News and Events

–Legislature–

JOHNSON: REFORMS NEEDED IN FUNDING COURT SYSTEM– Apalachicola Times, column, http://www.apalachtimes.com, March 31, 2011.
The column by Franklin County Clerk of Court Marcia Johnson states: ” Two years ago, our lawmakers changed the way the courts are funded by creating the State Courts Revenue Trust Fund, which is filled by court filing fees. The majority of the state courts’ total budget, including payroll and operating expenses of the entire judicial branch, depends on the trust fund, with much of the trust fund money projected to come from real estate and mortgage foreclosure filing fees this year. The problem now is that foreclosure filings have fallen, which has lead to the current deficit. . . . Clerks of Court saw a similar decline in revenue. . . . The budget crisis in Florida requires decisive action, and I urge the Governor and our legislators to fix the way the state is paying for the court system, because without proper funding to operate, we may be at risk of significantly affecting swift access to justice.”

DILLON INCHES CLOSER TO COMPENSATION– Florida Today, http://www.floridatoday.com, March 31, 2011.
William Dillon is one step closer to being compensated for 27 years spent in prison. The Florida Senate Rules Committee this week unanimously approved a special claims bill sponsored by Senate President Mike Haridopolos, R-Merritt Island, that would pay Dillon for wrongful incarceration. Dillon was sentenced to life for the 1981 murder of James Dvorak. The state dropped all charges and he was released in 2008, when DNA evidence proved he did not wear the shirt that prosecutors claimed the killer must have worn. The bill can now be voted upon on the Senate floor. A companion bill, sponsored by state Rep. Steve Crisafulli, R-Merritt Island, has yet to get through committee. The bill, if passed, would pay Dillon $810,000 for wrongful incarceration.

–Judiciary–

STATE COURTS FUNDED THROUGH APRIL– Jacksonville Daily Record, http://www.jaxdailyrecord.com, March 30, 2011.
Tuesday [March 29] appeared to be a day like any other at the Duval County Courthouse as clerks served customers and judges presided over cases. The only difference was the state court system has run out of money. If not for Gov. Rick Scott approving an emergency appropriation of $14 million March 22, courts would not be able to meet obligations for payroll and operating expenses. The $14 million appropriation includes $12 million from a temporary transfer from Mediation Arbitration Trust Fund Unobligated Cash to the State Courts Revenue Trust Fund and $2 million from a temporary transfer from the Court Education Trust. As March comes to a close, Florida Supreme Court Justice Charles Canady is working to avoid a fiscal 2010-11 deficit of just over $72 million. The courts’ budget veered into the red because projected foreclosure filing fee revenues did not meet expectations, Canady stated in a letter to Scott.

PUBLIC DEFENDER PITCHES SPECIAL COURT IN JACKSONVILLE AREA FOR VETERANS– The Florida Times-Union, http://www.jacksonville.com, March 31, 2011.
Public Defender Matt Shirk is stumping for a specialized court system in the Jacksonville area to care for military veterans who return home with problems that often end up putting them on the wrong side of the law. Veterans treatment courts, which aim to get veterans counseling and treatment to avoid jail time, are a relatively new phenomenon sprouting up nationally since 2008 when a judge in Buffalo, N.Y., was credited with starting the first one. Although some key stakeholders like the idea in principle, Shirk has no statistics to show how many veterans are going to jail in the 4th Circuit, which is made up of Duval, Clay and Nassau counties. National data is tough to come by, too. That’s left some who have heard Shirk’s sales pitch with questions about cost and whether the service would be duplicative of already-existent drug and mental health courts when the state court budget is $72.3 million in the red and facing cutbacks.

–Legal Profession–

WEB ATTACKS CAN DIMINISH YOUR GOOD NAME, BUT SOMETHING CAN BE DONE– ABA Journal, http://www.abajournal.com, April 1, 2011.
As important as it is, no one controls one’s own reputation. Reputations are shared opinions about how one might behave based on the observation, gossip and hearsay of others. In professions that provide a service, like law, reputation is nearly all those some businesses have to sell. The Internet offers the potential for making more accurate reputational assessments by making more information available, but it also leaves the ones assessed with less control. Facts and opinions, valid or vicious, are available to millions of people.

