Committees of The Florida Bar.

Advertising

The Standing Committee on Advertising is responsible for advising members of The Florida Bar on permissible advertising and marketing practices. The committee, which meets monthly, reviews appeals of opinions issued by staff counsel, offers guidance to staff in evaluating lawyer advertisements, makes recommendations regarding rule changes, and provides guidance to Florida Bar members concerning both the substantive and procedural requirements of the advertising rules.

The committee advises Bar members on the substance of the advertising rules through a variety of methods. An in-depth analysis of the filing requirements, substantive regulations, and committee interpretations is provided by the committee's Handbook on Lawyer Advertising and Solicitation (updated June 2002). The handbook is designed to provide a quick reference to filing and substantive guidelines through various checklists and examples, as well as more in-depth discussions of particular types of advertising regulations and recurring situations. The handbook is reviewed and updated by Bar staff with the input of the committee to provide an excellent up-to-date guide to Florida's lawyer advertising regulations. It also includes the latest changes to the advertising rules, set forth in the Supreme Court's Rules Regulating The Florida Bar-Amendments, 820 So. 2d 210 (Fla. 2002), and Amendments to Rules Regulating The Florida Bar-Advertising Rules, 762 So. 2d 392 (Fla. 1999).

The committee, through its staff, continues to publish a quarterly column in The Florida Bar News, entitled "Advertising Update." The column summarizes highlights of the committee's decisions at its monthly meetings and the Board of Governors' decisions regarding advertising issues. The committee's goal is to provide Bar members with as much information as possible to assist them in complying with the attorney advertising rules.

The committee has been active in assisting other Bar committees this year. Members of the Standing Committee on Advertising are working with the Professional Ethics Committee as participants in subcommittees dealing with issues affecting both legal ethics and lawyer advertising. The committee made recommendations to expand the category of exempt information in advertisements, which were adopted by the Supreme Court of Florida in Rules Regulating The Florida Bar-Amendments, 820 So. 2d 210 (Fla. 2002). The committee has recommended several changes to clarify the attorney advertising rules and to address restrictions on television and radio advertisements that were approved by the Board of Governors to be filed with the Supreme Court of Florida this year. The committee worked with the Bar's Disciplinary Procedures Committee to draft Standards for Imposing Lawyer Sanctions in Advertising and Solicitation Rule Violations, which were adopted by the Board of Governors in October 2002. The committee has also worked with the Bar's Long Range Planning Committee regarding planning for lawyer advertising issues in future years. The committee has served in an advisory capacity to the new statewide grievance committee on lawyer advertising, assisting the members of the new grievance committee in understanding the advertising rules and the advertising review process.

By far the most time-consuming task of the committee is reviewing advertisements filed by Bar members to determine whether they comply with the advertising rules. The committee reviews decisions of its staff regarding lawyer advertisements if the staff's interpretation of a particular rule or advertisement is appealed by an advertising attorney. Advertisers can appeal decisions of the committee to the Board of Governors if they wish to do so. The committee also provides guidance to its staff and advertisers, pursuant to requests for guidance, in order to foster compliance with the rules and permit advertisers to accomplish their legitimate advertising goals. The committee works hard to apply the advertising rules fairly to all types of advertisements and to balance the rights of advertisers with the needs and concerns of the public.

As in previous years, the committee has taken an active role in ensuring that lawyer advertising in Florida is filed with The Florida Bar and properly reviewed. An ongoing compliance program, headed by staff of the committee, reviews Yellow Pages and newspaper advertisements throughout the state to determine whether nonexempt advertisements have been filed and reviewed. Lawyers who have not filed their advertisements (and whose advertisements are not exempt from filing under the advertising rules) are requested to file their ads and to pay a $250 late filing fee approved by the Florida Supreme Court in 1999.

