The Board of Governors is considering a proposed rule amendment that would make it easier to use expunged or sealed criminal records in Bar disciplinary cases. The proposal is on the agenda for first reading when the board meets September 30 on Amelia Island. A final vote could come as early as December. The proposal…
Judges may not serve on or consult with executive or legislative branch policymaking committees or commissions unless they focus on the law, legal system, administration of justice, or independence of judiciary, according to the Judicial Ethics Advisory Committee. The Supreme Court’s ethics committee issued Opinion 2022-10 August 30 responding to a judge who has been asked by…
The latest statistics suggest that most Florida lawyers are unfamiliar with the grievance process. And that’s a good thing, says Florida Bar Staff Counsel Patricia Ann Toro Savitz. She notes that there are 113,000 Bar members, and the Supreme Court in 2021 took some 350 public disciplinary actions. “That is a very, very, very small…
Jennifer Diaz The Florida Bar’s Board of Legal Specialization & Education recognized Jennifer Diaz at the Annual Convention for promoting board certification in international law. The award recognizes excellence and creativity by a Florida Bar board certified lawyer in advancing the public’s knowledge of, and reputation for, legal board certification. Diaz is a South Florida…
Rep. Jackie Toledo Gov. Ron DeSantis has signed a measure that expands a grandparent’s right to petition for visitation, but only in tragic circumstances. DeSantis signed HB 1119 by Rep. Jackie Toledo, R-Tampa, on June 24. It cleared the Senate 37-0 on March 9. The House approved it 112-3 on February 24. The…
Gov. Ron DeSantis has vetoed a measure that would have let businesses sue a local government if a new ordinance reduced profits by 15% or more. Dubbed the “Local Business Protection Act,” SB 620 by Sen. Travis Hutson, R-Palm Coast, cleared the Senate 22-14 on January 27. It cleared the House 69-45 on March 9.…
Sen. Jim Boyd Gov. Ron DeSantis has signed a measure designed to crack down on what Attorney General Ashley Moody calls “organized retail crime.” DeSantis on June 17 signed SB 1534 by Sen. Jim Boyd, R-Bradenton. Rep. Chuck Clemmons, R-Jonesville, sponsored the companion, HB 1511. Under the measure, a perpetrator who…
Gov. Ron DeSantis has signed a bipartisan measure designed to speed the delivery of protective orders to law enforcement. The measure, HB 905 by Rep. Elizabeth Fetterhoff, R-DeLand, would require all law enforcement agencies to accept domestic violence injunctions via email. The House voted 112-1 to approve it on March 2. Two days later, the…
Andrew Sasso A Real Property, Probate and Trust Law Section committee is considering a proposal to scrub so-called “Z” words — “zeal,” “zealous,” and “zealously,” — from the Bar rule book. “It’s not just the legal profession, people in general relate someone who is ‘zealous’ to someone who is a zealot,” said RPPTL…
The Florida Supreme Court has amended Bar rules to permit not-for-profit legal service providers to organize as a corporation and to permit nonlawyers to serve on the boards of directors of not-for-profit legal service providers. The court, on its own motion, amended Rule 4-5.4 (Professional Independence of a Lawyer) June 2 in Case No. SC22-607, as…
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