The Annual Florida Bar Convention offers a variety of CLE opportunities, including two seminars presented in the President’s Showcase. Search for a particular topic or browse by day.
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| TIME | CLE OPPORTUNITY |
|---|---|
| 8:30 a.m.–12:15 p.m. |
2025 Annual Technology Symposium Part 1: The Role of AI in the Legal Profession
Join us for an engaging discussion on how artificial intelligence is transforming the legal profession. This program will explore the practical applications of AI in law, the judiciary’s perspective on its use in the courtroom, strategies for ethical and professional implementation, and how attorneys can prepare their clients for an AI-driven future. Whether you are an early adopter or a cautious observer, this program will provide valuable insights into the evolving role of AI in legal practice. Complimentary, but registration is required. Choose limited access pass when registering.
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| 10:00 a.m.–11:00 a.m. |
Iota Management for Lawyerspresented by The Florida Bar Member Benefits Committee and Nota by M&T Bank This presentation covers the nuts and bolts of handling IOTA trust accounting including an overview of trust accounting, the rules applicable to trust accounting, awareness of the top mistakes attorneys make, and best practices. Complimentary, but registration is required. Choose limited access pass when registering.
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| 1:00 p.m.–2:00 p.m. |
Maximizing Your Membership with vLex Fastcase seminar
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| 1:30 p.m.–5:00 p.m. |
2025 Annual Technology Symposium Part 2: Practice Management for the Modern Law Firm
Join us for a comprehensive program designed to enhance your law firm’s efficiency in e-filing, discovery management, and digital practice tools. Learn how to navigate the EPortal seamlessly and avoid common filing pitfalls. Explore TryFile, a hands-on platform for practicing e-filing in a risk-free environment and gain valuable insights into best practices for eDiscovery to manage complex cases effectively. Whether you’re refining existing skills or adopting new technologies, this program offers practical strategies to streamline your workflow and improve accuracy in the modern legal landscape. Complimentary, but registration is required. Choose limited access pass when registering.
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| TIME | CLE OPPORTUNITY |
|---|---|
| 8:00 a.m.–9:00 a.m. |
Opening Session on Ethics and Professionalismpresented by The Florida Bar Annual Convention Committee Topics for this session include:
The session will be moderated by Dean Tarlika Nunez-Navarro with former Supreme Court Justice Alan Lawson, Judge Lisa Munyon, Judge Natasha DePrimo and Judge Glenn Kelley as panelists.
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| 8:00 a.m.–noon |
Cybersecurity Seminar for Florida Attorneys: Ethics, Risk Management, and Incident Responsepresented by The Florida Bar’s Cybersecurity and Privacy Law Committee Law firms face increasing threats from cyber attacks, and attorneys must understand the fundamentals of cybersecurity basics, ethical obligations in protecting client data, and best practices for addressing cyber risks. This three-part seminar provides Florida attorneys with practical cybersecurity knowledge, risk management strategies, and interactive hands-on experience in responding to cyber incidents. This seminar will also introduce and discuss the Cybersecurity and Privacy Law Committee’s model law firm cybersecurity incident response plan.
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| 8:00 a.m.–noon |
Environmental & Land Use Law Section 2025 Updatepresented by The Florida Bar CLE Committee and the Environmental & Land Use Law Section Join us for an exciting seminar on recent developments in the environmental and land use legal arena. The program features an esteemed group of speakers from both the private and public sectors. Breakfast and refreshments will be served. There will also be ample time for networking.
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| 9:00 a.m.–10:00 a.m. |
Keynote Discussion with The Florida Supreme Courtpresented by The Florida Bar Annual Convention Committee Topics include how the new Florida Rules of Civil Procedure are working in practice, The Florida Supreme Court’s latest order on professionalism, ethical hypotheticals, the workgroup on accreditation, and expansion of judicial circuits and district courts of appeal. The session will be moderated Roland Sanchez-Medina Jr. and Sia Baker-Barnes, with Chief Justice Carlos G. Muñiz and Justices Charles T. Canady, John D. Couriel, Renatha Francis, Jamie R Grosshans, Jorge Labarga and Meredith Sasso as panelists. Annual Convention Co-Chair Jordan Dresnick will introduce the panelists.
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| 9:00 a.m.–10:00 a.m. |
Maximizing Your Membership with vLex Fastcase seminar
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| 9:00 a.m.–5:00 p.m. |
Criminal Law Update 2025presented by The Florida Bar CLE Committee and the Criminal Law Section This essential update is your key to staying ahead. Attendees will gain critical insights on new case law, DUI developments, and the evolving landscape of "crimmigration," where criminal convictions can lead to significant immigration consequences, including deportation. The update includes a feature presentation on recent developments in criminal law at the Supreme Court from Florida Supreme Court Justice John D. Couriel; a keynote presentation, "Do We Still Believe in Democracy?" from retired Supreme Court Justice Peggy A. Quince; and a spotlight presentation: Changes in Attitudes and Latitudes in Criminal Law — Reflections and Predictions from 40-plus Years of Practice," from retired Palm Beach County Public Defender Carey S. Haughwout.