The committee is made up of nonlawyers as well as lawyers. We believe that this has contributed substantially to our work and our broad perspective on advertising and marketing. I would like to thank committee members, Michael Seminario, Adrienne Katz, John Remsen, Kimberly Sands, John Bales, and Kimberly Doyle for their tremendous contributions.

Finally, the committee thanks our board liaison, William H. "Dude" Phelan, Jr., who has been an active participant in our work this year, Legal Division Director John Anthony Boggs, and our hardworking staff headed by ethics counsel Elizabeth Tarbert. Without the participation and hard work of these individuals, the business of this committee could not be accomplished.

SHANE MUNOZ, Chair

Admiralty and Maritime Law Certification

There are currently 57 attorneys certified in the area of admiralty and maritime law. This year, three applicants were approved to sit for the admiralty and maritime law certification examination on March 7 in Tampa.

During the past year, the Admiralty and Maritime Law Certification Committee met in person on two occasions and had three conference calls. These meetings were to review and approve the applications and develop the examination.

The committee also reviewed admiralty and maritime law certification credit requests throughout the year. Over the past several years, the committee has received numerous requests for certification credits for papers written, courses given, and not previously approved courses attended. This year the committee focused on becoming more selective about which courses are approved for certification credit. To be considered for admiralty and maritime law certification credit, all requests must be submitted with the appropriate application form and must show coverage of substantive maritime issues supported by quality written materials. These include the course brochure including hours devoted to each topic, carefully prepared outlines and/or handouts, and any other books or materials that may accompany the course. Without this information, the committee cannot determine to what extent the course was beneficial to an experienced admiralty and maritime lawyer, and certification will probably not be given. If you are interested in becoming board certified in admiralty and maritime law, please contact The Florida Bar legal specialization and education department. The deadline to apply for the 2004 examination is August 31, 2003.

ALLEN K. VON SPIEGELFELD, Chair

Antitrust and Trade Regulation Certification

The Antitrust and Trade Regulation Certification Committee presented proposed amendments to the certification standards at the January BLSE meeting in Miami. The proposed amendments, which unanimously were approved both by the ATTR Certification Committee and the BLSE, both improve and modify existing standards as well as provide for a one-time window of opportunity for experienced practitioners to apply for certification without examination (but subject to all other standards). In particular, proposed additions to Rule 6-22.1 will provide better notice about the committee's expectations with regard to the high level of knowledge, experience, judgment, and professionalism applicants are expected to possess. Providing ample notice of these important factors will best guide the exercise of discretion in the event a denial of certification becomes necessary on any of the enumerated grounds.

Also, for the first time, the ATTR Certification Committee took the modest step to proselytize, by way of an article in the April issue of The Florida Bar Journal. Plans for the coming year include supporting our proposed amendments to the certification standards to ensure passage and smooth implementation. If approved as written, the committee anticipates gearing up for a significant influx of potential applicants, many of whom are among the most seasoned and respected members of the antitrust and trade regulation legal community in Florida.

STEPHEN E. NAGIN, Chair

Appellate Court Rules

The Appellate Court Rules Committee membership is a wonderful group of dedicated, hard-working attorneys and judges. The committee's exceptionally busy agenda illustrates tremendous efforts by the members in addressing the many issues that came before them this year.

One of the first tasks undertaken was an orientation for new members. With the implementation of term limits, about a third of the members appointed this year were new. Anticipating this change, the committee adopted new internal operating procedures last June, which now require a mandatory orientation for new members. The first orientation was held in September 2002 and received rave reviews. Barbara A. Eagan, orientation subcommittee chair, did a fantastic job of putting it together. The new members have hit the ground running, already making significant contributions.

Proposed rule amendments for the upcoming two-year cycle petition include:

* Amendments to Rule 9.020 to distinguish between rendition of trial and appellate orders;

* Amendment to Rule 9.220 to clarify the use of appendices in various appellate proceedings;

* Amendment to Rule 9.420 to require a certificate of service for pro se inmates and other pro se...