Traditionally, during the month of September, our Bar Association year begins in earnest. This year is no exception. Three headline events will occur this month: the new U.S. Courthouse dedication, our first luncheon of the year, as well as our first Continuing Legal Education program of the year.
Over the summer, our Committee and Section Chairs met and began planning for this year. If you are not involved with a particular committee or section, please do not hesitate to join one that is of interest to you. If you are not a member of a committee or section of our Bar Association, please visit our web site at www.jaxbar.org. Many of our projects and CLE programs are run through these committees and sections.
One of the biggest events of the year will be the dedication of the new U.S. Courthouse. The official dedication will be held on Sept. 19, at 1p.m. Although our U.S. Courthouse has been operational for the last several months, the official dedication ceremony promises to be special. This is indeed a momentous occasion for our Bar in that it is the first federal court dedication in over 60 years. For those of you who have not been to the new courthouse, it will also give you a wonderful opportunity to take a tour of this state-of-the-art facility. The event is being handled by the United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit, the United States District Court for the Middle District of Florida, and the United States General Services Administration. Many federal dignitaries are expected to speak at this occasion. After the formal dedication ceremony, tours will be given of the courthouse facility. This is an event that is open to the public and especially members of the Jacksonville Bar Association. I hope all of you will be able to attend this event and, perhaps, go on a tour of the courthouse.
Our first luncheon of the new year will be held Thursday, Sept. 18, at the Omni Hotel. Please make your reservations soon as we expect this to be a well-attended event. Our speaker for this event will be Florida Bar President Miles A. McGrane III. President McGrane is a graduate of the Cumberland School of Law and practices in Miami as a trial attorney. A priority of his term is meeting the legal needs of children. He is hoping to accomplish this task by fulfilling recommendations of The Florida Bar’s Commission on the Legal Needs of Children. Another program President McGrane has undertaken is asking all Florida Bar members to make a $45 contribution to the Florida Bar Foundation for legal assistance to children. President McGrane hopes to raise $250,000 from such contributions to address the legal needs of the children in Florida. In addition, he is asking all Florida Bar members to donate their time and talent to non-profit organizations that act as advocates for children. We anticipate that he will speak on The Legal Needs of Children, Court Funding, and the work of several special committees he has established. Please make plans now to attend this luncheon.
Also, on Sept. 18, our first Continuing Legal Education program of the year will be held. Our Association’s Small Firms and Solo Practitioners Section in conjunction with the Association of Legal Administrators will be presenting an afternoon CLE on “Staying Competitive in Today’s Legal Market.” This program is geared toward managing partners, legal administrators, solo practitioners, and members of small firms. The issues to be addressed are marketing, accounting, and productivity. Many of our members have asked for such a program to be held, and we do believe this will address this need. I would like to thank the members of the Small Firms and Solo Practitioners Section as well as Tonia Yazgi, its Chair for organizing this program. I hope you will make arrangements to attend this CLE program. The cost is $85 for Jacksonville Bar Association members. The program will begin immediately after our monthly luncheon. You can make reservations by contacting the Jacksonville Bar Association office.
Finally, we look forward to our meeting in October when Judge Moran will give a very timely address on the State of the Courts and State of the Courthouse. This promises to be a well-attended event as well.