Our Team

Brian has earned a reputation as a tireless, persistent and effective advocate for his clients’ interests. He has been recognized in The Hill: Top Lobbyists / Hired Guns and Florida Trend’s Most Influential Business Leaders every year since 2020. He was also named a member of Vanity Fair’s “New Establishment for 2019″, and listed among the 18 to watch in 2018 by Politico Playbook Power List. His accomplishments have spanned over 25 years and includes legislative successes on hundreds of policy and funding initiatives in Florida and Washington, DC.

Brian has taken his passion for politics and policy to the national scene, opening up Ballard Partners’ Washington, DC office in February 2017. He is spearheading the firm’s successful efforts with a first-class bi-partisan government relations team that represents clients across the federal landscape and impacting a myriad of domestic and foreign affairs issues.

As one of the top political insiders in Florida and Washington, Brian’s political portfolio includes meaningful roles in several presidential and gubernatorial campaigns. He chaired the Florida Finance Committee of Republican presidential nominees John McCain in 2008, Mitt Romney in 2012 and Donald J. Trump in 2016. Additionally, Brian has served as vice chairman of the Presidential Inaugural Committee and was appointed as a member of the Presidential Transition Finance Committee. Recognizing his formidable fundraising and political skills, the Republican National Committee tapped Brian to serve as the Finance Vice Chairman to help build resources for key national races.

Brian and his wife Kathryn were honored to be selected by three Florida Governors to plan and execute their inaugural ceremony and events, serving as Co-Chairs of the inauguration for Governor Ron DeSantis, Governor Rick Scott and Governor Charlie Crist.

Among his important public service experience, Brian currently serves on the Board of Trustees for the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts. He previously served on the U.S. and Foreign Commercial Service Advisory Council, after appointment by the U.S. Secretary of Commerce. He also directed the transition and assisted in the U.S. Senate confirmation of Governor Bob Martinez as the Director of the Office of National Drug Control Policy (Drug Czar) in the Executive Office of the President.

As chief of staff in the Executive Office of the Governor, Brian developed a special interest in environmental issues. Among his accomplishments, he served as chief architect of Preservation 2000, the largest public acquisition program for environmentally sensitive lands in the nation. He also served as Florida’s chief negotiator with the U.S. Department of the Interior to end offshore drilling along the state’s southeast coastline and the Florida Keys. The American Lawyer magazine rated Brian as one of America’s top rated lawyers in the field of Energy, Environmental and Natural Resources law.

Committed to community service, Brian has been a member of the Council of 100, the Collins Center for Public Policy, Florida Governor’s Mansion Foundation, and the City of Tallahassee Architectural Review Board. He has received Florida’s highest award for historic preservation recognizing his efforts involving preservation of historic buildings. In 2016, Brian and Kathryn were inducted into Florida State University’s Francis Eppes Society for their philanthropic support to the University.

Before establishing Ballard Partners, Brian served as managing shareholder for Bryant Miller Olive P.A. He currently serves as counsel to Panza, Maurer & Maynard, P.A. He received both his Bachelor of Science degree in Business Administration and his Juris Doctorate from the University of Florida, where he was later inducted into the University’s Hall of Fame.