–Civil Justice Issues–

DON’T HIDE GOVERNMENT ACTS: BILLS WOULD REMOVE PUBLIC NOTICE FROM NEWSPAPERS– The Palm Beach Post, editorial, http://www.palmbeachpost.com, March 31, 2011. [Also: KEEP PUBLIC NOTICES PUBLIC-- Sarasota Herald-Tribune, editorial, http://www.heraldtribune.com, March 31, 2011; DEFEND TRANSPARENCY: LEGAL NOTICES NEED TO BE PUBLISHED-- Orlando Sentinel, editorial, http://www.orlandosentinel.com, March 31, 2011].
The Palm Beach Post editorial states: “. . . A committee is scheduled today to discuss Senate Bill 7204, which is similar to House Bill 89, that would allow governmental entities in Florida to stop publishing notice of their actions in local newspapers. Notices instead could be published on government-run websites. If those bills become law, it is certain that far fewer people would have access to information about what their government officials are up to. And this would be happening at a time when governments need more scrutiny, not less.”

–Criminal Justice Issues–

STATE ATTORNEY’S OFFICE FILES TO APPEAL WILLIAMS CONVICTION– The Bradenton Herald, http://www.bradenton.com, March 31, 2011. [Also: OVERTURNED RAPE CONVICTION WON'T KEEP MAN OUT OF PRISON-- Sarasota Herald-Tribune, http://www.heraldtribune.com, March 31, 2011].
From The Bradenton Herald: The state attorney’s office filed a motion Wednesday [March 30] to appeal the overturned rape conviction and life sentence of Derrick Williams. The 47-year-old Palmetto man was brought to court in 1992 on charges he abducted a and raped 25-year-old Palmetto woman. He has maintained his innocence ever since. Circuit Judge Marc Gilner in his order released Tuesday [March 29], listed his reasoning for his decision on the strength of new DNA evidence that excluded Williams from a key piece of evidence. Additionally, Williams’ due process rights had been violated because the Manatee County Sheriff’s Office had destroyed evidence in the case — evidence that might have cleared Williams in the case, the order said. However, prosecutors claim the newly found DNA evidence doesn’t dismiss Williams as a suspect, according to court papers.

[Revised:
07-01-2005
]

News and Events

–Legislature–

RELIABLE COURT FUNDING ESSENTIAL TO JUSTICE– Daytona Beach News-Journal, editorial, http://www.news-journalonline.com, March 30, 2011.
The editorial states: “The state court system is a victim of the law of unintended consequences. In 2009, the Florida Legislature passed a law tying state court funding to civil filing fees. . . . Foreclosures were skyrocketing, and legislators figured it was only fair that users pay for services. Lawmakers saw dollar signs and a way to unburden the state general fund and to fund the overall court system. . . But the Legislature made court-system funding too dependent on these fees. Two years later, court revenues across the Sunshine State have fallen through the floor as the number of foreclosure filings has fallen. . . . Lawmakers should stop funding the civil justice system so heavily through the new formula and go back to the old system. The Legislature should also quash talk of further cuts. . . . Lawmakers’ expectation that filing fees would float most of the system forever was myopic, like many decisions made during the housing-based recession. We urge lawmakers to consider a steady, reliable funding method that can also reflect an increase in activity caused by a new wave of foreclosures or civil actions.”

–Judiciary–

JACKSONVILLE JUDGE MAY SEEK OPINION IN DEATH SENTENCE SNAG– The Florida Times-Union, http://www.jacksonville.com, March 30, 2011.
Jacksonville Senior Judge Michael Weatherby said Tuesday [March 29] he was stumped over what to do about a murder conviction left hanging without a sentence when the trial judge died unexpectedly this month. Weatherby said he may need an opinion from the state appellate courts to determine how to sentence Deangelo Thomas. Thomas was found guilty of first degree murder in the April 2010 shooting death of Navy Chief Petty Officer David Gilbert. Tuesday’s hearing sketched out the uncharted territory Weatherby finds himself in at a time prosecutors want to override a jury’s life sentence recommendation so that Thomas is executed. Circuit Judge Jeff Morrow died of an apparent heart attack before he could sentence Thomas. One of the biggest questions facing Weatherby is whether he should impanel another jury for a new sentencing hearing. Doing so, he said, would lead to a likely defense appeal, just as upholding the life sentence recommendation could lead to an appeal from the prosecution.

