Brian A. Mills

A native Floridian, Brian has spent 20 years advising clients through all types of business matters and complex transactions, with 7 of those years as a sole practitioner, providing first-hand experience in starting and operating a business. Brian’s clientele includes privately held and emerging growth and start-up businesses, and their private equity investors. Brian’s clients span a broad range of industries, having a particular concentration in the healthcare technology, digital, hospitality, and construction markets.

With his expansive industry knowledge and diverse client base, Brian frequently serves as an external general counsel, advising clients on issues related to entity formation, corporate transactions, mergers, acquisitions, corporate governance, and private equity and debt financings, outsourcing, strategic alliance, and teaming arrangements, consulting and service agreements, distributor/dealer relationships, zoning, and the licensing of intellectual property, as well as other types of business matters. Brian has served as a legal advisor to participants of the University of Central Florida’s Business Incubation Program, and as counsel to local art institutions.

In addition to his private legal practice, Brian has served in public executive roles in county constitutional government, both as legal counsel and chief of staff, and assists and provides legal and strategic guidance on matters involving regulatory affairs, policy, compliance, and communications.

Brian holds a B.A. in English from the University of West Florida. He received his J.D. from Florida Coastal School of Law.

• Represented a state-wide restaurant chain in the successful corporate restructuring and $7.4 million refinancing of corporate debt, during the economic downturn resulting from the initial wave of the COVID-19 pandemic in March/April 2020
• Represented a health product manufacturer and an e-learning provider as external general counsel in negotiation with foreign entities in both China and Costa Rica
• As Chief of Staff for the Orange County Property Appraiser’s Office, regularly supervised department directors, policy implementation, government affairs, and litigation related to ad valorem tax; regularly interacted and negotiated with residential owners and billion-dollar companies such as for-profit Walt Disney Parks and Resorts US, Inc., and not-for-profit Adventist Health Systems
• Pro bono, representation of a local Winter Park, FL museum
• Operated a Florida political consulting firm responsible for campaign strategy, message development, GOTV efforts

• Past Board Member – Orlando Regional Chamber of Commerce
• Past Board Member – City of Winter Park, FL Board of Adjustments
• Graduate – Leadership Orlando Class 87
• Member – Orlando Museum of Art