Board certification is on the rise
Applications for Florida Bar board certification in first-cycle specialties — those for which applications were due August 31 — are up 27 percent from 2008.
That increase, coupled with this year’s Supreme Court approval of standards for two new areas, adoption law and education law, demonstrates the Board of Legal Specialization and Education’s success in expanding and promoting the program to encourage more applicants.
“The numbers in the individual areas for marital and family law, appellate practice, immigration and nationality and tax law are most impressive, and aviation law and admiralty and maritime law have good showings,” said BLSE Chair Louis B. “Buck” Vocelle, Jr. “It is obvious that board certification continues to gain ground as a coveted credential.”
Vocelle said the rise may be attributed to several factors, including more focused promotion of certification to Florida Bar sections, increased publicity by board certified attorneys, and heightened awareness of board certification by legal consumers.
