Jim Ash

A prominent Cuban dissident and former political prisoner will be the keynote speaker at a Cuban American Bar Association forum November 18 at the University of Miami. José Daniel Ferrer, who was allowed to flee to Miami last month after spending four years in a Cuban prison, will keynote a CABA “Cuban Voices” forum, “Rights,...

As they ramp up for the January session, Florida lawmakers are keeping an eye on artificial intelligence, with some proposing guardrails to protect taxpayers, policy holders, and patients. Republican Sen. Gayle Harrel, a health care IT consultant from Stuart, filed SB 146 on October 10. The bill would require the Florida Digital Service, an IT...

A Supreme Court workgroup is proposing alternatives to Florida’s near-exclusive reliance on the ABA in the Bar admissions process, ones designed to “promote flexibility, innovation, access, and accountability in legal education.” Established by a March 12 order, the “Workgroup on the Role of the American Bar Association in Bar Admissions Requirements” was directed to review...

A Volusia County lawmaker is proposing a public records exemption to shield the personal data of legal assistants who work with Florida’s public defenders and regional conflict counsel. Republican Rep. Bill Partington, an Ormond Beach attorney, filed HB 181 earlier this month. The bill defines legal assistants as non-lawyer employees of the public defender or...

Former Palm Beach State Attorney Dave Aronberg will not violate ethics laws if, as a private attorney, he defends clients being prosecuted by his former office, Florida Ethics Commission staff have concluded. At issue is whether a state attorney qualifies as a public “employee,” something the commission will decide for the first time when it...

Florida’s Judicial Qualifications Commission, a tiny agency with an outsized mission, is undergoing a changing of the guard at a challenging time. Charged with investigating allegations of judicial misconduct, the JQC traditionally receives 500 to 700 complaints against judges annually. This year, its five staff members expect to vet 1,200. Fortunately, there won’t be much...

West Pasco County residents seeking emergency court filings now have access to an “Empowerment Room,” a safe, secure, and private space to get help when they need it most. “Whether someone is a victim of domestic or sexual violence or is filing a petition to save a loved one battling addiction, the emotional weight they...

The Supreme Court is being asked to decide whether a former sheriff’s deputy who was convicted of planting drugs on motorists in a spree of false arrests also violated Florida’s racketeering law. The state is challenging a November 2024 ruling by the First District Court of Appeal that upheld former Jackson County Sheriff’s Deputy Zachary...

Saying incidents are “almost certainly” inevitable, the Florida Supreme Court has issued a pair of administrative orders designed to enhance cybersecurity branch wide. The first, In Re: Cybersecurity Policy and Planning, AOSC25-63, is dated October 16. It begins by noting that the courts have experienced a “rapid growth” in the use of technology over the past...

A House panel on Wednesday overwhelmingly approved a bipartisan proposal to expand Florida’s Wrongful Death Act. The House Civil Justice & Claims Subcommittee voted 16-2 to approve HB 6003 by Republican Rep. Dana Trabulsy, a Ft. Pierce business owner. The measure would restore the rights of certain adults and adult children to recover non-economic damages...

Florida’s trial courts are seeking $27.4 million in next year’s budget to launch a major upgrade of case management technology, part of a broader request to continue modernizing the justice system, enhance judicial security, and improve staffing and salaries, State Courts Administrator Eric Maclure told the Senate Appropriations Committee on Criminal and Civil Justice on...

A Southwest Florida lawmaker is renewing his attempt to protect Judicial Qualifications Commission staff from death threats and stalking. Sen. Darryl Rouson, D-St. Petersburg and an attorney, filed SB 144 on October 8. The bill would exempt from public records laws the personal identifying information of current and former JQC employees, including their dates of...

Prosecutors and public defenders on Wednesday asked lawmakers for more resources to meet a host of challenges, including rising caseloads associated with a flood of new judges. The Legislature and Gov. Ron DeSantis last session agreed to fund 39 new judgeships for FY 2025-26, including 22 circuit judgeships, 15 county court judgeships, and two new...

The Bernie McCabe Second District Court of Appeal Courthouse will open in St. Petersburg later this year — on budget and on time, lawmakers were assured Wednesday. State Courts Administrator Eric Maclure’s presentation to the House Justice Budget Subcommittee was one of the bright spots of the panel’s “Fixed Capital Outlay” review of the judicial...

The Florida Supreme Court heard oral arguments Tuesday in a case involving the “exclusionary rule” and the jurisdictional limits of police authority. At issue is a state challenge to a 2024 Sixth District Court of Appeal decision to exclude breathalyzer results because Maitland Police drove a DUI suspect to an Orange County facility — beyond...

A Treasure Coast lawmaker is renewing her effort to restore the rights of adult children and their parents to recover non-economic damages in wrongful death cases tied to medical negligence. Republican Rep. Dana Trabulsy, a small business owner from Ft. Pierce, filed HB 6003 on September 24. A similar proposal cleared the House and Senate...

Florida lawyers care deeply about the mission of the “Workgroup on the Role of the American Bar Association in Bar Admission Requirements,” according to a flurry of responses the panel generated when it invited public comment. Chief Justice Carlos Muñiz formed the workgroup in a March 12 order and charged it with proposing “alternatives to...

The Supreme Court has granted the Judicial Management Council’s “Workgroup on the Role of the American Bar Association in Bar Admission Requirements” more time to complete its work. A March 12, Supreme Court administrative order directed the workgroup to propose “alternatives to the rule requiring an applicant, with very limited exceptions, to graduate from an...

Two Florida state judges describe the death threats, harassment, and cyberstalking they endured following recent adverse rulings, as they join a growing national call for enhanced judicial security. The September 25 “Speak up for Justice” forum, “Unprotected and Under Fire: State Judges at Risk as Congress Weighs Action,” included Dixie County Judge Jennifer Johnson and...

The Board of Governors agreed September 19 to approve a new “Insurance Coverage Law” board certification program, and proposed rule and bylaw revisions that range from a new reporting requirement for lawyers facing involuntary commitment, to a stricter attendance policy for certain standing committees. Meeting in Tampa, the board voted unanimously to approve a Real...