Aug. 26, 12 – 1 PM Wednesday Wisdom Zoom webinar, free CLE for Solo & Small Firm Section members, by Joy Lutz of Aligned CPA, LLC. “Power Your Firm by Understanding Your Numbers: From Financial Statements and Budgets to Goal Setting.” Learn how your financials can help you make better decisions, get a hold on your cash flow and use metrics to achieve your goals. CLE approval pending. REGISTER NOW.

Joy Lutz is a CPA, certified tax coach, and owner of Aligned CPA, LLC in Lake City, FL, where she helps solo and small law firms with accounting, tax prep and planning, and advisory services. Joy is a certified Tax Coach with the American Institute of Certified Tax Planners and was named a top “40 Under 40” CPA in the accounting profession for 2015 by the CPA Practice Advisor, as well as earning the Small Business of the Year award in 2016 by the Lake City‐Columbia County Chamber of Commerce.

She is involved in many organizations and has held leadership positions with the Lake City Chamber of Commerce, Ronald McDonald House, Happy House and Altrusa.

Tuesday, Sept. 15, 12 – 1 PM live InReach webinar by Chelsie M. Lamie. Are you working too much? Answering the same questions from staff day after day? Do you get frustrated that in the time it takes you to explain something for the umpteenth time, you could have just done it yourself? You can’t run (or scale) a law firm without Processes & Procedures.  Join attorney Chelsie M. Lamie, who has built a seven-figure virtual law firm in under four years, by creating and implementing processes and procedures to maximize the production of her team while minimizing redundancy and maintaining an incredible work/life balance. Course number 4061. Approved for 1.0 General CLE. Section members register for only $50. REGISTER NOW

Chelsie Lamie is a former claims adjuster and insurance defense attorney turned personal injury attorney. For the past twelve years she has exclusively represented the injured.     In 2016, Chelsie opened her own brick and mortar PI firm.  Just two years later, she closed her brick and mortar office, moved her family to Mexico and took her law firm virtual.  One week each month she returns to Florida to attend her in person litigation appointments.  The remainder of the month she runs her practice from Mexico.   In its first year of going virtual, Chelsie’s firm’s revenue grew from six figures to seven figures.  She is passionate about law firm culture and processes & procedures that allows her to live her best life.  Her hobbies include scuba diving, hang gliding and international travel.  Chelsie has recently returned from visiting her 62nd country with her husband of 19 years, David, and their two sons, Michael (6) and Henry (4).

Sept. 23 Wednesday Wisdom Zoom webinar by Michael Stewart of Wells Fargo. Free CLE for Solo & Small Firm Section members. In this webinar, Mr. Stewart a Wells Fargo Private Wealth Financial Advisor, will discuss retirement plans for law firms and their various features. Course number 4139. Approved for 1.0 General CLE credit. REGISTER NOW

Michael Stewart joined Wells Fargo Advisors in 2006. He is the Private Wealth Financial Advisor, Managing Director-Investments, Fundamental Choice Portfolio Manager for clients and acts as the lead portfolio strategist for the team. The team uses a comprehensive approach to investment planning. Portfolios are implemented by utilizing an open architecture structure. Combined with Wells Fargo Advisors’ vast resources, the team customizes solutions for each client. Michael has his MBA in Financial Planning from the University of Miami. Previous to joining Wells Fargo Advisors, Michael was the National Portfolio Analyst at Mellon Private Wealth Management in Philadelphia.  After attaining his Bachelor’s degree in Finance from the University of Miami, Michael worked for Tew Cardenas, LLP where part of his role was evaluating securities arbitration cases.  Michael lives in Fort Lauderdale with his wife Jennifer.

Live GoToWebinar. Registrants have 90-day access. The Solo Small Firm Section of the Florida Bar is pleased to announce its 2020 Annual Ethics Program – Legal Ethics in a Changing World. This virtual conference will explore the impact of working from home and the virtual practice of law has on our ethical obligations and legal community. Join us for a look into ethical leadership and innovation, video conferencing risk management, ethics and the new normal and maintaining legal decorum in the courtroom. We will also reflect on how COVID -19 has impacted both the physical and mental health of our legal community. Section members register for only $185. 5.0 CLE credits, all of which may be applied toward Ethics. Course number 4115.  REGISTER NOW

8:00 AM – 8:10 AM
Welcome
Peggy Hoyt, Program Chair

8:10 AM – 9:00 AM
Leadership, Innovation and the “New Normal”
Teresa Schmid, Chicago, IL

9:00 AM – 9:50 AM
Video Conferencing Risk Management Considerations
Joanna L. Storey, San Francisco, CA

9:50 AM – 10:05 AM
Break

10:05 AM – 10:55 AM
Ethics and Risk Management: What will the “New Normal” Look Like?
Karen Rubin, Cleveland, OH

10:55 AM – 11:45 AM
Maintaining Professional Decorum in the “New Normal”
Eugene Pettis, Ft. Lauderdale

11:45 AM – 12:35 PM
How the COVID-19 Pandemic has Impacted the Physical and Mental Health Florida’s Legal Community
Dr. Scott Weinstein, Pompano Beach

