News and Events
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.
July 1, 2009
--Legal Profession--
LAID-OFF ATTORNEYS GO IT ALONE-- Florida Trend, http://www.floridatrend.com, July 1, 2009.
Apart from the crowded commute into Miami, Eleni Zarbalas Pantaridis was happy practicing law at Kluger Peretz Kaplan & Berlin. She specialized in mergers and acquisitions and also did some real estate work for the midsized firm. In February, after nearly two years on the job, she was laid off, and by the end of March the firm itself was gone, too. Pantaridis, 38, with three young children, found herself unemployed at one of the worst times ever for attorneys. Legal recruiters told her the job market was "flooded with unemployed lawyers." After becoming unemployed, she had a few interviews with big firms but eventually decided she was wasting her time. She felt her best option was to go it alone — a decision that Tampa attorney Paul Rebein says is becoming a trend within the industry.
--Lawyer Ethics/Legal Discipline--
TWO OF THREE LOCAL ATTORNEYS FACING CRIMINAL CHARGES ARE DISBARRED-- Treasure Coast Newspapers, http://www.tcpalm.com, June 30, 2009.
The state Supreme Court has disbarred two of three local private attorneys currently facing criminal charges, each in separate cases. On June 18 the court ordered the disbarment of attorney Ronald Rider of Vero Beach — the second attorney to lose his license since 2007, when private attorney Ira Hatch of Vero Beach, was disbarred. The civil attorneys are charged with taking client money: $171,000 in Rider's case and $4.3 million in Hatch's case, court records show. Both men have entered not guilty pleas to the criminal charges against them. The disbarments of Rider and Hatch resulted from Florida Bar investigations into client complaints. The Florida Bar hasn't yet taken action against criminal defense attorney Russell Akins of Fort Pierce. Akins was arrested in June on state racketeering and conspiracy-related charges connected to the purchase of four homes in the Ocala area in 2004, according to law enforcement officials. A trial date hasn't been set.
--Judiciary--
DUI CHECKPOINT CANCELED, JUDGES ISSUE ANOTHER BLOW-- The Bradenton Herald, http://www.bradenton.com, July 1, 2009.
Authorities canceled a DUI checkpoint for this weekend and local judges issued an order Tuesday [June 30] stating a breath test machine used by the Manatee County Sheriff's Office does not meet state law requirements. Defense attorneys have challenged the use of the Intoxilyzer 8000 — a machine used by Manatee County Sheriff's Office — saying the machine was never approved for use in Florida. Manatee County judges Doug Henderson and Robert Farrance issued the order after the state was unable to prove what micron band measurement is used for the machine to measure the level of alcohol.
FOES OF SOTOMAYOR EMBOLDENED BY DISCRIMINATION CASE-- Ocala Star Banner, http://www.ocala.com, June 30, 2009. [Also: SUPREME COURT FIREFIGHTER OPINION REVERSES A DECISION THAT SUPREME COURT NOMINEE SONIA SOTOMAYOR ENDORSED-- Orlando Sentinel, http://www.orlandosentinel.com, July 1, 2009; HIGH COURT RECOGNIZES REVERSE DISCRIMINATION-- The Tampa Tribune, editorial, http://www.tbo.com, June 30, 2009; RULING UPHENDS RACE'S ROLE IN HIRING-- The Wall Street Journal, http://online.wsj.com, June 30, 2009].
The Ocala Star Banner article is from The Associated Press. A 5-4 Supreme Court ruling Monday [June 29], backing reverse discrimination claims by white firefighters, is unlikely to derail Supreme Court nominee Sonia Sotomayor's nomination - and it may not even sway a vote. Reaction to the decision fell almost purely along partisan lines, with Republicans cheering the decision and saying it raises serious concerns about the judge, and Democrats condemning the opinion and arguing that Sotomayor had acted appropriately. Still, the Supreme Court's decision in the case of Ricci v. DeStefano highlighted the competing ideological strains that will shape the debate over confirming Sotomayor.
--Other--
DAUNTING TRIAL LAWYER JOSEPH SCARLETT III DIES-- Daytona Beach News-Journal, http://www.news-journalonline.com, June 30, 2009.
A second-generation lawyer from a pioneer West Volusia family, Joseph A. Scarlett III, was a formidable courtroom presence through more than a half-century of practice, mostly in criminal defense. Scarlett died Sunday [June 28] at his home in DeLand. He was 79. He had cut back, but did not discontinue, his law practice in recent years because of his long battle with emphysema.
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[Revised:
07-01-2005
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