Daily News Summary
An electronic digest of media coverage of interest to members of The Florida Bar compiled each workday by the Public Information and Bar Services Department. Electronic links are only active in today's edition. For information on previous articles, please contact the publishing newspaper directly.
Aug. 31, 2010
LEGAL SERVICES GROUPS OFFER ASSISTANCE TO VETERANS-- Daytona Beach News-Journal, http://www.news-journalonline.com, Aug. 28, 2010.
Community Legal Services of Mid-Florida has teamed up with the Florida BRAIVE Fund, the Florida Bar Foundation, Equal Justice Works and the Cobb Cole Law Firm to provide legal assistance to veterans of the Iraq and Afghanistan wars. The project is available for veterans from Brevard, Flagler, Orange, Putnam, Seminole and Volusia counties.
ATTORNEYS ASSIST CHILD SUPPORT MODIFICATION CLINIC PRO BONO-- Jacksonville Daily Record, column, http://www.jaxdailyrecord.com, Aug. 30, 2010.
The column by Jacksonville Bar Association Pro Bono Committee Chair Kathy Para states: "With many people experiencing job loss due to the economy, some parents have fallen behind in child support payments. They are at risk of having their driver’s licenses suspended or of being held in contempt of court for nonpayment, thereby exacerbating their problems. . . .Two Jacksonville area attorneys, Marla Buchanan, a Rogers Towers attorney and chair of the Family Law Section of The JBA, and Jamie Ibrahim, a family law staff attorney with JALA, have teamed up to combat this ever-increasing issue by creating a new group assistance opportunity, the Child Support Modification Clinic at JALA."
DEBATE OVER WHO CARES FOR CHILDREN OFTEN HINDERS WRITING A WILL-- The Bradenton Herald, http://www.bradenton.com, Aug.30, 2010.
The article is from the St. Louis Post-Dispatch.A will acts as "an instruction book" to probate courts about what you want to happen to your possessions and the care of your children, St. Louis attorney Mary Elizabeth Coleman said. Statistics offered by Martindale-Hubbell from a 2007 Harris Interactive survey show 55 percent of adult Americans lack a will. No one wants to believe they may actually die prematurely, so it's an easy chore to put off. There are certain times, however, that push us into action. Coleman says she sees a spike in parents taking on the task when a child is born, at the start of a new year or before they embark on a big vacation without their children.
--Judiciary--
LAWYERS SHOULD STEP UP-- Orlando Sentinel, guest column, http://www.orlandosentinel.com, Aug. 31, 2010.
The guest column by Winter Park attorney Shayan Elahi states: "In 1998, Floridians spoke through the ballot and proclaimed that they wanted to keep the democratic right to have their trial judges elected. Some in the legal community believe that to run against an incumbent judge is a personal affront. This misconception not only discourages running against a sitting judge, but the conventional wisdom is that there would be retribution from the bench against the candidate. That is not the case. . . .Given the exponentially increasing rate of technology and diversity in the 21st century, no elected office should be seen as a career. It should be an open door for new faces and fresh ideas reflecting the changing needs and perspectives of the community."
--Lawyer Ethics/Legal Discipline--
JUDGE FINES MAJOR LEGAL FIRM FOR FORECLOSURE CONDUCT-- Sarasota Herald-Tribune, http://www.heraldtribune.com, Aug. 31, 2010.
A Manatee circuit judge singled out a Fort Lauderdale foreclosure firm on Monday [Aug. 30], finding its business model violates legal ethics and leveling a $49,000 fine for scheduling hearings and then not showing up in court. Twelfth Circuit Judge Janette Dunnigan scolded five lawyers from the Smith, Hiatt and Diaz firm in connection with a Manatee County foreclosure case filed in 2007. The firm is one of several "foreclosure mills" filing thousands of foreclosure cases monthly. The firm's attorneys filed what amounted to "sham" paperwork setting seven hearings over two years, and then failed to appear in court or tell the judge or other parties when they were canceled. The case is still unresolved. The behavior is willful, deliberate and flagrant and violates oaths of professional practice for lawyers, Dunnigan said.