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| 10:00 a.m.–11:00 a.m. |
Iota Management for Lawyerspresented by The Florida Bar Member Benefits Committee and Nota by M&T Bank This presentation covers the nuts and bolts of handling IOTA trust accounting including an overview of trust accounting, the rules applicable to trust accounting, awareness of the top mistakes attorneys make, and best practices. Complimentary, but registration is required. Choose limited access pass when registering.
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| 10:00 a.m.–11:30 a.m. |
What Every Litigator Needs to Know About the Amendments to the Florida Rules of Civil Procedurepresented by The Florida Bar Annual Convention Committee Topics include understanding the amendments to Florida Rules of Civil Procedure, dealing with schedule changes on summary judgment, status conference changes, case management conferences, and updates on briefing. This session will be moderated by Brian Toth with Judges Gina Beovides, Bradley Harper, Keathan Frink, Bronwyn Miller and Eric Netcher as panelists.
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| 10:00 a.m.–noon |
First Amendment and the U.S. Supreme Courtpresented by The Florida Bar Media and Communications Law Committee The U.S. Supreme Court term could be one of the most important in deciding how the First Amendment impacts social media and religious organizations. The Court will also decide several significant cases that will affect the scope of the First Amendment in schools. Featuring Florida Supreme Court Justice John Couriel, Bryan Gowdy of Creed & Gowdy, Freddy Funes of Toth Funes, UM Law Professor Lili Levi, FIU Law Professor Howard Wasserman and, moderated by David Karp from Carlton Fields. |
| 10:15 a.m.–3:15 p.m. |
Florida Law Update 2025presented by The Florida Bar CLE Committee and the Solo & Small Firm Section This annual seminar covers recent updates to family law, criminal law, elder law and estate planning, health law, and civil law rules, followed by expert roundtables.
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| Noon–4:30 p.m. |
Probate for Allpresented by The Florida Bar CLE Committee and the Elder Law Section The Elder Law Section of the Florida Bar will bring together civil and probate practitioners for an educational look at how probate fits into the litigation process. Sessions include: Anatomy of a Case: How Does Probate Work?, Family and Matrimonial Law, Civil and Business: To Probate or Not to Probate?, Torts and Personal Injury, and Suing an Estate: How to Stake Your Creditor Claim
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| 1:00 p.m.–4:00 p.m. |
Our Kids Are Online — What Lawyers (and Parents) Need to Know
As a tool of communication, social media can be a positive influence for learning and community building. Sadly, children and youth are also victimized through social media. In response to concerns of parents, teachers, and mental health advocates, the Legislature passed HB 3, which was signed by the Governor and became effective 1/1/2025. This CLE will explore what lawyers need to know about the age restrictions on social media accounts as well as what possible challenges might be made to the law and the current enforcement structure with civil liabilities. In addition to lawyers who may be involved in a case representing a child, parent or social media provider, this CLE will help guide Florida Bar members who may be parents, guardian, and caregivers of children. Like social media, artificial intelligence (AI) has also become a powerful force in our society. Its role, positive and negative, will certainly continue to grow. While the Bar has addressed AI as it relates to the practice of law, this CLE proposes to introduce Bar members to the legal issues and frameworks, and the technical IT issues, relating to AI and education. This CLE will consider, for example, what the possible legal and educational consequences can be for a student who uses AI to write a paper or take an exam, and what steps a lawyer can take to help that student. Complimentary, but registration is required. Choose limited access pass when registering.
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| 1:15 p.m.–2:30 p.m. |
Experts: Selection, Depositions, Preparation and Disqualificationpresented by The Florida Bar Annual Convention Committee Topics include understanding the amendments to the Florida Rules of Civil Procedure affecting experts, dealing with the hourly rate question asked of experts before juries, the pros and cons of using the same expert, prepping for the expert deposition, and timing on qualification and disqualification. This session will be moderated by Ed Blumberg with Jennifer Altman, Eric Halsey, Jack Hickey, Mark Lapointe, Altanese Phenelus and Chris Searcy as panelists.
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| 2:15 p.m.–6:00 p.m. |
Federal Judicial Roundtable & Receptionpresented by The Federal Court Practice Committee The 2025 Federal Judicial Roundtable & Reception provides a unique opportunity for judges and federal practitioners to have meaningful, interactive and informal discussions regarding issues impacting federal practice. The format will include a state of the district address by a judge from each federal district in Florida and then turn to table discussions between the bench and bar. This year, the discussions will focus on Back to Basics: Best Practices for Advocacy and Case Management. Complimentary, but registration is required. Choose limited access pass when registering.
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| 2:30 p.m.–3:30 p.m. |
What Civil and Transactional Lawyers Need to Know about Arbitrationpresented by The Florida Bar Annual Convention Committee Topics include the benefits and costs of arbitration, mass arbitration, legal issues between one vs. three arbitrator panels, drafting considerations for arbitration in contracts, and best practices on arbitration. This session will be moderated by Angela Romero Valedon with Raoul Cantero, Alan Dimond, Ron Dresnick and Effie Silva as panelists.
