by Joe Wilhelm Jr.
Staff Writer
Leaders were chosen to guide the Jacksonville Bar Association through its next term at its annual meeting Wednesday at the Wyndham Hotel.
The association finished voting for its new president and board of governors and combined its annual meeting with a wine tasting hosted by Tasting’s Restaurant. Wines from France, Spain and Italy were paired with cheeses, fruit and bread from each region.
President Caroline Emery officially passed the torch to President-elect Joe Camerlengo during the meeting. Emery’s term expires at the end of June.
Camerlengo is well qualified to fill the position, according to Emery, who found it hard to pass on wisdom to the new president.
“I don’t think he needs any,” Emery said confidently. “He’ll be fine.”
Emery said she was impressed with how much effort her peers were willing to put in to make her job as president easier.
“It’s amazing how many lawyers are willing to put in so much hard work to improve their profession and their Bar,” said Emery.
Eight members ran for election to the association’s board of governors, but only six seats were available. Geddes Anderson, Giselle Carson, Troy Smith, Courtney Grimm and Mike Freed were re-elected to the board. Mike McCoy and Tad Delegal will add new faces to the board for 2008-09.
Dan Bean is stated to succeed Camerlengo.
“I’d like to thank Dan Bean for standing down during the last election, so I could run unopposed,” said Camerlengo.
Camerlengo plans to work closely with Bean during his term to develop a more “cohesive” board from year to year. He hopes the practice of working well with the incoming president will translate into smooth transitions and the accomplishment of the Association’s goals.
“Dan and I will be handling a lot of the decisions together,” said Camerlengo, “so the next president is involved in the decisions to reach our future goals.”
The next board will announce a challenge to raise funds for Jacksonville Area Legal Aid (JALA). The non-profit organization will be affected by the recent state and local budget cuts and the Association will try to raise funds to offset those losses.
JALA is a law firm of 30 attorneys specializing in providing civil legal assistance to low-income persons. It is a non-profit 501(c)(3) corporation.
The Association also plans to become more relevant in the Jacksonville community by talking to Mayor John Peyton and the Duval County School Board to find out how it can benefit the community.