by Bradley Parsons
Staff Writer
The Jacksonville Bar Association’s meeting season got off to a promising start and, maybe more importantly, a punctual finish.
President Alan Pickert, of Terrell Hogan, stepped into the JBA’s top spot promising to start meetings at the stroke of noon and finish them when the bell tolls at 1 p.m. Wednesday’s meeting at the Omni didn’t disappoint. Pickert actually closed the meeting a couple minutes early, a move that brought a round of applause from the nearly 300 members in attendance and approving nods from the two dozen or so members of the judiciary in attendance. The only negative reaction was a tongue-in-cheek complaint from Circuit Court Judge Gregg McCaulie, who didn’t have a chance to finish his lunch.
Pickert could commiserate with McCaulie since he was finishing his desert standing up while reporters interviewed Florida Bar Association President Alan Bookman, the meeting’s guest speaker. But the occasional call for a doggie bag is a small price to pay for quickly-paced meetings that allow attendees to resume their afternoon schedule, said Pickert.
Pickert set the tone early when he declared during his introductory comments that the meeting would close at 1 p.m., “no matter who’s up here talking.”
Pickert has stressed to speakers the importance of keeping to the schedule and made other adjustments to streamline the meetings. For instance, announcements are now displayed on a projection screen instead of from the podium by a speaker.
It’s because of the tight schedules that often confront lawyers and judges that Pickert has placed such a premium on punctuality. Concise meetings are a lynch pin in Pickert’s plan to involve Duval County’s judges more in the JBA meetings. Judges will attend more meetings, he reasons, if they are assured of returning to their dockets on time.
Pickert gave the JBA members a glowing review for showing up at the Omni despite the steady rains that hung over downtown all day Wednesday.
“We had a full house. More than 300 members and quite a few members of the judiciary were in attendance,” he said. “The attendance, given the weather conditions, speaks volumes about the commitment of our membership.”
Pickert wants members who miss meetings, “to feel like they missed out on something.” To keep them coming back, Pickert plans to continue his predecessor, Reggie Luster’s, focus on bringing in buzz-worthy speakers.
Next month’s meeting features Sen. Bill Nelson.
Attendance at meetings is essential, said Pickert, because it helps keep Bar members aware of the numerous opportunities for community involvement presented by the JBA. Pickert is emphasizing judicial outreach because he thinks it’s valuable for lawyers, particularly younger JBA members, to mix with judges in a social setting.
Pickert pointed to comments at Wednesday’s meeting from Judge Bernard Nachman, who emotionally described his memories as a student at Tulane University in New Orleans.
“The members here learned more in that two, three minutes about what kind of heart Judge Nachman has than they ever could in court,” he said.