JUDGE PIGGOTTE’S RETIREMENT ANNOUNCED– Daytona Beach News-Journal, http://www.news-journalonline.com, March 30, 2011. [Also: REPLACEMENT SOUGHT FOR RETIRING JUDGE-- St. Augustine Record, http://staugustine.com, March 30, 2011].
Longtime Seventh Circuit Judge Julianne Piggotte will retire in June, court officials announced Tuesday [March 29]. Her retirement will create a vacancy that will be filled by an appointment from Gov. Rick Scott.  Piggotte, who has been a judge since 1990, hears family cases at the Volusia County Courthouse Annex in Daytona Beach. She served as chief judge of the circuit from 2003 to 2005. The deadline for applications is 4 p.m. on April 21. [news release]

HILLSBOROUGH COURTROOM TURNS INTO CLASSROOM FOR VISITING RUSSIAN JUDGES– St. Petersburg Times, http://www.tampabay.com, March 30, 2011.
In his 31 years, Cotrell Farrington has been arrested 16 times, accused of everything from cocaine possession to aggravated assault. However, this is the first time he has faced serious prison time — from 10 years to life — for armed robbery. Also different this time: he has faced not just an American judge, but three stern-looking judges from St. Petersburg, Russia. None spoke English, but the Russian judges listened to the tail end of Farrington’s jury trial at the Hillsborough County Courthouse on Tuesday [March 29] in whispered Russian through translation ear pieces. Farrington’s trial was a bit of a classroom for the three Russian judges and two law academics who came to try to understand how judges in America do it.

–Lawyer Ethics/Legal Discipline–

JUDGE SAYS DAVID J. STERN CAN’T JUST DROP FORECLOSURE CASES– Daily Business Review, http://www.dailybusinessreview.com, March 30, 2011.
Palm Beach Circuit Chief Judge Peter Blanc has advised foreclosure attorney David J. Stern that he gave improper notice to withdraw from his firm’s cases and will consider dismissals as a last-ditch solution if no one picks up cases for mortgage lenders. In a March 4 letter to Blanc, Stern begged off taking any more action in his firm’s 100,000 pending Florida foreclosure cases after Thursday [March 31] and advised the judge “to treat the pending cases on the enclosed list as you deem appropriate.” Blanc responded Friday [March 25] by saying Stern wasn’t off the hook. The judge said Stern’s plan for dropping cases “is neither a recognized nor an approved method of termination” and could not be accepted. He left open the possibility of dismissal to rectify the bureaucratic tie-up caused by Stern’s mass withdrawals.

–Civil Justice Issues–

PUNISHMENT FROM PEERS: IN DUVAL’S TEEN COURT, A SECOND CHANCE– The Florida Times-Union, http://www.jacksonville.com, March 29, 2011.
They admit guilt before ever stepping into this court. While a second chance awaits young people who do, it’s not something that comes comfortably. Instead of judging by an adult in a black robe, peers mete out consequences to defendants in Duval County’s Teen Court. If teens stick to sentences, the crimes come off their records. Sentences for the mostly first-time misdemeanor offenders often include community service, essays, jail tours, counseling, service as a program juror, and public apologies to parents. Teen Court started in Jacksonville in 1998. Program director Lawrence Hills Jr. said he believes the program – one of about 50 in Florida – provides a lesson in civics that schools don’t teach.

LAWSUIT CHALLENGES SCOTT’S RULEMAKING MORATORIUM– Florida Capital News, http://www.floridacapitalnews.com, March 30, 2011.
A blind woman filed suit in the Florida Supreme Court Tuesday [March 29], challenging Gov. Rick Scott’s executive order that suspended rulemaking authority by state agencies under his direction. Scott’s office issued a terse reply, saying the order is intended to cut through red tape and avoid needless bureaucracy. The governor’s office said the edict is well within Scott’s legal authority. Rosalie Whiley alleged in petition that the Scott order created a government office, the Office of Fiscal Accountability and Regulatory Reform, and transferred rulemaking authority from departments under the governor to the new office. She said the Department of Children and Families was to have fixed its rules so her application for food stamps could be handled online, but the order stopped that from going forward. In the petition Whiley claims the governor’s executive order violates the Florida Constitution because the executive branch doesn’t have authority to make and change laws relating to agencies.

