Tuesday, February 16, 2021, live GoTo Webinar. Presented by Nicole (Niki) Black, Attorney with MyCase, Rochester, NY. Moderator, Larry Stein. Course number 4277. Approved for 1.0 General; 1.0 Technology CLE credits. Section members register for only $50. REGISTER

Artificial intelligence (AI) for law firms is a hot topic these days, and for good reason: AI has the potential to save lawyers time and money, as does using automation and technology tools. Nicole (Niki) Black, “Legal Technology Evangelist” from My Case will explain how AI technologies hold the promise of automating the mundane aspects of practicing law, allowing lawyers to focus on more interesting, high-level analytical tasks. However, AI software is still in its infancy and has a way to go before it becomes both useful and affordable for solo and small firm attorneys. The good news is that you don’t need AI software to get started with automating your solo or smaller firm law practice. There are a host of tools already in existence that will automate your law firm’s processes. In this talk, you’ll learn about technologies that will help you streamline your law firm, whether you’re looking to automate document assembly, billing and invoicing processes, or case to-dos and deadlines.

Nicole Black is a Rochester, New York attorney, author, journalist, and the Legal Technology Evangelist at MyCase, legal practice management software. She is the nationally-recognized author of “Cloud Computing for Lawyers” (2012) and co-authors “Social Media for Lawyers: The Next Frontier” (2010), both published by the American Bar Association. She also co-authors “Criminal Law in New York,” a Thomson Reuters treatise. She writes regular columns for Above the Law, ABA Journal, and The Daily Record, has authored hundreds of articles for other publications, and regularly speaks at conferences regarding the intersection of law and emerging technologies. She is an ABA Legal Rebel, and is listed on the Fastcase 50 and ABA LTRC Women in Legal Tech. She can be contacted at niki.black@mycase.com.

Tuesday, March 16, 2021, live GoToWebinar. Presented by Renee Thompson and Liz McCausland.

“Increase Your Law Firm Productivity and Efficiency Using Apps” will highlight various applications that attorneys can use in their professional lives to make their practices more efficient and productive. Course number 4556. Approved for 1.0 General; 1.0 Technology CLE credit. REGISTER

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.

April 20, 12 – 1 PM Live GoToWebinar presented by Melanie Griffin, Of Counsel attorney at Shumaker, Loop & Kendrick, LLP, Tampa, and Senior Advisor, Business-to-Business Relationships of Shumaker Advisors Florida. Time Management Strategies & Life Hacks for the Productive, Professional Lawyer. Moderator:  Jennifer Kuyrkendall Griffin. Live InReach webinar. Course number 4278. 1.0 General; 1.0 General CLE, all of which may be applied toward Professionalism. REGISTER

Time. It is something we all want more of. Yet, no matter how hard we wish, there are only 24 hours in each day. During this virtual webinar, Melanie S. Griffin will help you stretch these 24 hours as far as possible. Together, we will develop a personal strategy that incorporates time management skills and other productive habits to become more effective, efficient, professional and happy lawyers who best serve ourselves, our clients and employers/employees, and the legal profession and justice system as a whole.

Melanie S. Griffin, Esq. is a triple-graduate of The Florida State University (Business Finance, 2003; MBA, 2006; JD, 2006). Her entrepreneurial skills were honed for thirteen years at a prominent Florida corporate law firm where she served as a law clerk and then attorney from 2006-19, the last five years of which she was an Equity Shareholder and the Tampa Office Managing Partner. In 2019, Melanie joined Shumaker, Loop & Kendrick, LLP, an Am Law 200 firm that is the largest law firm in Tampa Bay, Of Counsel and Shumaker Advisors as Senior Advisor, Business-to-Business Relationships.

During her legal career, Melanie has served as the 2011-12 President of the Central Florida Association for Women Lawyers and 2013-14 President of The Florida Bar Young Lawyers Division. In 2021-22, she will serve as President of the Hillsborough Association for Women Lawyers.

Melanie has been recognized as Florida’s Most Productive Young Lawyer (2009), FAWL Leader in the Law (2010), OBJ 40 Under 40 (2011), Super Lawyers Rising Star (Business Litigation 2010-20), Florida Trend Legal Elite (Up & Comer 2010-14, Commercial Litigation 2014-18), TBBJ BusinessWoman of the Year Legal Services Finalist (2016), FSU Notable Nole (2016), Tampa Bay Metro Inspiring Woman in Business (2016-17), FSU College of Business Recent Alumni Achievement Award (2017), and Best Lawyers in America (Commercial Litigation 2017-20). In 2019, Melanie assisted with the launch of Nora Riva Bergman’s book 50 Lessons for Women Lawyers from Women Lawyers at the New York City Bar Association. Her Lesson, Dream Beyond Perfection!, is published as Lesson #20.

