Emmett Lamar Battles is a fourth generation Floridian. He was born in Jacksonville and grew up in St. Petersburg. He received his B.A. Degree (Cum Laude) from Florida Southern College in Lakeland and, as a Distinguished Military Graduate, was commissioned as a Second Lieutenant (Infantry) in the United States Army. While serving as an Aide de Camp to a General Officer at Fort Sheridan, Illinois, Lamar was selected to attend the University of Florida College of Law under the Army’s Funded Legal Education Program. He received his Juris Doctor Degree (with Honors). Upon graduation from law school, he served in a variety of military assignments as a Judge Advocate General’s Corp Officer. Those assignments included: Assistant Professor of Law at the Army Judge Advocate General’s School in Charlottesville, Virginia; Litigation Attorney in the Office of the Judge Advocate General of the Army in the Pentagon; Officer in Charge of the Legal Center, Hunter Army Airfield, Georgia; and Deputy Staff Judge Advocate, Office of the Staff Judge Advocate, 24th Infantry Division, Fort Stewart, Georgia. His last military assignment was in the Office of the Staff Judge Advocate, United States Special Operations Command, MacDill Air Force Base in Tampa. Lamar retired as a Colonel after more than 22 years on active duty. His military education includes the Judge Advocate General’s School Graduate Course (LLM Equivalent-Commandant’s List); Armed Forces Staff College; Combined Army and Services Staff School; the Judge Advocate General’s Basic Course and the Infantry Officer Basic Course. Lamar received numerous awards and decorations for his service, including the prestigious Legion of Merit.

Upon his retirement from active duty, Lamar served as an Assistant General Counsel with the Florida Department of Transportation, District Seven, in Tampa. In 2001, he was appointed a Circuit Court Judge by Governor Jeb Bush, taking the bench on January 2, 2002 and serving until his retirement. His judicial service included presiding for 8 ½ years in the General Civil Division, 3 years in the Felony Division, 7 years in the Felony Trial Division and 2 ½ years in the Juvenile Delinquency Division.

Lamar is the recipient of the Hillsborough County Bar Association Robert Patton Outstanding Jurist Award, the Florida Council on Crime and Delinquency, Chapter 1, Distinguished Service Award (Judicial) and the Florida Department of Transportation, District Seven, Ben G. Watts Award for Ethical Leadership and Integrity. He was also honored to serve as Chairman of the Florida Bar Standing Committee on Professionalism and on numerous Bar Committees, including the Florida Bar President’s Vision 2016 Commission, the Eminent Domain Committee, the Florida Supreme Court Capital Post Conviction Proceedings Subcommittee and the Florida Bar Supreme Court Commission on Professionalism.

For over ten years, Lamar served as an Adjunct Professor at Stetson College of Law, teaching trial advocacy. Following his retirement from the bench, Lamar joined the firm of Zinober Diana and Monteverde P.A. and focuses his practice solely in the areas of mediation and arbitration.

• The Army Judge Advocate General’s Graduate Course, Charlottesville, Virginia
  • LLM Equivalent (Commandant’s List) – 1985
• University of Florida College of Law, Gainesville, Florida
  • Juris Doctor (with Honors) – 1980
• Florida Southern College
  • Bachelor of Arts (Cum Laude) – 1973
  • Major: History/Political Science

• The Florida Bar, Member, 1980 to Present
• United States Supreme Court
• Supreme Court of Florida
• United States Courts of Appeals for the Fifth and Eleventh Circuits
• United States District Court for the Middle and Southern Districts of Florida
• United States District Court for the Southern District of Georgia
• United States Claims Court 
• United States Court of Appeals for the Armed Forces
• Florida Retired Circuit Court Judge
• Hillsborough County Bar Association, Member, 1995 to Present
• Military Officers Association of America, 1995 to Present
• American Legion, 1995 to Present
• National Academy of Distinguished Neutrals 

2024 Fee Schedule for Emmett L. Battles

Arbitration/Mediation/Special Magistrate

I charge for my time at the rates shown below. In mediation/arbitration/special magistrate matters, unless agreed by the parties, each participating party will be billed equally. I will bill for all time spent on the dispute, including preparation time, conferences whether by telephone or in person, assistance with the preparation of any settlement agreements and reporting to counsel, the court, or the arbitration panel.

Emmett L. Battles' 2024 Hourly Mediation Rates

• $500 per hour ($ 250 per hour per side) for two-sided disputes
• $200 per hour per side for three-sided disputes
• $150 per hour per side for parties of four or more
• $15 document retrieval fee ($25 if excess pages)

 Emmett L. Battles' 2024 Hourly Arbitration Rates

• $575 per hour if selected as the sole arbitrator
• $ 450 per hour if selected as the plaintiff's or defendant's selected arbitrator
• $ 575 per hour if selected as the chief arbitrator

Emmett L. Battles' 2024 Hourly Special Magistrate Rate: $500 per hour

Cancellations and Fees

Multi-Day mediation/arbitration/special magistrate hearings: In the event of cancellation or rescheduling, we must receive email notice at least fourteen (14) calendar days before the start of the scheduled conference; otherwise, the following cancellation/scheduling fees will be charged: $1,000 per side per scheduled hearing day(s). Any cancellation received less than 24 hours prior to the beginning of the reserved time slot will result in a full hourly charge for all time reserved. We do not waive applicable cancellation/rescheduling fees unless we are able to book another case in the reserved time slot(s), as these fees partially compensate us for loss of use of the time slot reserved as well as the administrative expenses incurred in connection with scheduling. We do not arbitrate who is responsible for any cancellation. Only if all parties agree will we invoice the charges for all sides to the party responsible for the cancellation. All cancellations must be communicated in writing (email is sufficient) with the agreement of all parties expressly noted. Please let us know immediately of any need to cancel or reschedule the hearing. For multi-day arbitrations a deposit will be required.

Half or Full Day mediation/arbitration/special magistrate hearings: In the event of cancellation or rescheduling, we must receive email notice at least fourteen (14) calendar days before the scheduled conference; otherwise, the following cancellation/scheduling fees will be charged: $500 per side for half-day conferences and $1,000 per side for full-day conferences. Any cancellation received less than 24 hours prior to the beginning of the reserved time slot will result in a full hourly charge for all time reserved. We do not waive applicable cancellation/rescheduling fees unless we are able to book another case in the reserved time slot, as these fees partially compensate us for loss of use of the time slot reserved as well as the administrative expenses incurred in connection with scheduling. We do not arbitrate who is responsible for any cancellation. Only if all parties agree will we invoice the charges for all sides to the party responsible for the cancellation. All cancellations must be communicated in writing (email is sufficient) with the agreement of all parties expressly noted. Please let us know immediately of any need to cancel or reschedule the hearing.

Travel Fees:

Mediation/arbitration/special magistrate proceedings may be held at any location, or virtually using Zoom if authorized. If the parties cannot reach any agreement regarding physical location, then the hearings will be held at either the offices of Zinober Diana & Monteverde P.A. or at a court reporter's office selected by Emmett L. Battles, in the county where the matter is pending. There are no travel fees for cases in Hillsborough, Pinellas, or Pasco Counties. Travel outside of these counties will be billed at the rate of $150 per hour.

Note: Hearings are not booked until you receive an email or letter confirmation from our office.