RHEA LAW

CHAIR, FLORIDA OFFICES, BUCHANAN INGERSOLL & ROONEY, TAMPA

Law, who has a bachelor’s degree from the University of South Florida and obtained a law degree from Stetson University, says she dreamed of becoming a doctor when she was a child. Her first “significant job” was handling grants and contracts for USF while working for the school’s Office of Sponsored Research. She found her passion for the law while taking required business law courses for a degree in business administration.

A fifth-generation Floridian, Law practices in the areas of higher education, economic development, government and land use. She is active in public policy and civic and charitable work and has held a number of gubernatorial appointments, including service on the inaugural board of trustees for the University of South Florida, as well as on the board of the Florida Council of 100. She served as chair for both organizations.

Law enjoys what she calls “high-adrenaline activities. I’ve flown an F-16, parachuted with the Army Golden Knights, landed on aircraft carriers and have raced cars throughout the country with my husband.”

Her childhood dreams of being a doctor and involvement with USF came together, she says, when she received an honorary doctor of medicine degree from USF’s Morsani College of Medicine.