Oct. 20 Live GoToWebinar by Danielle Babcock of Thomson Reuters. Building law firm awareness is the key to increasing your business and profits. Your law firm can be promoted in everything you do from websites and social media, to blogging efforts, client communications, branding, managing Google, and law firm public relations.  Join Danielle Babcock of FindLaw to explore ways to increase your bottom line by learning about the tools you can use to reach your best clients. Course number 4062. Approved for 1.0 General CLE credit. REGISTER NOW

Danielle Babcock is a digital marketing strategist for FindLaw, a division of Thomson Reuters. For the past thirteen years, she has exclusively worked with small business owners in helping them protect, grow and market themselves. Since 2007, she has assisted over 800 businesses, including law firms, in protecting or growing their brands.  When working with clients, she finds the greatest importance lies in focusing on how the firm differentiates itself.  By creating a unique strategy to market strengths, it ideally drives retaining the ideal client on a more consistent basis. Her hobbies include weight training, running, personal training, friends and international travel. Danielle and her husband of two years, Ben, had their first child named Braxton, on May 9, 2020.  Her favorite pastime now is spending time with her baby boy and two dogs Titan and Sophie.

“Conducting Remote Proceedings: From Presenting Evidence During Hearings and Trials to Participating in Zoom Mediations.” October 21, 12 – 1 PM Wednesday Wisdom Zoom webinar, free CLE. Presented by Twelfth Judicial Circuit Court Judge Hunter Carroll, Third Judicial Circuit General Magistrate Jennifer Kuyrkendall Griffin, Renee Thompson and Liz McCausland. Course number4210. 1.0  Technology  CLE  credit.  REGISTER

Jennifer Kuyrkendall Griffin is the General Magistrate for the Third Judicial Circuit in North Central Florida and presides over probate, guardianship, domestic relations and foreclosure matters. She is a former chair of The Florida Bar Solo & Small Firm Section. Jennifer’s past Bar experience includes service as President of the Third Judicial Circuit Bar Association and on various committees of The Florida Bar Family Law Section. As the Third Judicial Circuit Young Lawyer’s Board of Governor’s Representative, she oversaw the development and launch of the YLD’s  “Mentoring With the Masters” video program. Jennifer also is the author of “Deadly Escape,” a crime thriller novel that has been used as a course textbook for Stetson Law School’s Criminal Procedure class.

Renee E. Thompson is a solo civil trial attorney and mediator from Ocala, Florida. She is an active leader in The Florida Bar, serving on the Board of Governors as the current Technology Chair and Member Benefit Liaison and on the Executive Council of the Solo and Small Firm Section. She is an adjunct professor at the University of Florida Levin College of Law in the area of Practice Management and Technology and has received the General Practice/ Solo and Small Firm Section’s Walter S. Crumbley Award for her contributions in the area of practice management. She established a  reputation at a young age as a high achiever, as President of The Florida Bar Young Lawyers Division and inaugural Chair of The Florida Bar Leadership Academy, and received the President’s Award of Merit twice while serving on the Board of Governors.

Liz McCausland has been practicing law for over 20 years after graduating from the University of Florida with both her Bachelor of Arts and JD degrees. She practiced civil litigation representing both individuals and national corporations before starting her own firm. Ms. McCausland now concentrates in bankruptcy and mediation. She is a Supreme Court Certified Circuit Civil Mediator. She served on committees to establish both the Orlando Bankruptcy Division’s Mortgage Modification Mediation Program, as well as the Orange County Mortgage Modification Program.

She has conducted over 4,000 Mortgage Modification Mediations in every district in Florida, as well as in Indiana, California, Nevada, and Arizona. She travels throughout the US to teach other attorneys and mediators how to successfully obtain and mediate mortgage modifications in bankruptcy.

Liz has served in leadership positions in many voluntary bar associations and has won awards for her devoted service including being recognized with the Lawrence G. Matthews Professionalism Award. She is a past president of the Orange County Bar Association, and serves on the executive board of the Florida Bar’s Solo and Small Firm Section. She has also previously served on the Florida Bar Young Lawyers Section, The Florida Bar’s Leadership Academy Committee and on the executive board of the Central Florida Association For Women Lawyers.

Liz is a self-proclaimed gadget geek and has never met an app she didn’t try. Unfortunately, the nuances of Microsoft Excel still confound her.

Born and raised in Sarasota County, Hunter W. Carroll is a circuit judge in the 12th Judicial Circuit. For the last two years, he has been the administrative judge for the circuit civil division in Sarasota County. Prior to his 2015 appointment to the bench, Judge Carroll’s law practice focused on complex commercial litigation matters, although he practiced in other areas of the law as well, including appellate law. He is a past president of the Sarasota County Bar Association and Judge John M. Scheb American Inns of Court. He previously served as a governor from the 12th Circuit on The Florida Bar Board of Governors, Young Lawyers Division. Judge Carroll began his legal career as a staff attorney to then Chief Justice Wells of the Supreme Court of Florida. Judge Carroll attended the University of Florida for both undergraduate studies and law school.