WALMART CASE MAY BE DECIDED ALONG HIGH COURT’S GENDER LINES– St. Petersburg Times, http://www.tampabay.com, March 30, 2011.
The article by The Los Angeles Times appeared in several daily newspapers. The Supreme Court justices, sharply divided along gender lines, appeared poised to reject a nationwide class-action lawsuit that accuses WalMart of sex discrimination after an argument over class actions became a debate over what constitutes sex discrimination in today’s workplace. The men and women in the black robes seemed to see the matter quite differently. For the first time in its history, the high court has three women on the bench, and Justices Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Sonia Sotomayor and Elena Kagan asserted that a corporate policy of letting store managers decide on promotions could result in discrimination against women. The statistics strongly suggest that is what occurred, they said. However, led by Justices Anthony M. Kennedy and Antonin Scalia, most of the six men on the court questioned how WalMart can be held liable for illegal sex bias, since its 3,400 store managers across the nation decide on who gets promoted and who receives pay raises.

PROPOSED SETTLEMENT WOULD FORCE BANKS TO ALLOW SHORT SALES FOR DELINQUENT HOMEOWNERS– Orlando Sentinel, http://www.orlandosentinel.com, March 30, 2011.
The article is by The Los Angeles Times. Major banks may be forced to let severely delinquent homeowners sell their houses for less than the loan amounts owed as part of a broad settlement of federal and state investigations into botched foreclosure paperwork, according to government officials involved in the negotiations. The requirement to allow so-called short sales would be in addition to forcing mortgage servicers to reduce the amount some homeowners owe on their loans, said two officials, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because negotiations are ongoing.

–Criminal Justice Issues–

DNA HELPS OVERTURN RAPE CONVICTION– Sarasota Herald-Tribune, http://www.heraldtribune.com, March 30, 2011. [Also: RULING COULD BRING FREEDOM FOR MAN CONVICTED OF RAPE-- The Tampa Tribune, http://www.tbo.com, March 30, 2011].
From the Sarasota Herald-Tribune: After 18 years of proclaiming his innocence, prison inmate Derrick Williams of Palmetto won a major legal battle this week when a judge threw out his conviction and life sentence, setting the stage for his possible release. Williams was tied to the 1992 rape through a gray T-shirt the attacker wore and then left with the victim. Circuit Judge Marc Gilner’s ruling late Monday granted Williams a new trial after the DNA evidence showed unknown other men wore the shirt — but not Williams. Prosecutors will now have to decide if they will retry the case, appeal Gilner’s ruling or drop the matter and let Williams leave prison as a free man. Williams’ attorneys at the Florida Innocence Project say they will file motions this week to have him released as soon as possible, no matter what prosecutors decide.

[Revised:
07-01-2005
]

News and Events

–Legislature–

CASH CRUNCH COULD MEAN COURTHOUSE CLOSURES– Florida Keys Keynoter, http://www.keysnet.com, March 26, 2011.
A statewide money squeeze on Florida’s court system extends into Monroe County, where island geography compounds the situation. Staff is spending money “on absolutely necessary items,” said Holly Elomina, trial court administrator for the 16th Judicial Circuit. “We’ve reduced travel but in a long county with three courthouses, staff has got to travel back and forth.” County Judge Wayne Miller, president of the County Court Judges Conference of Florida, said a patchwork of stopgap solutions may barely get the statewide system through the end of the budget year — unless the revenue situation worsens.  If that happens, Miller said, “The courts would have to start furloughing people, and at a certain point, we can’t function.”

