by Joe Wilhelm Jr.
Staff Writer
An effort to improve communications between attorneys and judges continued recently at the Duval County Courthouse as it hosted another Jacksonville Bar Association “Sidebar Luncheon” in Courtroom A.
Each luncheon has given attorneys a chance to talk to judges from different divisions to find out what is expected of them in the courtroom and express problems they may have had while trying cases. The Judicial Relations Committee created the luncheons to give both attorneys and judges a somewhat casual environment to discuss how they can both improve the atmosphere in which they work.
“I’ve never really experienced unprofessionalism in juvenile court,” said Circuit Judge Jack Schemer. “If you are a new attorney, introduce yourself to the judge. When in the courtroom, be confident, not arrogant.”
Circuit Judge Henry Davis explained he has a low tolerance for attorneys who think they are going to dabble in family law.
“Pair yourself with someone who has been there, so you know what to expect,” said Davis. “Dependency and delinquency court isn’t really taught in law school. It’s one of the few hearings where you don’t have too much you can do on appeal, so you need to get it right.
“It’s a very serious matter, you are dealing with families in distress. If you are not doing it on a regular basis, don’t do it on a hit-and-miss basis.”
Davis also had issues with the way attorneys and their clients appear in court.
“Dress professionally when you come to court. Distinguish yourself,” said Davis. “Sometimes I look up and it’s hard to tell who is the attorney and who is the client.”
Nearly half of the judges at the head table were new to family court, with Judge-Elects Jefferson Morrow and Jim Daniel scheduled to be sworn in early next year, so Circuit Court Judge David Gooding offered up a simple explanation of the courts.
“Dependency court handles situations where something has been done wrong to the child,” said Gooding. “Delinquency involves children that are accused of doing something wrong.”
Schemer spoke about how the state’s budget crisis is affecting family and juvenile courts.
“We used to have more tools to handle cases,” said Schemer. “We used to have The Bridge and daniel to help. daniel would house runaway girls for 30 days, but they can’t afford to do that anymore.
We used to have ankle monitors for home detention, but we don’t have that anymore. We have to rely on parents to report when a child violates home detention. We inform the parents that they can be held in contempt of court if they violate the detention order .”
Davis is amazed at the attitudes and cases he has seen come through his court.
“It’s amazing how many kids are carrying loaded weapons,” said Davis. “It’s amazing how hardened they are about the entire process.”
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