Overview
Sara Sandler Cromer is a Senior Partner in Walton Lantaff Schroeder & Carson’s Fort Lauderdale office, where she has practiced since graduating from Nova Southeastern Shepard Broad College of Law in 2008. Her practice is devoted to insurance coverage and appellate law, where she serves as trusted coverage counsel for national insurers, advising on policy interpretation, coverage disputes and best practices in claims handling throughout Florida.
Ms. Cromer is recognized for her ability to distill complex legal questions into clear, persuasive appellate advocacy. She is an integral member of the firm’s Appellate Practice Group, and has handled appeals in Florida’s state and federal appellate courts, including all four District Courts of Appeal and the United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit, and has authored numerous published decisions in the areas of tort and insurance law. Her work includes precedent-setting appeals and amicus advocacy before the Florida Supreme Court, reflecting a practice grounded in careful analysis, strategic judgment, and deep subject-matter expertise. In addition to her appellate work, she is certified by the Florida Department of Financial Services as a continuing education instructor and frequently presents seminars to the insurance industry on coverage law and claims handling, further reinforcing her role as a thought leader in her field. She is consistently recognized for her legal excellence and professionalism, earning distinctions such as AV-Preeminent status and multiple statewide honors.
Known equally for her ethics and professionalism, Ms. Cromer is a respected leader within the legal community, known for giving back to both the legal profession through mentorship and the broader community as a whole. Intelligent, hardworking and unwavering in her integrity, Ms. Cromer exemplifies the highest standard of advocacy Walton Lantaff has to offer.
Practice Areas:
- Insurance Coverage
- Insurance Defense
- Appellate Law
Admitted to Practice:
- All Florida trial courts, 2008
- All Florida District Courts of Appeal, 2008
- Florida Supreme Court, 2008
- United States District Court, Southern District of Florida, 2009
- United States District Court, Middle District of Florida, 2011
- United States Court of Appeals, Eleventh Circuit, 2009
Education:
- University of Florida, B.A. in Criminology, cum laude, 2005.
- Shepard Broad Law Center at Nova Southeastern University, cum laude, 2008.
- Lead Articles Editor, Nova Law Review.
Professional or Trade Affiliations
- Defense Research Institute
- Broward County Bar Association Young Lawyers
Honors & Awards
- Broward County Bar Association Young Lawyers Section, Board of Directors, 2009 – 2018
- Florida’s Rising Stars by Super Lawyers, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019 & 2020
- AV-Preeminent Rating by Martindale Hubble
Representative Experience
- Mrs. Cromer has numerous published decisions in the Florida and Federal appellate courts in the areas of tort and insurance law, including:
- Morris v. Rayman (Fla. 4th DCA 2009) (Limiting application of law subjecting defendant to liability for Wrongful Death based on alleged failure to render aid)
- Santidrian v. Landmark Custom Ranches, Inc (11th Cir. 2010) (Finding that real estate agent was not strictly liable under Interstate Land Sales Full Disclosure Act for principal’s failure to comply with Act’s reporting requirements when agent did not personally violate, supervise, or otherwise take part in any violations of the reporting requirements, and, acting solely as salesperson, did not act in a fraudulent or otherwise misleading manner)
- Matusick v. DiSalvo (Fla. 4th DCA 2011) (Upholding trial court’s dismissal of claims for breach of contract and fraudulent misrepresentation in regard to lease of real estate when plaintiffs executed subsequent contract with knowledge of alleged fraud in initial agreement)
- Arnold v. Leavy (Fla. 4th DCA 2011) (Finding that it was not unconstitutional to prevent voluntary, non-party witness from testifying when witness refused to take an oath which required him to “swear” or “affirm”)
- Hutchings v. Liles (Fla. 1st DCA 2012) (Finding that allowing deposition of absent defendant driver to be published to the jury and read into the record was within trial court’s sound discretion)
- Arango v. Universal Prop. & Cas. Ins. Co. (Fla. 3d DCA 2012) (Finding no coverage under homeowners policy for Wrongful Death claim based on business pursuits and employer’s liability exclusion)
- Claudio v. Regalado (Fla. 2d DCA 2013) (Allowing reduction of judgment against defendants via claim for contribution against joint tortfeasor following modification of joint and several tort liability under Sec. 768.81 Fla. Stat.)
- Theiss v. Universal Prop. & Cas. Ins. Co. (Fla. 4th DCA 2013) (per curiam affirmance upholding trial court’s finding of no coverage under homeowners policy for an assault and battery claim based on physical abuse exclusion)
- Miglino v. Universal Prop. & Cas. Ins. Co. (Fla. 4th DCA 2015) (in an issue of first impression in Florida, finding no coverage under homeowners policy for an intentional shooting claim based on physical abuse exclusion; applying a plain meaning analysis of insurance policy to hold that such an act clearly falls within policy’s exclusion)
News & Insights
August 8, 2023