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. 24, 2010
NINE SOUTHWEST FLORIDA ATTORNEYS BECOME FLORIDA BAR-BOARD CERTIFIED-- The News-Press, http://www.news-press.com, Aug. 24, 2010. [Also: 13 JACKSONVILLE LAWYERS EARN BOARD CERTIFICATION--Jacksonville Daily Record, http://www.jaxdailyrecord.com, Aug. 23, 2010; 13 JACKSONVILLE LAWYERS EARN FLORIDA BAR BOARD CERTIFICATION IN VARIOUS SPECIALTIES-- The Florida Times-Union, http://www.jacksonville.com, Aug. 23, 2010].
From The News-Press: One hundred eighty-one lawyers recently earned Florida Bar board certification, the Bar’s highest evaluation of competence and experience in a specific area of law. Board certified attorneys are the only Florida lawyers allowed to identify themselves as specialists or experts. Nine in Southwest Florida recently earned the distinction.
--Legal Profession--
FEDERAL COURT WELCOMES NEW AND RETURNING ATTORNEYS-- Jacksonville Daily Record, http://www.jaxdailyrecord.com, Aug. 23, 2010.
At the attorney admission ceremony Thursday [Aug. 2] at the U.S. District Court in the Middle District of Florida, the 40 attorneys who attended received a certificate that would give them the opportunity to practice in the U.S. District Court, which includes the busy U.S. Bankruptcy Court. Those attorneys who currently practice in the U.S. District Court of the Middle District of Florida still have time to submit their renewal.
LAWYERS USING SOCIAL MEDIA TO BOOST THEIR PRACTICES-- South Florida Business Journal, http://southflorida.bizjournals.com, Aug. 24, 2010.
Lawyers may be latecomers to the social media party, but those who are using it for networking, branding and business development say the benefits trump the potential dangers. Considering that lawyers were prohibited from advertising at all until 1977, those who have websites — or are using social networking sites such as Facebook or Twitter to bolster their practices — have come a long way. According to the AmLaw 100 and AmLaw 200, American Lawyer magazine’s annual lists of the top-grossing law firms in the country, the use of social media is gaining traction among the country’s biggest legal eagles.
--Judiciary--
GOVERNOR APPOINTS NEW CIRCUIT JUDGE TO REPLACE GARDINER-- Sun-Sentinel, http://www.sun-sentinel.com, Aug. 24, 2010.
Gov. Charlie Crist on Monday [Aug. 23] appointed a Fort Lauderdale attorney to replace Ana Gardiner, who resigned as a 17th circuit judge. Michael A. Robinson, 55, will don the black robe at an investiture at a later date. He most recently served as a general magistrate for the state, and over a two-decade career has worked as a solo practitioner, been a member of a private firm and was an assistant public defender. Gardiner left the bench in May rather than go before the Judicial Qualifications Commission on charges she failed to disclose an inappropriate personal relationship with former prosecutor Howard Scheinberg during a 2007 death penalty case over which she presided. The former judge has since gone into private practice.
--Civil Justice Issues--
HERE'S A FORECLOSURE MEDIATION THAT WORKS-- The Tampa Tribune, column, http://www.tbo.com, Aug. 22, 2010.
The column by Tampa Tribune staff writer Shannon Behnken states:"Tina Tylisz is weary from her nearly two-year foreclosure fight. She has applied and been denied for every government program she's heard of. . . . . If only, she says, she could force the lender to sit down at a table, look her in the eyes, and sincerely try to work something out. Well, there's a new program in Hillsborough and Pinellas County designed to do just that. Problem is, few homeowners seem to know anything about it. And with so many scam artists preying on those in foreclosure, many homeowners don't know who they can trust. New circuit court programs in Pinellas, Pasco and Hillsborough counties are underway."
--Criminal Justice Issues--
DUI POLICY CHALLENGE MUST WAIT-- Key West Citizen, http://www.keysnews.com, Aug. 24, 2010.
A 16th Circuit Court judge said Wednesday [Aug. 18] he lacked the authority to overrule a new state policy by granting a drunken driving suspect a temporary driver license, but urged attorneys to quickly pursue a greater "due process" issue with the policy. Judge David Audlin told defense attorney Sam Kaufman that state law did not empower him to temporarily grant one of his clients charged with driving under the influence a "hardship" driver license to drive to work, school or other necessary tasks. Since July 1, if a law enforcement officer does not show up for a defendant's license hearing, the state Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles tells him or her to take their case to court instead of automatically granting a temporary permit, as was the previous policy for decades. Kaufman contends that denying his client a hearing in which law enforcement must present evidence in his case violates the client's constitutional right to due process. He filed an emergency motion last week challenging the policy on behalf of two clients.
--Other--
J. CARTER PERKINS SR.: ATTORNEY HAD DISTINGUISHED CAREER IN PETROLEUM INDUSTRY-- Orlando Sentinel, http://www.orlandosentinel.com, Aug. 24, 2010.
J. Carter Perkins Sr. was always motivated to be the best. He had a 32-year career in the legal department of Shell Oil Co., two years as executive director of the National Petroleum Council, and eight holes-in-one in his years of golf — but the achievement he may have been most proud of was earning a master's degree in taxation from the University of Florida in 1986 at the age of 68. He died Thursday [Aug. 19] of pneumonia. He was 91. Perkins worked in the legal department for Shell Oil Co. in New Orleans, served as general attorney for the West Coast area in California, and was promoted to vice president of the Washington, D.C., office, where he influenced development of the 1970 Occupational Safety and Health Act. He had been a member of The Florida Bar for 63 years.
[Revised: 08-25-2010]
© 2005 The Florida Bar | Disclaimer | Top of page | 