Charla M. Burchett is a partner in the Sarasota office of Shutts & Bowen LLP, where she is a member of the Private Client Services Practice Group.
A Martindale-Hubbell AV® Preeminent™ rated attorney, Charla is a Board Certified Specialist in Wills, Trusts and Estates as certified by The Florida Bar. She has more than thirty years of experience assisting clients through challenging decisions and difficult times to preserve their legacies across generations. She focuses her practice on estate planning, estate and gift taxation, estate administration, and trust administration.
Credentials
Education
- University of Miami School of Law, LL.M., Estate Planning, 1989
- Louis D. Brandeis School of Law at the University of Louisville, J.D., 1987
- University of Kentucky, B.A., 1984
Bar Admissions
- Florida
- Kentucky
Professional and Civic
- Charitable Gift Planners of Southwest Florida
- Board of Directors (2022 - present)
- Membership Committee, Co-Chair (2023 - 2024)
- Easterseals of Southwest Florida Foundation
- Board of Directors (2023 - present)
- The Pines of Sarasota Foundation
- Chair (2021)
- First Vice Chair (2020)
- Secretary (2019)
- Board of Trustees (2018 - 2023)
- Sarasota Tiger Bay Club
- Board Member (2020 - present)
- Impact100 SRQ
- Founding Member (2019 - present)
- Advisory Task Force Member (2021 - present)
- Health and Wellness Focus Area Committee Member (2022)
- Family Focus Area Committee Member (2021)
- Arts & Culture Focus Area Committee Member (2020)
- Education Focus Area Committee Member (2019)
- Community Foundation of Sarasota County, Inc.
- Board of Directors (2003-2012)
- Chair of the Board of Directors (2010-2011)
- Chair of the Grants and Programs Services (2005-2010)
- Chair of the Charitable Planning Committee (2003-2008)
- The Florida Bar
- Real Property and Trust Law Section
- Sarasota County Bar Association
- Estate Planning and Probate Section (Chair 1994 - 1995)
- Solo Section (Chair 2004 - 2006)
- Southwest Florida Estate Planning Council
- President (1999 - 2000)
- Florida Association of Women Lawyers
- Kentucky Bar Association
News & Insights
News & Speaking Engagements
Blog Posts
Practice Areas
Accolades
- Florida Bar Board Certified in Wills, Trusts and Estates (1994 – present)
- SRQ Magazine, “Elite Top Attorneys” Award Guide - Wills (2021 – 2024)
- Martindale-Hubbell AV® Preeminent™ Rated
- Best Lawyers in America®, Trusts and Estates (2022 – 2025)
- Florida Super Lawyers, Estate & Probate (2016 – 2024)
- Martindale-AVVO® Top Rated Lawyer (2012 – 2024)
- Florida Trend, Florida Legal Elite - Wills, Trusts & Estates (2022)