Beyond her legal career, in 2017, Melanie created Spread Your Sunshine, her then passion project committed to empowering others with the confidence to break the glass ceiling and achieve their dreams. After two years of experiencing the excitement over and need for the #ShineItForward™ movement, Melanie is dedicated to intentionally focusing on the inspiration of joy in and encouragement of others.

Melanie’s success shining others through the glass ceiling to their most audacious dreams was celebrated through her receipt of the TBBJ BusinessWoman of the Year Angie Joseph Excellence in Mentorship Award (2016), GSWCF Woman of Promise Award (2017), FSU Inspire Award (2017), Florida Bar YLD Outstanding Woman Lawyer of Achievement Award (2018), KNOW Tampa Feature (2018), The Best of KNOW Feature (2019), Florida Bar SSFS Mentor of the Year Award (2019), Florida State University College of Law Alumni Association Service Award (2020), and KNOW Tampa Contributor Feature (2020).

Melanie is happiest when she is building up all those around her, including her husband Mike, son Maverick, and Golden Lab Molly.

May 11, 12 – 1 PM Live GotoWebinar presented by Frank Ramos, Managing Partner, Clarke Silverglate, P.A. of Miami. In “Virtual Business Development – Developing Relationships, On and Offline,” Frank will discuss how attorneys can maximize online platforms for business development and use relationships created online into in person professional relationships. Moderator:  Scott Merl. Course number 4502. Approved for 1.0 General; 1.0 Technology CLE credit. REGISTER

Frank is the Managing Partner of Clarke Silverglate, where he practices in the areas of commercial litigation, drug and medical device, products liability and catastrophic personal injury.  He is AV rated by Martindale-Hubbell and is listed in Best Lawyers in America for his defense work in product liability matters.  Frank has been with Clarke Silverglate for virtually his entire career.  He has tried to verdict personal injury, medical malpractice, product liability, and inverse condemnation cases.  As a certified mediator, Frank has resolved numerous matters through alternative dispute resolution.

Frank is an ambassador for the Firm’s mission of leadership and service.  He has been President of the Florida Defense Lawyers Association and the 11^th Judicial Historical Society and has served on the boards of the Defense Research Institute, Florida International University’s Alumni Association, Florida International University’s Honors College, Parent to Parent of Miami, Miami-Dade Defense Bar Association, Legal Services of Greater Miami, and Florida Christian School.  He serves as a mentor to countless young lawyers and law students through his publications, social media posts, presentations, webinars, and his “coffee chats.”  Frank has written 15 books for lawyers, edited five books for lawyers,  and has written over 400 articles for lawyers and business professionals.

Franks’s dedication to young lawyers is exemplified through his development of a Deposition Boot Camp and Art of Marketing Program for the Federation of Defense & Corporate Counsel, an invitation-only defense organization that handpicked Frank for membership just eight years into his practice.  Frank’s daily practice pointers and business tips on LinkedIn has almost 35,000 followers.

In his spare time, Frank enjoys writing, reading science fiction, and listening to his two sons, David and Michael, perform classical and jazz music.

June 10, 7:55 AM – 4:25 PM. Statutory updates in eight key areas of Florida law:  Business; Employment; Bankruptcy; Elder; Estate Planning; Criminal; Family and Construction. Approved for 8.0 General CLE credits and the following board certification credits:  1.0 Juvenile Law; 2.0 Business Litigation; 1.0 Civil Trial; 1 Construction Law; 1.0 Criminal Appellate; 1.0 Criminal Trial; 1.0 Elder Law; 1.0 Labor and Employment; 1.0 Wills,Trusts, & Estates; 0.5 Workers Compensation. Course number 4380. REGISTER

