PROFESSIONAL SUMMARY

Kareem J. Spratling focuses his legal practice primarily in the area of public finance. Mr. Spratling’s public finance experience includes nationwide Bond, Disclosure, Bank and Underwriter’s counsel representation. Each year since being admitted to practice, Mr. Spratling has provided counsel on transactions with a combined principal amount in the billions of dollars. In 2015, Mr. Spratling served as Bond Counsel on over $1 billion of bonds for 501(c)(3) universities, including a $661 million financing for a large university in South Florida. He has represented governmental and quasi-governmental entities at all levels, including: the United States of America, the State of Florida, and multiple Florida counties, cities, housing/housing finance authorities, conduit issuers and charter schools. He has also served as counsel and drafted financing documents creating new financing programs for private entities, expressway authorities, counties and conduit borrowers. Mr. Spratling’s litigation experience includes validating in excess of $1.3 billion in bonds for various public entities, including three of the largest issuers in the Tampa Bay area. His general governmental experience includes drafting special legislation and documentation for state grants, and reviewing various governmental financing programs, including the legal audit of a $200 million complex financing program. Mr. Spratling is committed to sharing his public finance knowledge and he regularly lectures on educational financings at the National Association of Bond Lawyers’ “Bond Attorney’s Workshop.” Mr. Spratling currently serves on the Executive Committee of the Greater Tampa Chamber of Commerce as its Legal Counsel.  Mr. Spratling is also in his second year as Chair of the National Association of Bond Lawyers’ Diversity Committee.  In addition, Mr. Spratling is a member of the newly formed Leadership Alliance Advisory Board (LAAB) and is currently preparing its corporate documents and incorporating the LAAB on a pro bono basis.

Mr. Spratling received a Juris Doctor degree from The Florida State University College of Law in May 2006 and two Bachelor of Science degrees from The Florida State University in August 2002. While in law school, he was a member of both the Mock Trial and Jessup Moot Court teams, the first student member of the College of Law Board of Directors, and President of both the Black Law Students Association (“BLSA”) and the Student Bar Association (“SBA”). In 2016, Mr. Spratling was named one of 24 inaugural “Rising Stars” by The Bond Buyer magazine, one of two in Florida and the only Florida lawyer. In 2010, Mr. Spratling received a “Rising Star” Super Lawyers rating, as published in Super Lawyers Magazine, an honor earned by less than 2.5% of attorneys in Florida and only 2 public finance attorneys. Mr. Spratling is also a recipient of the Tampa Seminole Club’s “Torch Award” and was named “Alumni of the Month” for August 2015.