The Florida Bar sections and divisions.

• Position: Annual Reports

Administrative Law

This year, our section has worked hard to further the important goals of volunteerism and promoting meaningful access to administrative proceedings. There has been an explosion in need for volunteer legal help in the administrative arena, as yet another byproduct of the budget axe that has been so aggressively at work in Tallahassee over the last couple of years. Our section has worked hard to develop a pro bono program this year, and we have made great progress, thanks to the leadership of Andy Bertron, our section's immediate past chair who headed the committee shaping this important program.

The main focus of our pro bono program is to help persons with developmental disabilities who want to contest decisions by the Agency for Persons with Disabilities to deny or cut back Medicaid-funded services. Until a few years ago, these hearings were conducted informally before an agency hearing officer. The persons contesting the decisions were often represented by legal services attorneys. A First DCA decision changed the landscape by holding that these disputes should be sent to the Division of Administrative Hearings, where an independent administrative law judge conducts a formal evidentiary administrative hearing. Therefore, our section's initial involvement going back a few years was to help with training programs for legal services attorneys unfamiliar with the procedures of DOAH hearings.

The funding cutbacks for developmental disabilities in the last legislative session triggered an explosive growth in volume of these cases, outstripping the available resources of all legal service organizations combined. This gave rise to the second part of our volunteer program: coordinating with the legal services groups to provide a mechanism for administrative lawyers to volunteer for some of these cases.

To lay the foundation for this two-pronged approach, a free seminar was conducted in October at the FSU College of Law to address the substantive issues in APD proceedings. Coordinated by the legal services organizations with the expertise in these APD cases, the seminar was a great learning experience for those wanting to take on this volunteer challenge, but who are unfamiliar with the substantive law. Then in December, the section put on a second seminar, also free and also in space graciously made available by the FSU College of Law. This time, the focus was on procedure, a nuts-and-bolts training to handle an APD administrative hearing at DOAH. A complete set of materials from both seminars remains online at our section's Web site, along with a link for administrative lawyers wanting to volunteer for a case. The need is great, but we have laid the foundation this year with training materials, and are off to a good start by recruiting dozens of volunteers.

The section made good progress on several other ongoing projects, such as working with administrative law subcommittee of The Florida Bar's Appellate Rules Committee, to offer our suggestions and input in reviewing appellate rules of procedure that touch on administrative appeals. Our section's Appellate Rules Committee was chaired by Administrative Law Judge Linda Rigot, who coordinated the excellent work of committee members: Administrative Law Judge Kent Wetherell, Donna Blanton, Daniel Manry, and Administrative Law Judge Lisa Nelson. The committee helped to modernize the uniform citation rules to comport with the new reality of how administrative agency final orders are published and accessed and helped to refine other rules specific to administrative appeals, such as variations on the appellate record for different types of administrative appeals.

We held our always popular Pat Dore Administrative Law Conference, named after the late professor who was a scholar in Florida administrative law. The seminar was ultimately a standing-room only success, but as another sign of the economic times, we found ourselves for the first time having to affirmatively market the seminar to boost slow registration. This got our attention, and at our recent long-range planning retreat, we spent a good portion of our time discussing ways to better use technology to provide continuing education by means that greatly reduce the time and cost investments.

We are excited about the active involvement of our new Young Lawyers' Division liaison, Christine Davis, who will be working with us to encourage and facilitate the presentation of administrative law as a regular part of the YLD basic course offerings. I know the section members really enjoy participating in these basic seminars. We view it as a great opportunity to spark young lawyers' interest in our practice area, as well as to scout for young lawyers to mentor and groom for participation in section work. Our section has been fortunate with a stable and growing membership over the years, but we know there are many more who can become hooked, as we have, on the sophisticated-yet-comfortable, multi-faceted practice, cutting across a vast array of disciplines and areas, all under the umbrella of Florida administrative law.

ELIZABETH MCARTHUR, Chair

Business Law

The economic upheaval of the past year has left few individuals and businesses unscathed, and the Business Law Section has promoted legislation and supported programs to foster good consumerism and a business environment to attract new business and enable business recovery. As it has sought to achieve legislative goals in the best interest of the people of Florida, the section has continued to expand and improve services to its members and to The Florida Bar.

The section continues to be instrumental in ensuring that Florida's business laws are modern, efficient, and reflective of a positive business environment. In recent years, the section has played a major role in upgrading Florida's version of the Uniform Commercial Code, including major revisions to Art. 1 and Art. 9. From the section's work emanated the legislation that became the Revised Model Trademark Act. To provide a viable insolvency alternative to a federal bankruptcy filing, the section initiated the process that led to the legislative overhaul of Ch. 727 assignments for the benefit of creditors.

A major 2009 initiative has been the revamping Ch. 617 not-for-profit corporate statutory provisions to update and modernize filing and recordkeeping, provide for electronic transmission of filed documents, update the process for correcting filed documents, and implement electronic financial dissemination. The provisions address membership rights and distributions, election and removal of directors, filling of director vacancies, class voting, termination of membership interests, standards for dealing with claims upon dissolution, and relationships with condominium corporations, cooperatives, homeowners' associations, and mobile home parks. The bill also incorporates a provision for a youth director to serve on the board of a not-for-profit corporation.

Current statutory initiatives also include options for the electronic transmission of documents and options for Florida publicly traded corporations to utilize "e-proxy" rules promulgated by the Securities and Exchange Commission at a substantial savings of paper and dollars. A section task force led by Lou Conti has undertaken an ambitious, far-reaching analysis and rewriting of the limited liability company statutes.

The section continues to be a leader in seeking ways to ensure adequate funding for the state court system. Budgetary issues having always been at the heart of the legislative process, recent fiscal pressures led to stepped-up support for court funding and recognition for the section's efforts in conjunction with those of the Bar and other committees and lobbying groups.

A major initiative of the section is the development and expansion of courts to handle business and other complex litigation cases, implemented thus far in Orange, Dade, Broward, Hillsborough, and Palm Beach counties, and the effort to provide dedicated funding for those courts. The section's annual Labor Day weekend retreat in Naples, in addition to CLE programs, committee and task force meetings, and opportunities for new members to meet and greet, was highlighted by a roundtable composed by business court judges from around the state.

The section through its Bankruptcy/ UCC Committee joined forces with the Real Property, Probate and Trust Law Section, Florida Legal Services, and The Florida Bar in implementing the Florida Attorneys Saving Homes project. Reflecting the effects to be realized through the joint efforts of sections, committees, and groups within the Bar, the project focuses on providing intervention and assistance to consumers facing imminent mortgage default and foreclosure.

In keeping with its liaison role, the section created a new committee to serve the functions of the former standing committee on relations with the Florida Institute of Certified Public Accountants. The CLE Committee has worked to enhance the section's CLE seminars and luncheon programs. Led by its flagship View from the Florida Bankruptcy Bench program, the section's CLE lineup included the all-new So You Think You Know Revised Article 9? Avoid the Minefields: Complex Transactional and Enforcement Issues.

Responding to its members' needs and to improving technology, the section continues to revamp its Web site to include legislative updates, a brief and document bank, information on section events and activities, and links to other relevant sites. The section again will publish its journal of legal developments in corporations and securities, business litigation, bankruptcy, commercial issues, antitrust and franchising, intellectual property, and computer law.

The Long-range Planning Committee led by former Chair Roberta Colton has begun a comprehensive and continuing review of membership, finances, continuing legal education, and programs. The section was...