William J. Cea
wcea@becker-poliakoff.com (Shareholder)


Professional Experience
Bill Cea is a Board Certified Construction attorney and Certified Circuit Court Mediator who has been with the Firm since 2001. Following law school, Mr.. Cea practiced law at a firm in Winter Haven, Florida where he later became a named partner. He has experience in many areas of law including civil litigation, contracts, construction, probate, community association, and landlord-tenant. He also represents private companies doing business with government agencies during the RFP, bidding, negotiation and selection process, and has been successful on his clients' behalf in numerous bid protests and other governmental contract disputes throughout the State of Florida including federal, state and local bids. Bid protests that Mr. Cea has handled include construction, design build and construction management, transportation, professional services, food and vendor concessions, towing, information technology, landscaping and property management, airport services, public-private partnerships and developments, veterans services, public housing, traffic cameras, and office services and equipment projects. He also has extensive governmental experience and has represented governmental bodies including the City of Winter Haven, Winter Haven Housing Authority, Community Redevelopment Agency of Winter Haven, the Town of Southwest Ranches and other public bodies on a case by case basis. Mr. Cea has also assisted local government agencies with the drafting, amendment and implementation of purchasing policies and procedures. Mr. Cea is also a Florida Certified Circuit Civil Mediator. He has lectured on such topics as Government Procurement and Public Records and Open Meetings in Florida, Public Construction Projects, and the Public Bidding Process.

Activities & Memberships
Mr. Cea is a member of the Knights of Columbus, Council, No.11241, located in Boca Raton, Florida. He is a member of the Palm Beach County Bar Association. Mr. Cea also served as a Chair of the first annual "Raise The Bar" event in Palm Beach County, "Support Future Women Leaders".

Articles
	New Limitations on Access to Public Records and Meetings in Government Contracting, The Florida Bar Journal, October 2011, (Co-authored with Mark J. Stempler)
	Competing in the booming business of government contracts Daily Business Review, April 6, 2011
	Protest Denied – So What’s Next? Florida Bid Reporting Service, March 25, 2011 (Co-authored with Mark J. Stempler)
	Finding a Basis to Protest Florida Bid Reporting Service, March 18, 2011 (Co-authored with Mark J. Stempler)
	An Overview of Bid Protests Florida Bid Reporting Service, March 11, 2011 (Co-authored with Mark J. Stempler)
	Rejection of Bids / Proposals Florida Bid Reporting Service, March 4, 2011 (Co-authored with Mark J. Stempler)
	Common Bidding Mistakes Florida Bid Reporting Service, February 25, 2011 (Co-authored with Mark J. Stempler)
	Obtaining Public Records and Florida’S Sunshine Laws Florida Bid Reporting Service, February 18, 2011 (Co-authored with Mark J. Stempler)
	The Instructions Are Wrong! The Ins and Outs of Specification Challenges Florida Bid Reporting Service, February 11, 2011 (Co-authored with Mark J. Stempler)
	“Professional” Bidding – The Consultants’ Competitive Negotiation Act Florida Bid Reporting Service, February 4, 2011 (Co-authored with Mark J. Stempler)
	Requests For Qualifications – What They Are And How They Work Florida Bid Reporting Service, January 28, 2011 (Co-authored with Mark J. Stempler)
	Requests for Proposals – What They Are and How They Work Florida Bid Reporting Service, January 21, 2011 (Co-authored with Mark J. Stempler)
	Invitations for Bid – What They are and How They Work Florida Bid Reporting Service, January 14, 2011 (Co-authored with Mark J. Stempler)
	Introduction To The Public Procurement Process Florida Bid Reporting Service, January 7, 2011 (Co-authored with Mark J. Stempler)
	Government Food Service Contracts Can be Profi table – for Those Who Qualify, Southeast Food Service News, August 2010
	"Procurement: Avoid Common Bidding Mistakes", Proyecto, February, 2009
	Winning the Bid: The Value of a Government Procurement Lawyer from "Inside The Minds: Government, Contracts Law, Client Strategies"
	Fighting for Public Dollars: Procedures and Pitfalls of Protesting Government Bid Awards (Co-authored with Mark Stempler)
Reported Decisions
	United States Government Accountablility Office Decision; Matter of: Med Optical, File: B-296231.2; B-296231.3
	Academy Express, LLC, v. Broward County, and Limosines of South Florida, Inc. 53 So.3d 1188 (Fla. 4th DCA 2011)

Bar Admissions
Florida, 1992
Washington, D.C., 1994

Court Admission
U.S. District Court, Southern District of Florida

Education
J.D., University of Miami, 1992 (cum laude),
B.A., State University of New York at Albany, 1989 (cum laude)