HOLLYWOOD TITLE ATTORNEY GETS FOUR YEARS AFTER EMBEZZLING $1.6 MILLION-- Sun-Sentinel, http://www.sun-sentinel.com, Aug. 31, 2010. [Also: HOLLYWOOD LAWYER SENTENCED TO PRISON-- South Florida Business Journal, http://southflorida.bizjournals.com, Aug. 31, 2010].
From the Sun-Sentinel: Former Hollywood title attorney Peter N. Price was sentenced to almost four years in jail and ordered to pay $1.7 million to Stewart Title Guarantee Inc. following allegations that he embezzled $1.6 million in loan proceeds. Federal and state investigators said Price took the money, earmarked for paying off mortgage loans for clients, from his Intracoastal Title Services Inc. escrow account for real estate closings he was handling. Instead of doing the payoffs, Price prepared and sent false federal real estate forms, stating the loans had been paid, according to court documents. Price was disbarred February.
RESTITUTION ORDERED IN SCOTT ROTHSTEIN CASE, BUT POT 'LIMITED'-- The Miami Herald, http://www.miamiherald.com, Aug. 31, 2010. [Also: RRA BUSINESS CLIENTS GET RESTITUTION PRIORITY-- Daily Business Review, http://www.dailybusinessreview.com, Aug. 30, 2010; ROTHSTEIN RESTITUTION JUST PENNIES ON THE DOLLAR-- South Florida Business Journal, http://www.southflorida.bizjournals.com, Aug. 31, 2010].
From The Miami Herald: A federal judge Monday [Aug. 30] ordered Scott Rothstein to repay $363 million to some 320 victims of his investment racket. The vast majority, however, will be lucky if they get back pennies or dimes for every dollar they invested with the one-time Fort Lauderdale lawyer, who sold $1.2 billion in fake legal settlements -- a Ponzi scheme that became South Florida's largest financial fraud. U.S. District Judge James Cohn allowed preferential treatment for about 40 clients of Rothstein's former law firm who received legal services. He noted they were different from the mostly wealthy investors, and should collect the actual money they had left in the Rothstein Rosenfeldt Adler bank accounts -- about $1.5 million.
--Criminal Justice Issues--
CHEMICAL AGENTS MAY NOT BE USED TO SUBDUE PRISONERS-- Daily Business Review, http://www.dailybusinessreview.com, Aug. 30, 2010.
The inmates were derided as "frequent fliers" by the guards at Florida State Prison, a caustic reference to mentally ill inmates who were gassed for their disruptive behavior, only to be shipped for treatment to a nearby facility. These prisoners would return after they were stabilized, only to have the cycle repeat itself. The cycle may be over after the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals upheld a Jacksonville judge's ruling that the use of pepper spray and other chemical agents by guards against mentally ill inmates is unconstitutional. Now the chance of getting proper treatment for these individuals in the prison setting may increase.
--Other--
REMEMBERING JUDGE VIRGINIA BEVERLY-- Jacksonville Daily Record, guest column, http://www.jaxdailyrecord.com, Aug. 30, 2010.
The guest column by Jacksonville attorney Mary Coxe on the recent death of retired Judge Virginia Q. Beverly states: "My long friendship with Judge Virginia Beverly had its improbable genesis in a murder. . . . Although I was a one-year rookie prosecutor, I was asked to sit second chair. Someone apparently reasoned that I, the only woman in the State Attorney’s Office, would be the most apt handler of the kindergarten-aged eye witness. The cases were assigned to Division "Q," Judge Beverly. Judge Beverly, newly appointed to the bench, was an unknown quantity to the 'criminal' bar. . . . Over the next 18 months, as I was assigned to Division Q and the murder cases moved along, Judge Beverly's petite stature took on a much larger judicial presence."
[Revised: 09-01-2010]
© 2005 The Florida Bar | Disclaimer | Top of page | 