical Society of Palm Beach County’s A Portrait of Leadership 2024 event as part of its Women’s History Initiative during Women’s History Month. The Women’s History Initiative facilitates a growing group of both women and men who support activities to recognize and empower the strength of women in our community, both past and present.
Ms. O’Connor, a Florida Bar Board Certified Business Litigation attorney and the first female Town Attorney for Palm Beach, was among several distinguished Palm Beach County women leaders who participated in the panel discussion at the Historical Society’s 1916 Courtroom. This year’s panelists included Jessica Clasby, Palm Beach County Director of the Florida Sugar Cane League; Danita DeHaney, President and CEO of the Community Foundation for Palm Beach and Martin Counties; Marti LaTour, Director of Marketing of The A.I.D. Group; Joanne O’Connor; and Erin Guy of WPBF 25 News as moderator.
During the discussion, Ms. Guy asked Ms. O’Connor if Palm Beach history has played a role in her work. “Absolutely. My law firm is celebrating its 100th year in Palm Beach County this year...,” Ms. O’Connor responded. “I’ve been at my firm now for 23 years and (I’m) really feeling like our firm has been an integral part of this community. Since I was a (young) lawyer, I was working for the Town of Palm Beach on their litigation matters.
"Palm Beach has had a number of prominent women mayors. They’ve had some great female leaders running Palm Beach, but never a female Town Attorney,” she explained. “My partner, Skip Randolph was the longtime Town Attorney for over 40 years, and it’s just been really great to have that. Not only the legacy of my firm but working hand in hand with a client like the Town of Palm Beach that our firm has been connected with for so many years. So, we are part of the history, we know the matters that have come up for the town over the years, and it’s unique for sure.”
Ms. O’Connor also shared her views on leadership, mentorship, confidence building, and touched on personal and professional challenges she encountered early in her law career as well as gender bias and discrimination that still exist in society and the workplace.
“Outside of my firm, I think in terms of acting differently toward men and women, I still think there’s an attitude, especially in law – that if you have a male business owner, that they think that their litigator should be an aggressive bulldog,” Ms. O’Connor said. “We have a great group of female judges in Palm Beach County, and I endeavor to educate my male clients that that may not serve (them) the best in the long run, and having a more collaborative approach, which I might attribute more to women than to men, will really benefit (them) in the long run.”
As the discussion progressed, panelists offered their perspectives on young professionals just entering the professional workforce. “I want to give a shoutout to Gen Z because, at least in my experience at our law firm, we have the best class of associates we have had in a long, long time,” Ms. O’Connor said. “So, I push back when folks suggest that somehow Gen Z doesn’t want to work hard, that they don’t want to put in the hours. They do. They value, I think, much more than our generation, their family, and their private time, but that does not mean that when we have a trial, or there’s something that we need them for, they are there. So, our experience has been phenomenal.”
Joanne O’Connor focuses her practice on complex commercial litigation, such as contracts, business torts, and partnership and corporate disputes, and real estate and land use litigation. She defends actions seeking certification of nationwide and statewide classes, including consumer claims brought under the federal Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA). Ms. O’Connor’s extensive experience as a litigator positions her as a powerful advocate for her clients in jury and non-jury trials and appeals in state and federal courts and before private arbitration panels. She also provides expert testimony to state and federal courts on the reasonableness and amount of attorneys’ fees and costs due to prevailing parties.
Ms. O’Connor also serves as Town Attorney for the Town of Palm Beach, where she counsels the Town, its officials, and staff on a wide range of legal issues including contracts, land use and zoning, ordinances, and regulations, and oversees the Town’s litigation. She also counsels other governmental entities on statutory, constitutional, and civil rights claims and both governmental and private entities on Florida’s Public Records Act and Sunshine Law.
Ms. O’Connor currently holds several notable leadership positions, including as vice chair of The Florida Bar's Federal Court Practice Committee and co-chair of the Palm Beach County Bar Association's Diversity Internship Program. She is a past president of the Federal Bar Association Palm Beach County Chapter and a past chair and member of The Florida Bar’s Business Litigation Certification Committee. Additionally, Ms. O’Connor was appointed Defendants’ Liaison Counsel by the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida in the federal multidistrict litigation alleging personal injury relating to the medication Zantac, In re Zantac (Ranitidine) Products Liability Litigation, MDL No. 2924.
Jones Foster is celebrating its Centennial year as a full-service commercial and private client law firm headquartered in West Palm Beach, Florida, with offices in Palm Beach and Jupiter. Tracing its roots back to 1924, the firm has served as an integral part of South Florida’s growth and prosperity. Through a relentless pursuit of excellence, Jones Foster delivers original legal solutions that help clients, colleagues, and the community to move forward. A significant number of attorneys have received the designation of Board-Certified Specialist by The Florida Bar in their specific practice area. The firm’s practice groups include Complex Litigation & Dispute Resolution; Corporate & Tax; Land Use & Governmental; Private Wealth, Wills, Trusts & Estates; Real Estate; and Trust & Estate Litigation. For more information, please visit www.jonesfoster.com.