Oct. 28 Wednesday Wisdom free CLE on Zoom for Solo & Small Firm Section members by Margaret “Peggy” Hewitt of Florida Lawyers Mutual Insurance Co., Bryan Barnhart of Infiltration Labs and Third Circuit General Magistrate Jennifer Kuyrkendall Griffin. Join us for a primer for the Florida solo and small firm practitioner following the pandemic-driven flight to the home office and virtual courtroom. Peruse the pitfalls and solutions of the insecure network, the Alexa overheard client conference and the nursery-turned-hearing-room. Course number 4065. 1.0 Technology CLE credit. REGISTER

Before coming to Florida Lawyers Mutual Insurance Company, Peggy Hewitt was a 20-year partner of Jones, Hurley & Hand, P.A.  Before joining a law firm, Ms. Hewitt was in-house counsel for the Walt Disney Company; before Disney, she was Counsel to the Orange County Sheriff’s Office and an Assistant State Attorney.  Her practice experience included over 120 jury trials, and countless administrative hearings and appeals in the areas of Insurance Defense, Employment and Labor Law, and Workers’ Compensation.

Bryan Barnhart is owner/operator of Infiltration Labs, which specializes in forensic investigations, penetration testing, and education services. He is a former Cyber Crimes Investigator, Police Detective and SWAT Operator/Instructor. Bryan is a former Network Intrusion Incident Responder and Digital Evidence Forensic Examiner with the U.S. Secret Service Electronic Crimes Task Force. He serves as a Network Intrusion response instructor to the U.S. Secret Service.

Jennifer Kuyrkendall Griffin is the General Magistrate for the Third Judicial Circuit in North Central Florida and presides over probate, guardianship, domestic relations and foreclosure matters. She is a former chair of the Solo & Small Firm Section. Jennifer’s past Bar experience includes service as President of the Third Judicial Circuit Bar Association and on various committees of The Florida Bar Family Law Section. As the Third Judicial Circuit Young Lawyer’s Board of Governor’s Representative, she oversaw the development and launch of the YLD’s  “Mentoring With the Masters” video program. Jennifer also is the author of “Deadly Escape,” a crime thriller novel that for several semesters has been used as a course textbook for Stetson Law School’s Criminal Procedure class.

Tuesday, Nov. 17 live GoToWebinar by Tim Chinaris. Even the most ethical lawyer faces challenges presented by today’s technology.  Former Bar Ethics Director, Dean Tim Chinaris, will outline several areas in this presentation in which an otherwise ethical lawyer could unknowingly cross the line and find himself or herself in ethical problems.  Ways to avoid these “technology traps” will be addressed. Course 4079. Approved for 1.0 General CLE credit, all of which may be applied to Ethics, and 1.0 Technology CLE credit. Section members register for only $50. REGISTER

Tim Chinaris is Associate Dean for Information Services and Professor of Law at Belmont University College of Law in Nashville, Tennessee, where he teaches courses in legal ethics, torts, insurance law, and other subjects.  Professor Chinaris was Ethics Director of The Florida Bar from 1989-1997, where he ran the popular “ethics hotline” service that answers more than 25,000 calls annually from bar members.

Free Wednesday Wisdom CLE for Solo & Small Firm Section members.* Nov. 18 live Zoom webinar presented by Lee “Pete” Muschott. “Essentials of Sovereign Immunity Litigation Under §768.28” will provide the foundation for prosecuting claims against governmental entities or defending those entities against claims for negligence. Course number 4250. CLE credit approval pending. *Registration will be approved when section membership is confirmed. REGISTER

Dec. 2 Wednesday Wisdom free CLE on Zoom for Solo & Small Firm Section members.* Join attorney Joshua Hertz and business development and law firm coach Paula Black for an informative Wednesday Wisdom about the different ways to ethically generate passive income. As a solo or small-firm attorney, we know all too well that there are only so many hours in a day and adding one more thing to our to-do list is unthinkable. But what if that one thing could be revenue-generating to help you through the times when business is slow? Such as serving as coverage counsel or signing up for conflict cases. Join us for a lively discussion about ethically supplementing your income. Course number 4251. 1.0 General CLE credit, all of which may be applied toward Ethics. *Registration will be approved when section membership is confirmed. REGISTER

• Joshua J. Hertz is solo at The Law Offices of Joshua J. Hertz, P.A.  He began his legal career clerking for his brother law firm Eric Hertz P.C., in Atlanta in the late 90s.  He assisted with many personal injury trials in which some have reached record-breaking verdicts in the state.  After graduating from law school he opened his own law firm concentrating in personal injury law in 2001.
• Paula Black is one of the leading business development coaches for lawyers. She regularly shows her clients how to attract more clients and grow their businesses while still having the personal life they really want. Black’s most gratifying work is one-on-one coaching where she can witness the growth and change that individuals experience with her guidance. She was voted one of the Top Legal Business Development Coaches and is on Forbes Coaching Council. She is an award-winning and bestselling author of The Little Black Book series and has published her fifth book, A Lawyer’s Guide to Creating a Life Not Just A Living, available on Amazon.