Denise Rushton

Denise Rushton

Denise Rushton is an associate in the Sarasota office of Wicker Smith. She works in a variety of practice areas, but primarily medical malpractice, premises liability, and general liability.

Denise received a Bachelor of Arts in Criminal Justice from Loyola University, New Orleans in 2004. Prior to law school, she received a Basic Law Enforcement Academy Certification and spent a year as a Deputy Sheriff with the Hancock County Sheriff’s Office in Mississippi. In 2021, she received a Juris Doctor, cum laude, from Western Michigan Cooley Law School. During law school, Denise was a member of the Student Bar Association and President for the 2020-2021 school year.  She was also part of the Jessup International Moot Court Competition Team and placed on the Dean’s List for two consecutive years.

With more than 10 years of experience working in the legal industry, Denise has experience working in a variety of practice areas including contract and real property disputes as well as insurance litigation.  Additionally, Denise was a summer intern for a family law firm in Sarasota.

In addition to her litigation practice, Denise is in the process of becoming a VA-accredited attorney with the Department of Veterans Affairs.

• The Florida Bar
• Federalist Society
• Federal Bar Association
• Native American Bar Association
• American Bar Association
• Women of the Moose, unit of Moose International

• WMU-Cooley Law School Alumni Memorial Scholarship Award (Demonstrated character and potential to become an outstanding lawyer)
• Certificate of Merit – Trial Skills & Veterans Law (Highest Grade in each class)

Egalitarian Scholarship, Student Bar Association WMU-Cooley Law School, Tampa, FL (2021)

Drafted and coordinated with school administration and accounting to establish a new scholarship for current students who maintain a 3.0 or higher