LEGISLATIVE ROUNDUP: WHO’S THE BOSS?– The Ledger, column, http://www.theledger.com, March 26, 2011.
The column by Lloyd Dunkelberger of The Ledger’s Tallahassee Bureau states: “. . . [Tenth] Circuit Judge John Laurent of Bartow raised an interesting question this week as a House panel advanced a measure that would split the Florida Supreme Court into two new courts. He essentially asked: Who’s in charge? Laurent, who is chairman of the statewide trial court budget commission, said the question of having a clear leader for the court system is critical, citing the recent crisis when Chief Justice Charles Canady of Lakeland had to work with lawmakers and the governor to resolve a $70 million budget shortfall in the court system caused by a drop-off in foreclosure filing fees this year. A former state senator, Laurent said the current House proposal — which would divide the seven-member Supreme Court into two new five-member courts — does not appear to distinguish a top court between the two new judicial panels, with one handling criminal cases and the other civil litigation.”

WAGING WAR ON THE STATE COURTS– The Gainesville Sun, editorial, http://www.gainesville.com, March 26, 2011.
Similar versions of this editorial ran last week in the Sarasota Herald-Tribune and The Ledger. The editorial states: “The rule of law doesn’t exist unless there is an independent judiciary to help protect it. Florida politicians should remember this as they consider a host of Republican proposals aimed at overhauling the state’s appellate- and high-court system. . . . Florida’s court system never was and probably never will be perfect. But it is an essential check on the powers of the governor and the Legislature. Any attempt to weaken it should be met with extreme skepticism.”

LEGISLATURE LOOKS TO STRIP COURTS AMENDMENT AUTHORITY– WFSU, http://www.wfsu.edu, March 29, 2011.
The legislature is looking to reduce the Supreme Court’s influence when it comes to constitutional amendments. Lawmakers have been complaining for years that the courts have too much authority to remove constitutional amendment proposals the legislature placed on the ballot. House Speaker Dean Cannon, who’s pushing a proposal to split the Supreme Court in two, has said the judicial branch oversteps its authority when it removes these amendments. Cannon’s expressed goals are coming in a proposal by Sen. Miguel Diaz de la Portilla. During the Senate’s Rules Subcommittee Monday [March 28], he outlined the section dealing directly with the courts and constitutional amendments: “If the court finds the language defective and further appeals are declined, abandoned or exhausted, the attorney general shall promptly revise the defective language identified by the court. The Department of State should furnish a designating number and provide the revised language to the supervisors of elections for placement of the ballot. Finally, the bill states that a defect in the ballot title or summary language is not grounds to remove the proposed amendment from the ballot.”

–Judiciary–

JQC RECOMMENDS REPRIMAND FOR JUDGE DALE COHEN– Daily Business Review, http://www.dailybusinessreview.com, March 26, 2011.
 The state Judicial Qualifications Commission is recommending a public reprimand as punishment for 17th Circuit Judge Dale Cohen’s decision to hold evidentiary hearings on recusal motions when he should have dropped out automatically. The commission, which tried Cohen in Fort Lauderdale in January, submitted its findings late Thursday [March 24], suggesting to the Florida Supreme Court, which makes the final decision, that the judge receive a reprimand and pay court costs.

LONGTIME PROSECUTOR BECOMES VOLUSIA JUDGE– Daytona Beach News-Journal, http://www.news-journalonline.com, March 26, 2011.
Seventh Circuit Judge Leah Case took her oath of office Friday [March 25] in front of the many attorneys she worked with when she was a high-profile prosecutor. Former Gov. Charlie Crist appointed Case to an open judge’s seat in December, and she has been hearing dependency cases since then, but Friday’s investiture ceremony affirmed her transition from one side of the bench to the other. Before her appointment, Case helped prosecute and win convictions in several notable murder cases in Volusia County. She ended her 16-year career with the State Attorney’s Office as State Attorney R.J. Larizza’s deputy chief in Volusia County, overseeing Daytona Beach and DeLand.

