Age: 34
Family: Mom, Dad, eldest son of six. Born and third-generation raised in Jacksonville.
Pets: None
Education: Florida State University, Bachelor of Science in information studies with a minor in general business. Florida Coastal School of Law, Juris Doctor.
Admitted to the Bar: 2010
Employed by: Law Offices of Stephen A. Smith
Field of practice: Family law, personal Injury, and criminal defense
Professional organizations: The Florida Bar, Law Related Education Committee; The Jacksonville Bar Association, member; D.W. Perkins Bar Association, secretary; Virgil Hawkins Florida Chapter of the National Bar Association, member.
Community involvement: D.W. Perkins Bar Association, The House of Restoration Ministries, Inc., board chair; FSU Young Alumni Movement, board chair; FSU Seminole Torchbearers, board member; Pink Wish Foundation, board member; Jacksonville Alumni Chapter of Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity Inc., member; Hephzibah Evangelistic Pentecostal Church, minister.
How did you become involved?
My community involvement, in general, is a result of my belief in the late, great attorney Charles Hamilton Houston's words that, "A lawyer's either a social engineer or he's a parasite on society." Specifically, my service within the D.W. Perkins Bar Association stems from being introduced to the organization before law school by my mentor, attorney Noel G. Lawrence. Its mission is to be a change agent to improve the plight of the African-American community and to erase all effects of past and present discrimination. In addition to the organization's invaluable network of experienced lawyers and judges, I was afforded a Bar study scholarship by its philanthropic arm, the D.W. Perkins Bar Foundation.
How can someone else become involved?
Visit us online at dwperkinsbar.com to apply for membership and obtain information about our monthly meetings and upcoming community events.
What have you learned/achieved through the experience?
We have been given a great and precious talent in our ability to practice law and pro bono service — giving back to those less fortunate, underserved populations is an investment of our talent that reaps a positive harvest not only in the community, but within our own hearts.
What was the last book you read or are reading?
"Martin's Big Words: The Life of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.," by Doreen Rappaport. I read it to third-graders at St. Clair Evans Academy with the D.W. Perkins Bar Association in conjunction with the American Bar Association's Law Day theme, "Realizing the Dream: Equality for All."