7:55 AM – 8:00 AM
Opening Remarks
Peggy Hoyt, Program Chair

8:00 AM – 8:50 AM
Business Law Update
Clay Roesch, Orlando

8:50 AM – 9:40 AM
Employment Law Update
Kevin Johnson, Tampa

9:40 AM – 10:30 AM
Bankruptcy
Kristina Feher, St. Petersburg

10:30 AM – 10:45 AM
Break

10:45 AM – 11:35 AM
Elder Law
Peggy Hoyt, Oviedo
Alex Douglas, Orlando

11:35 AM – 12:20 PM
Estate Planning
Peggy Hoyt, Oviedo
Alex Douglas, Orlando

12:20 PM – 1:45 PM
Lunch

1:45 PM – 2:35 PM
Criminal Law
Brice Aikens, Orlando

2:35 PM – 3:25 PM
Personal Injury Law Update
James Gordon, Oviedo

3:25 PM – 3:35 PM
Break

3:35 PM – 4:25 PM
Construction Law
Patrick Neale, Naples

Live GoToWebinar presented by Kristin Tyler of LAWCLERK™. Course number 5104. Approved for 1.0 General CLE credit, all of which may be applied toward Ethics. Section members register for only $50. REGISTER

Want to grow your firm? Historically, you could charge more or hire. But what if there was a third way? Technology facilitates access to high-quality legal expertise at a surprisingly reasonable cost. Using freelance and contract legal help, you can do more work, grow your firm, and help more clients. But, as is the case with everything for a lawyer, it’s important to be mindful of the business and, of course, the ethical implications of working with freelance attorneys.

This session is about getting out of your head long enough to stop thinking and start embracing what technology and new billing models have to offer before you show up as a T-Rex in the years ahead.

This course offers an informative, frank, and even fun discussion about how to apply the freelance legal ecosystem to up-level your legal practice.  It will explore the business and ethical groundwork to help growth-driven attorneys understand how they can use freelance legal help to achieve their law firm business goals.

Kristin Tyler is Co-Founder of LAWCLERK, where attorneys go to hire freelance lawyers.  She is also a trusts and estates lawyer, busy mom and firm believer that the practice of law can be rewarding despite its daily demands.

Joint CLE program by The Florida Bar Alternative Dispute Resolution and Solo & Small Firm sections.

Live GoToWebinar presented by Christina Magee and Glenn Waldman, ADR Section members. Moderated by Jake Schickel, ADR and SSF Section member. Course number 5227. Approved for 1.0 General CLE credit, 0.5 of which may be applied toward Ethics. Section members register for only $45. Available for purchase through Florida Bar InReach.

Looking for a way to speed up your case even as post-COVID court dockets present obstacles to resolution?  Is your case bogged down as court dockets are too big to advance?  Are your motions and litigation strategies delayed or ineffective due to competition for the court’s time with unprecedented and unresolved civil matters and hearings in only virtual formats?  The Alternative Dispute Resolution and Solo & Small Firm Sections invite you to spend an hour to learn from an expert-moderated panel including a mediator and arbitrator about inventive ways arbitration and mediation are being used to move cases forward even in post-pandemic times.

Topics covered will include:

1. When is the best time to invoke mediation or arbitration in a case that is not progressing?
2. Should you arbitrate or mediate discovery disputes – what are the strategic advantages to each approach?
3. Are there ethical issues with the order of the selection of processes?
4. Are ethical issues involved if you mediate to a predetermined set of outcomes based on a court’s dispositive ruling on a pending motion?
5. Can you utilize “Baseball” arbitration – where the parties provide the arbitrator with a limited number of outcomes?

Christina Magee, Esq. of Satellite Beach is a mediator and arbitrator with a 100% neutral-oriented practice.  She is a public arbitrator on the FINRA panel.  She is a former Chair of The Florida Bar ADR Section, former Chair of The Florida Bar Small Claims Rules Committee, a Florida Supreme Court Certified Mediator for Circuit Civil, Appellate and County, and is a designated Primary Trainer for Circuit Civil.  She has been practicing law for more than 30 years.

Photo by Chris Salata/CAPEHART
Taken on Tuesday, November 3, 2020.
Copyright Capehart Photography 2020

Glenn J. Waldman, Esq. of Fort Lauderdale has been practicing law primarily in Florida’s state and federal courts (including appellate courts) for nearly four decades.

Glenn holds the maximum rating “AV” (pre-eminent) by the Martindale-Hubbell® Law Directory and is similarly rated the maximum 10.0 (“Superb”) by the AVVO ratings guide.

In addition to his complex commercial litigation practice, Glenn is a long-standing certified mediator (state and federal court) and arbitrator (certified by the American Arbitration Association, American Health Lawyers Association, AIDA Reinsurance and Insurance Arbitration Society, International Institute for Conflict Prevention & Resolution, and the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority).