FOURTH CIRCUIT JNC ACCEPTING APPLICATIONS– Jacksonville Daily Record, http://www.jaxdailyrecord.com, March 28, 2011.
The Fourth Circuit Judicial Nominating Commission has been asked to provide Gov. Rick Scott with nominees for the vacancy in the Fourth Circuit Court that resulted from the death of Judge Jefferson W. Morrow. Applicants must be able to fulfill the constitutional qualifications before assuming the office of circuit judge, which require the applicants to be members of The Florida Bar for the past five years; residents of Duval, Clay or Nassau counties; and registered voters in Florida. All applications must be delivered by 5 p.m. April 15. [see news release]

LEE COUNTY JUDGE, MAGISTRATE AMONG NOMINEES FOR CIRCUIT JUDGESHIP– Marco Island News, http://www.marconews.com, March 29, 2011.
Five names have been submitted to Gov. Rick Scott for a 20th circuit judgeship, the 20th Circuit Judicial Nominating Commission announced. The position will open June 30 once Circuit Judge Lynn Gerald Jr. retires after 22 years on the bench. The five nominees are Lee County Judge John Duryea; Lee County Magistrate Amy Hawthorne; Charlotte County Magistrate Lisa Porter; Punta Gorda family law attorney Jesus Hevia; and Fort Myers criminal defense attorney H. Andrew Swett.

–Lawyer Ethics/Legal Discipline–

FLORIDA BAR VS. TAMPA LAWYERS WINTERS AND YONKER NOW UP TO JUDGE– St. Petersburg Times, http://www.tampabay.com, March 29, 2011.
Did lies, stolen files and computer hacking 10 years ago give birth to a young law firm or are two high-profile Tampa lawyers, having built their business over the years, now the victims of overzealous regulators and a dishonest secretary? Those were the two contrary scenarios argued Monday [March 28] as Sixth Circuit Judge Walt Logan begins to ponder the legal fate of William Winters and Marc Yonker. The Florida Bar alleges that Winters and Yonker broke several laws and rules when they split in 2001 with Richard Mulholland, a pioneer in high-volume personal injury law. The bitter breakup that has played out for years in other courtrooms.

CHASE DEMANDS BEN-EZRA KATZ TURN OVER FORECLOSURE FILES– The Palm Beach Post, http://www.palmbeachpost.com, March 29, 2011.
Chase Home Finance has filed a federal lawsuit against its former legal counsel, Ben-Ezra Katz, accusing the firm of refusing to hand over foreclosure case files that contain over $400 million worth of original notes and mortgages “without which Chase will be unable to proceed with any of the pending cases.” In the 11-page lawsuit filed Friday [March 25] in federal court in Fort Lauderdale, Chase asked for a temporary restraining order and permanent injunction ordering the firm to return the files and pay Chase an unspecified amount of damages. “Ben-Ezra refuses to release the Chase Files because it claims that it is owed over $5 million in fees and costs,” according to the lawsuit. Although Chase disputes the amount it owes the firm, it has offered to post a $2.8 million bond as security. The Fort Lauderdale firm is one of eight firms being probed by the Florida Attorney General for its foreclosure practices and a Miami judge found the firm’s founding partner, Marc Ben-Ezra, in contempt of court for filing “sham” foreclosure documents.

–Civil Justice Issues–

NINTH CIRCUIT JUDGE GETS NEEDELMAN LAWSUIT– Florida Today, http://www.floridatoday.com, March 29, 2011.
A Ninth Circuit judge in Orange County has been assigned to handle the lawsuit challenging the outsourcing of Brevard Clerk of Court jobs by Mitch Needelman. Judges in the 18th Judicial Circuit in Brevard and Seminole counties recused themselves from the case earlier this month because many of them work closely with the Brevard clerk’s office. Circuit Judge Thomas Smith will now handle the case, after Monday’s [March 28] signed order from Charles Canady, the chief justice of the Florida Supreme Court. Thirty-nine of the outsourced employees filed the lawsuit March 11 challenging Needelman, the county clerk of court, a week after their jobs were transferred to an outside company.

–Criminal Justice Issues–

STATE SEEKS DEATH PENALTY IN BARAHONA’S ADOPTED GIRL’S MURDER– The Miami Herald, http://www.miamiherald.com, March 29, 2011.
Jorge and Carmen Barahona pleaded not guilty Monday [March 28] to charges they murdered and tortured their 10-year-old adopted daughter, as prosecutors announced they would seek the death penalty against the couple. A Miami-Dade grand jury last week indicted the two for first-degree murder, as well as a slew of aggravated child abuse and neglect charges. The decomposing corpse of their adopted daughter, Nubia, was discovered in a black trash bag in the back of Jorge Barahona’s pickup truck on Feb. 14 alongside Interstate 95. Jorge Barahona was passed out nearby, and her twin-brother, Victor, was inside the truck severely burned from chemicals. Neither Jorge and Carmen Barahona showed any reaction when Miami-Dade prosecutor Gail Levine announced the state would seek the death penalty.

