Eighth Judicial Circuit Bar Association’s Annual Professionalism Seminar captures professionalism award
Eighth Judicial Circuit Bar Association
Eighth Judicial Circuit Bar Association’s Annual Professionalism Seminar won The Florida Bar’s Standing Committee on Professionalism’s 2021 Group Professionalism Award.
This award honors one program instituted and coordinated by a bar association, judicial organization, inn of court, or law school organization aimed at enhancing professionalism among lawyers and law students and that can be implemented by other organizations to promote and encourage professionalism within the legal community.
In the mid-90’s the Eighth Judicial Circuit Bar Association (EJCBA) began hosting its Annual Professionalism Seminar. The three-hour program is focused on bringing together local lawyers, judges, law students, and professors to collaborate and discuss the topics of professionalism, ethics, and civility and their importance to the practice of law and the administration of justice throughout the state.
Every professionalism seminar organized by the EJCBA features a “keynote presentation” dedicated to the first half of the event and covers various topics such as Florida’s adoption of local professionalism panels; the challenges of teaching professionalism; the new civility demanded by the amended Oath of Admission to The Florida Bar; professionalism in the digital age; the lack of professionalism and its impact on lawyer satisfaction; and how professionalism impacts the public’s perception of the legal profession. During the second half of the seminar participants are engaged in interactive breakout groups tailored to their legal practice areas including the Civil Non-Trial Law Group; the Civil Trial Law Group; the Criminal Law Group; and the Family/Domestic Relations Law Group. This seminar annually draws between 100-135 lawyers, law students, professors, and judges.
“This innovative seminar has proven to stand the test of time with the circuit’s lawyers, law students, and judges eagerly setting aside their time each year to attend this important event” according to the committee. “Even during the COVID-19 pandemic, the seminar had more than 115 registered participants for February 2021’s virtual event which featured the Honorable Karen K. Specie, chief U.S. bankruptcy judge for the Northern District of Florida, who spoke on ‘COVID-19: Professionalism Lessons for Lawyers.'”