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| 3:30 p.m.–4:45 p.m. |
Voir Dire: Winning Tactics and Techniquespresented by The Florida Bar Annual Convention Committee Topics include how much research is ethically permitted on jury, using and preserving strikes, Federal vs. State voir dire, how far hypotheticals can go, and use of jury consultants. This session will be moderated by Judge Norma Lindsey with Judges Elaine Carbuccia, Vivianne del Rio and Santo DiGangi; and Judd Rosen, Lee Stapleton and Michelle Suskauer as panelists.
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| 4:45 p.m.–5:45 p.m. |
Winning Suggestions from the County Court Benchpresented by The Florida Bar Annual Convention Committee Topics include best practices on motion calendar, tips on using technology in the court, arguing fees motions, small claims matters with attorney representation, and how recent amendments to the Florida Rules of Civil Procedure are affecting county court litigation. This session will be moderated by Amado Alan Alvarez with Judges Betsy Alvarez-Zane, Diana Gonzalez-Whyte, Chiaka Ihekwaba, Katherine Hurst Miller and Gordon Murray as panelists.
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| TIME | CLE OPPORTUNITIY |
|---|---|
| 8:00 a.m.–noon |
Masters Seminar on Ethicspresented by The Florida Bar and the Professional Ethics Committee From the Canons of Professional Ethics to the Code of Professional Responsibility up to the current Rules of Professional Conduct, having standards governing lawyers’ ethical duties has been a cornerstone of our self-regulating profession over the past 75 years. This presentation consists of four parts: From Conduct to Consequences: Ethics Issues for 2025 and BeyondThis section will focus on the ins and outs of the Bar’s grievance system and explain the current trends in disciplinary cases Voices of Experience: Ethics Issues Past, Present, and FutureThis presentation features an attorney who has experience representing lawyers in grievance matters and an attorney who represents lawyers in professional liability cases. They will provide insight as to how ethical issues have changed over the years, current ethical issues for lawyers, and what they think the ethical challenges will be for the future, especially in light of technological changes. Generative AI: The Real Dilemma of AI and the Ethical Dangers, Limitations, and Advantages to LawyersGenerative AI can be both a boon and a danger to lawyers The presentation includes an introduction to generative AI, the components of generative AI, the risks of generative AI, and existing ethical guidelines for using generative AI, including real life examples and scenarios. Judicial Roundtable on EthicsThe judicial roundtable will focus on the ethical issues confronted by the judiciary in the courtroom and how the judges have handled ethical concerns in the past. The roundtable will include a discussion of conduct that rises to the level of an ethical violation versus a professionalism issue, frequent misconduct attorneys engage in, and how technology has exacerbated these issues.
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| 8:00 a.m.–noon |
Practical E-Discovery Under the New Florida Rules of Civil Procedurepresented by The Florida Bar CLE Committee and the Business Law Section Electronic Discovery and Digital Evidence Committee This CLE will walk litigants through the full litigation lifecycle—pre-suit preservation strategies, spoliation, attorneys’ duties, filing lawsuits with precision, proportionality, resolving discovery disputes, and fulfilling meet-and-confer duties under the updated rules. This course includes speakers who routinely practice in business courts and federal courts around Florida. It will also include business court judges and federal judges who preside over complex business litigation.
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| 9:00 a.m.–5:30 p.m. |
AI Revolution in Consumer Law: Protecting Rights, Ensuring Justicepresented by The Florida Bar Consumer Protection Law Committee This practical CLE offers a comprehensive look at the intersection of artificial intelligence (AI) and consumer law. Featuring a diverse panel of professionals from both the legal and tech fields, this program explores how AI tools can empower advocacy while addressing challenges in compliance, data privacy, and ethics. Attendees will gain valuable insights into ensuring fairness, justice, and accountability in key areas such as financial services, debt collection, credit repair, and more. This session provides practical guidance for navigating the opportunities and risks of AI in consumer law, preparing you to stay ahead in a rapidly evolving legal landscape while safeguarding the rights of consumers.
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| 1:00 p.m.–3:00 p.m. |
Eminent Domain in Florida: Legal Foundations, Landmark Cases, and the Essential Role of Paralegals & Ethical Minefields of Social Media Investigationspresented by The Florida Bar Florida Registered Paralegal Enrichment Committee Part 1 of this presentation will provide an overview of eminent domain law in Florida, as well as legal issues and land valuation, with an emphasis on emerging issues and landmark court decisions. It will also provide a description of the role paralegals have in the litigation process. Part 2 will explore the key ethical rules and common pitfalls related to gathering evidence or insights from social media. From avoiding unauthorized contact with represented parties to ensuring client confidentiality and proper preservation of social media content, this session covers the must-know dos and don’ts. Complimentary, but registration is required. Choose limited access pass when registering.
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presented in the President’s Showcase by The Florida Bar’s Standing Committee on Technology and LegalFuel: The Practice Resource Center of The Florida Bar