[Revised:
07-01-2005
]

News and Events

–Legislature–

FLORIDA’S COURTS UNDER ATTACK– Tallahassee Democrat, column, http://www.tallahassee.com, March 27, 2011. [Also: PROPOSAL BY HOUSE REPUBLICANS TO REMAKE STATE COURTS NOTHING SHORT OF POWER GRAB-- Jupiter Courier, editorial, http://www.tcpalm.com, March 25, 2011; CLOBBERING THE COURTS-- Orlando Sentinel, editorial, http://www.orlandosentinel.com, March 27, 2011].
The column by Tallahassee Democrat Editorial Page Editor Mary Ann Lindley states: “While the chief justice of the Supreme Court was scrambling last week to locate emergency funds to keep the courts functioning through June, invoking furloughs and a hiring freeze, House Speaker Dean Cannon was pushing forward his agenda for a massive reformation of the entire judicial branch of government. . . . In January, speaking to The Florida Bar Board of Governors, Cannon warned of his intent, saying, ‘The government functions best when each branch is fully empowered and fully funded, and equipped to do its job and doesn’t try to do the job of the other branches.’ But the judiciary is by no means fully funded. The entire court system (67 county courts, 20 circuit courts, five district courts and the Supreme Court) is supported by 0.7 percent of the state budget and operates too much on fees.”

COURTS NEED FUNDING FIX– The Tampa Tribune, editorial, http://www.tbo.com, March 27, 2011. [Also: JUDGE: CUTS IN STAFF WOULD AFFECT SERVICES-- Crestview News Bulletin, http://www.crestviewbulletin.com, March 26, 2011].
The editorial states: “Florida’s court system is practically broke, and the Legislature is to blame. Two years ago, lawmakers hitched state court funding to civil filing fees and fines, but a steep and unforeseen drop in the number of mortgage foreclosure cases — the most common legal claims in the wake of the housing bust — has put the system in jeopardy. . . . A dysfunctional system plagued by furloughs or layoffs, a potential consequence of the budget shortfall, certainly won’t help Gov. Rick Scott recruit businesses to Florida or fulfill his promise to get Floridians back to work. It’s clear that funding the court system through mortgage foreclosure fees won’t work, and the Legislature is obliged to fix the way it finances the courts.”

JUDICIAL BONUS PROPOSAL OUT OF ORDER– St. Petersburg Times, editorial, http://www.tampabay.com, March 26, 2011. [Also: CASH IS POOR INCENTIVE FOR JUSTICE-- The Miami Herald, column, http://www.miamiherald.com, March 27, 2011].
The St. Petersburg Times editorial and column by Miami Herald columnist Fred Grimm both discuss a proposal by Senate Budget Chairman J.D. Alexander, R-Lake Wales, called the Judicial Caseload Incentive Plan, which has been criticized by legal professionals, other legislators and some members of the judiciary. The editorial states: “. . .The fundamental problem with performance-based pay for judges is that judges are not selling cars. They are dispensing justice, and their independence and judgment must not be tainted by bonus pay. The so-called Judicial Caseload Incentive Plan would set performance goals for reducing cases in the state’s courts. Circuits that meet these targets each quarter would qualify for bonuses for every judge.” The column states: “Judges, lawyers and prosecutors were incredulous. ‘They’ll turn us into hucksters,’ a Broward County judge complained to me Friday [March 25].”

