The Florida Bar Board of Governors met July 28, 2023, in Sarasota. Major actions and reports received included:
The board voted to discuss with the Florida Bankers Association potential revisions to a new IOTA rule the bankers say is too costly for its members. But with the rule generating millions more in revenue for legal aid organizations after years of near-zero interest rates on trust accounts, board members cautioned the bankers to temper their expectations. Read more in the Bar News.
In other business, President Scott Westheimer informed board members that the Supreme Court recently formed a “Judicial Circuit Assessment Committee,” with a mission to consider consolidation of the state’s 20 judicial circuits per Administrative Order No. AOSC23-35. The procedure is contemplated in Rule of General Practice and Judicial Administration 2.241. Westheimer reminded the Board that this is not a Bar committee, and the Bar is monitoring it closely.
The board also voted to recommend approval of a Florida Public Defender Association proposal to amend Rule 11-1.9 (Practice After Graduation). The revisions would permit a law school graduate to practice for up to a year – under the supervision of an attorney – while awaiting Bar admission. The proposal goes next to the Supreme Court for final consideration.
In other action, the board voted to recommend acceptance of a proposal by the Rules of General Practice and Judicial Administration Committee to amend Rule 2.140 (Amending Rules of Court). The proposal was prompted by a Bar consultant’s recommendations for expediting the rule-development process and developed by a working group of mostly court rules committee chairs. One of the most significant changes would require the Board of Governors to weigh in at the beginning of the review process, when amendments are first publicly noticed, instead of voting “acceptance,” “rejection,” or “amendment,” as a final requirement before proposals are filed with the Supreme Court. The board meets every other month, and the need to amend a rule proposal can cause months of delay.
Another streamlining proposal would eliminate a requirement that rules proposals be publicly noticed in the monthly print editions of the News before they can be filed with the Supreme Court. The public and the legal community would still have ample opportunity to review proposals online and in print, but sponsors could eliminate the months-long delay that can result from missing a print deadline.
In other action, the Board of Governors:
- Approved a proposal to remove late and rush fees for CLE applications for voluntary bar associations. The Budget Committee is creating a subcommittee to review the Application for CLE Accreditation fees.
- Approved a Member Benefits Committee recommendation to authorize “Member Benefits, Inc.,” the longstanding third-party administrator and broker for The Florida Bar Insurance Retirement Programs, to add group excess personal liability options for personal and business coverage to the options available to members.
- Approved or renewed various legislative advising services agreements between various law firms and The Florida Bar, the Elder Law Section, the Criminal Law Section, and the Workers’ Compensation Section.