• Rogers Towers recently hired Miriam Sowinski and Josh Woolsey as associates in the firm. Sowinski joins the firm’s Business and Tax Department and Woolsey will work with the Litigation Department.
• The next training for Justice Teaching will be 4-7 p.m. July 20 in the chambers of Judge Karen Cole in Suite 227 of the Duval County Courthouse. The program will help people become one of the more than 3,400 Florida lawyers and judges who volunteer in public schools through Justice Teaching, a program established by former Chief Justice Fred Lewis. To reserve a seat, contact Kristy Bend at 630-2321 or [email protected]. For more information, www.justiceteaching.org.
• Sandy Johnston with Taylor Sign & Design removes the Wachovia sign Friday evening from the banking office at 1562 Atlantic Blvd., revealing the Wells Fargo name. Johnston and Edwin Diaz, a Taylor Sign assistant, were among crews that worked over the weekend to unveil the Wells Fargo name on former Wachovia banks around the area.
• Dan Williams, a partner in the Magid & Williams firm, recently published a book regarding pregnancy discrimination in employment. “The Pregnancy Discrimination Act: A Guide for Plaintiff Employment Lawyers” was published June 3 by BNA Books, a division of the Bureau of National Affairs. For more information, visit www.bnabooks.com/preg. Williams is board certified by The Florida Bar as a specialist in labor and employment law.
• The law firm of Boyd & Jenerette opened in Miami, its fourth regional office. The managing partner of the Miami office is Jorge Gutierrez. It opened with four attorneys. The firm was founded in Jacksonville in 1952.
• The leadership of The Florida Bar continues to have an orange-and-blue influence. University of Florida Levin College of Law alumni are serving as immediate past president, president and president-elect during 2011-12. Current President Mayanne Downs (UF Law J.D., 1987) will become past president, Scott G. Hawkins (UF Law J.D., 1983) will take over as president, and Gwynne A. Young (UF Law J.D., 1974) will become president-elect at the 2011 annual Florida Bar Convention General Assembly June 24 in Orlando. Hawkins will be the third UF graduate to serve as Florida Bar president the past four years with John “Jay” G. White III (UF Law J.D. 1983) serving as president during the 2008-09 term.
• UF Law will host a reception for alumni from 6-8:30 p.m. June 23 at The Florida Bar convention. For information, visit www.law.ufl.edu. The registration deadline is June 16.
• The Florida State University College of Law Alumni Reception will be 6-7:30 p.m. June 23 at The Florida Bar convention. The registration deadline is June 16. Call 1-800-788-7097 or e-mail [email protected].
• The Family Nurturing Center of Florida will open a visitation center at the Yulee Kids Campus/First Coast YMCA next month to serve families in Nassau County. With a final $10,000 donation from the Nassau County Sheriff’s Office, the center reached its fundraising goal to open a family visitation center for children and families affected by divorce, domestic violence and custody battles. The Nassau County Bar Association raised funds through personal contributions and the support of The Florida Bar board of governors to help open a center to serve Nassau area families who otherwise had to use the Duval County center in the St. Nicholas area.
• Gov. Rick Scott appointed Bernard “Barney” Smith to the Florida Housing Finance Corp. Smith, of Jacksonville, is a vice president of Property Support Systems LLC. He succeeds William M. Lenihan and is appointed for a term that began June 8 and ends Nov. 13, 2014.
• Kenneth Jacobs, managing shareholder of the Jacksonville office of GrayRobinson, was presented the 2011 Federation Young Leadership Award at the 20th Annual Celebration of Jacksonville’s Jewish Agencies. Also at GrayRobinson, Jason Campbell, a former partner with Fowler White Boggs, recently joined the Jacksonville office as a shareholder. He will focus primarily on business and corporate law and commercial real estate law.
• Traffic will be detoured this week as part of 12th Street between Ellis Road and Lane Avenue is closed from 7 a.m. today through 5 p.m. Friday to allow for CSX Transportation maintenance work on the railroad crossing.