Bar’s 2021 Annual Convention to be a mix of live and virtual events
'While I wish we could all meet in person for a full-blown convention, I believe this is the most prudent manner in which to proceed'
The Florida Bar’s 2021 Annual Convention in June will be a hybrid online/live event with most meetings offered virtually but some major events – including the General Assembly and some social functions – being available in-person.
Dori-Foster-Morales
President Dori Foster-Morales and President-elect Mike Tanner announced on March 30 plans for the convention, which will run June 9-12. All the live events will be on Thursday, June 10, and Friday, June 11.
Bar members will shortly receive an email with information about the convention operations. The in-person functions will be at the Hilton Orlando Bonnet Creek & Waldorf Astoria at 14100 Bonnet Creek Resort Lane, Orlando 32821.
“We will have a few in-person functions on Thursday and Friday only, with the majority of section and committee meetings held virtually over the convention dates of June 9-12, 2021,” Foster-Morales said. “We are currently working on plans to host all of the virtual meetings on a consolidated platform with links to Zoom/Teams/Conference call information, which also allows for a virtual exhibit hall, personalized agenda pages for each meeting, attendee chat, and gamification to engage attendees and foster networking. The Bar will be monitoring CDC guidelines and will be following safety requirements for the hotel and CDC for the in-person events.”
Foster-Morales continued: “While I wish we could all meet in person for a full-blown convention, I believe this is the most prudent manner in which to proceed. To the extent anyone feels uncomfortable appearing in-person for even this scaled down event, please do not hesitate to participate virtually. Last year we had record participation numbers for the fully virtual convention and look forward to another record year with this new approach. We will send more information as it is available, and you can check our Annual Convention page on the website.”
Live events will include the General Assembly on Friday featuring the State of the Judiciary address by Chief Justice Charles Canady, the annual 50-Year Member Luncheon, a Presidential Showcase seminar featuring Justice Jorge Labarga, the Leadership Academy, a scaled down President’s Reception on Friday evening, the Young Lawyers Division Board of Governors meeting on Thursday, and the Board of Governors/Past President’s dinner, also on Thursday. Some Bar procedural rules committee meetings will also be in person both on Thursday and Friday.