OPINIONS DIFFER ON CHANGES IN DISCIPLINING JUDGES– The Palm Beach Post, http://www.palmbeachpost.com, March 28, 2011.
The article discusses the way cases against Florida judges are handled by Judicial Qualifications Commission. Of the myriad legislative measures under consideration that would drastically change the way the judiciary operates in Florida, the proposal to open the records of the Judicial Qualifications Commission is one of the few that enjoys bipartisan support. Top among lawmakers’ concerns is the JQC’s practice of meeting privately with bad judges and urging them to resign rather than filing charges against them that would become public. Attorney Miles McGrane, chairman of the 15-member commission, said it is an expedient and inexpensive way to rid the courts of judges who misuse their power. Lawmakers contend it is akin to giving a dishonorable discharge to people who don’t deserve it.

–Lawyer Ethics/Legal Discipline–

FLORIDA SETTLES WITH FORT LAUDERDALE FIRM OVER FORECLOSURES– Sun-Sentinel, http://www.sun-sentinel.com, March 26, 2011. [Also: FLORIDA LAWYER SETTLES STATE FORECLOSURE ALLEGATIONS-- The News-Press, http://www.news-press.com, March 26, 2011].
State regulators have reached their first settlement with one of the eight law firms being investigated for alleged improper and shoddy practices involving home repossessions for lenders. Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi on Friday [March 25] announced her office has reached an agreement with Fort Lauderdale attorney Marshall C. Watson and his law offices following a eight-month inquiry. The civil settlement calls for the firm, while not admitting any wrongdoing, to pay $2 million and imposes specific standards for foreclosures. Half of the $2 million fine will go to the Attorney General’s office. The other half will go to The Florida Bar Foundation for the Florida Attorney General Mortgage Foreclosure Grant Fund, which funds Legal Aid positions to help low-income families facing foreclosure.

ATTORNEY TODD DERATANY AGREES TO BOW OUT SECOND TIME– Florida Today, http://www.floridatoday.com, March 26, 2011.
Until a few months ago, Indialantic lawyer Todd Deratany was a constant presence at the courthouse in Viera, smart phone seemingly glued to his ear, as he scurried from courtroom to courtroom to argue on behalf of his clients. Then, Deratany all but vanished from the court scene. Turns out, whether his departure is voluntary or not, he’s likely not coming back to the practice of law any time soon. This week, for the second time since the late 1990s, The Florida Bar sought to take away Deratany’s law license. This time it is for 10 years, although the “consensual disbarment” still has to be approved by a judge appointed to the case and the Florida Supreme Court. The decision — meaning Deratany didn’t fight disbarment — came as the Bar was gearing up for an administrative trial next week against the 44-year-old lawyer, based on 10 different complaints ranging from failure to represent clients properly to attempted jury tampering.

–Criminal Justice Issues–

PROSECUTORS DROP CASE AGAINST EX-SPEAKER SANSOM– Crestview News Bulletin, http://www.crestviewnewsbulletin.com, March 26, 2011. [Also: STATE SURRENDERS ON PROSECUTION OF EX-HOUSE SPEAKER SANSOM-- Florida Today, http://www.floridatoday.com, March 26, 2011].
Prosecutors dropped corruption charges against former Florida House Speaker Ray Sansom on Friday [March 25] after the judge in his trial rejected a key witness.
Second Circuit Judge Terry Lewis ruled that prosecutors had not shown enough evidence that a conspiracy existed. His ruling came in response to a motion to introduce testimony by Bob Richburg, a former college president who had been charged in the case before agreeing to testify for the state. Without Richburg’s testimony, State Attorney Willie Meggs said he could not continue. The judge dropped the charges after Sansom and co-defendant Jay Odom each agreed to pay more than $100,000 in restitution. Charges were also dropped against Odom.

DEFENDANTS PUT DRUNKEN DRIVING TEST ON TRIAL– St. Petersburg Times, http://www.tampabay.com, March 27, 2011.
Laura Barfield spends a lot of time these days swinging around Florida in her state-issued Chevy to defend the technology that the state uses to catch drunken drivers. As the state’s chief defender of the breath-testing Intoxilyzer, her job is to assure everyone that the most challenged of all forensic tests is accurate and reliable. In recent weeks, she has been called to testify in Sarasota, Hillsborough and Port St. Lucie counties. In the weeks ahead, she has dates with courtrooms in Taylor, Lake, Leon, Pinellas and Escambia. It has gotten to the point where the state’s breath-testing machine is never not in litigation.

[Revised:
07-01-2005
]