He is a Member of the Executive Council of The Alternative Dispute Resolution Section of The Florida Bar.

He devotes a substantial amount of his practice to serve as a Mediator and Arbitrator in a broad range of commercial disputes, including general contract and business matters, large payer/provider health care disputes, intellectual property claims, shareholder and employment disputes (including restrictive covenants), real estate and construction, and probate and estate disputes.

Glenn also serves as an expert witness on issues concerning the standard of care for attorneys in Florida in matters of professional liability.

Jake Schickel’s decorated career could be considered the benchmark for success in the legal community. In addition to multiple professional leadership positions, he has been highly active in supporting legal professionalism and the cause of justice. He has been named a Florida Super Lawyer every year since the program’s inception and was honored by The Florida Bar in 2006 with the Justice Harry Lee Anstead Board-Certified Lawyer of the Year. In 2017, the E. Robert Williams American Inn of Court even named their chapter’s professionalism award in his honor.

Mr. Jake Schickel’s passion for justice is matched only by his long-term commitment to his community. He has served the Jacksonville community on several executive, strategic, economic and planning committees, including leadership positions with nonprofit and civic organizations. Prior to becoming a founding partner of Coker Law, Mr. Jake Schickel worked as an Assistant State Attorney and Chief Assistant Attorney for the 4^th Judicial Circuit.

Jake can be reached at his email address: jjs@cokerlaw.com.

September 21 Live GoToWebinar presented by Mindi Wells of Wells Law in Columbus, Ohio, and moderated by Paige Greenlee of Greenlee Law in Tampa. Course number 5109. Approved for 1.0 General CLE credit. Section members register for only $50. REGISTER

Many law firms, more especially solo and smaller firms, do not have a succession plan in place for the continued operation or wind-down of their law firms. Lack of planning for what happens next—whether the change is from the loss of a partner, sale by founding attorneys, retirement or other unanticipated events—can throw a firm, its clients, employees, and business colleagues into a nosedive.  Join us for this workshop on the fundamentals of succession planning for law firms of all sizes.

In this session, you will learn:

• Why you need to start planning for your exit now—even if it is years away
• What to consider in your succession plan
• How to get started now
• Who you need to get involved

Mindi Wells is the Founder and Managing Attorney of Wells Law, a boutique firm offering legal counsel, investigations, and training to businesses.  An attorney for over two decades, Mindi comes from a family of small business owners and spent much of her career on the business side of organizations. Her commitment to assisting growing businesses in proactively addressing workplace legal issues led her to develop a unique concierge legal service package that includes “house calls” to the C-suite.  Mindi’s clients appreciate her practical approach in simplifying legal complexities developed from years as a business professional herself.  Her no-nonsense style and humorous stories come from over 20 years’ experience in human resources, financial and organizational leadership, operations management, and higher education. Mindi splits her time between Columbus, Ohio, and Sarasota, Florida and serves clients throughout both states.

Live GoToWebinar presented by the Chair of the Cannabis & Controlled Substances Group for Lowndes Law, Tara Tedrow, will focus on the quickly evolving legal and ethical issues in Florida with representing medical marijuana and/or hemp growers, distributors and sellers. Tara also teaches “Marijuana Law and Policy” as an Adjunct Professor at the University of Florida Levin College of Law. General Magistrate Jennifer Kuyrkendall Griffin will moderate. Course number 5309. Approved for 1.0 General; 1.0 Ethics CLE credit. Section members register for only $50. REGISTER

Tara Tedrow is a shareholder at Lowndes Law and the Chair of the Cannabis & Controlled Substances Group.  In addition to working with clients statewide on land use, zoning and development issues, Tara handles complex regulated industries such as alcoholic beverage and marijuana and hemp licensing.  Tara is a regular presenter and speaker at industry seminars and conferences and advises a variety of clients on the impacts of cannabis regulations.  Tara is also an adjunct professor at the University of Florida Levin College of Law, where she was the first to teach a course on Marijuana Law and Policy and continues to teach today. Tara is the only person in the state to be appointed by the Department of Agriculture & Consumer Services to serve on both the Industrial Hemp Advisory Board the state Hemp Advisory Committee, which she chairs. Tara serves on many community and philanthropic boards, and is most proud of founding an educational non-profit called the Florida Debate Initiative, where she helps establish competitive speech and debate programs statewide.