Board of Governors Meeting Preview – July 2023
The following items are up for action or discussion at the July 28, 2023, meeting of the Board of Governors; changes may occur before the meeting. Please contact your board representative(s) if you have any input or questions. Read The Florida Bar News for additional details.
The board will consider a proposal from the Rules of General Practice and Judicial Administration Committee to revise Rule 2.140 (Amending Rules of Court). One revision 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 to recommend acceptance, rejection, or amendment, as a final step before petitions are filed with the Supreme Court. A board vote to recommend rejection does not prohibit sponsors from filing the petition with the Supreme Court if they so choose. Another change would eliminate a requirement that proposals be publicly noticed in the monthly print editions of The Florida Bar News before they can be filed with the Supreme Court. Members and the public would still be able to review proposals, online and in print, but sponsors could eliminate the months-long delay that can occur when a News print deadline is missed.
In other action, the board will consider a Rules Committee proposal, requested by the Florida Public Defender Association, to create a new supervised practice program for recent law school graduates. The proposed amendments to Rule 11-1.9 (Continuation of Practice Program After Completion of Law School Program or Graduation) would allow law school graduates to practice under the supervision of an attorney for up to a year while they await Bar admission.
The proposed amendment would add a subdivision that states: “A graduate of an American Bar Association approved law school who has filed an application to The Florida Bar and received an initial clearance letter as to character and fitness from the Florida Board of Bar Examiners may make appearances for the maximum term of certification of 12 months from graduation for the same entities and under the same restrictions that are applicable to students in law school practice programs under this chapter…” Failure to take the next-available Florida bar exam, or failure of any portion of the bar exam on the second administration, if that becomes necessary, would terminate the certification.
The board will also be asked to weigh an unrelated Rules Committee proposal to amend Standing Board Policy 15.10 (Waiver of Disqualification). The proposed amendment would add “board members-elect” to a policy that prohibits board members from representing respondents in disciplinary matters. Another proposed change to Standing Board Policy 15.10 would prohibit board members and board members-elect from serving as expert witnesses for a respondent in disciplinary cases.
The Board of Governors is also expected to consider:
- A Member Benefits Committee recommendation to authorize “Member Benefits, Inc.,” the longstanding third-party administrator and broker for The Florida Bar Insurance and Retirement Programs, to add group excess personal liability options for personal and business coverage to the options available to Florida Bar members. “The addition of group excess liability options for personal and business will help round out the insurance options available within the program,” according to a staff analysis.
- Legislative advising service agreements between various law firms and The Florida Bar, the Elder Law Section, the Criminal Law Section, the Family Law Section, the Trial Lawyers Section, and the Workers’ Compensation Section.