Self-assessment.

• Author: Hawkins, Scott G.
• Position: President's Page

At its May meeting, the Board of Governors authorized formation of a commission to conduct a limited study of certain challenges facing The Florida Bar's grievance process. Given the Bar's rapid growth (now the second largest mandatory or unified bar in the United States) and particular issues that have surfaced in the last few years, I urged that such a study be conducted to ensure the Bar is as current and responsive as it can and should be in this most important responsibility.

A Brief Look Back--The Florida Bar as a Regulatory Body

In 1949, the Florida Supreme Court formed The Florida Bar. Such action is delineated in the landmark Supreme Court opinion of In re: Petition of Florida State Bar Ass'n., 40 So. 2d 902 (1949).

As noted by Justice Terrell in the opinion, the Bar was formed to oversee the regulation of lawyers licensed by the Supreme Court. Through this action, the Florida Supreme Court unified the Bar as the organization responsible for overseeing lawyer regulation, licensure, and continuing legal education. These steps marked the beginning of lawyer regulation in Florida and the Bar's grievance process.

As the Bar has grown, the demands in the area of lawyer regulation have also grown. Today, lawyer regulation (which includes the grievance process, multiple education and diversion programs relative to lawyer sanctions, and lawyer advertising) utilizes approximately 45 percent of The Florida Bar's annual budget. This allocation covers expenditures for enforcement proceedings, staff lawyers and related personnel costs and training, and general funding of the grievance apparatus.

[ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]

Annually, the Bar opens 8,000 to 9,000 inquiries into possible rule violations. In 12 months ending in June, the Bar disbarred 84 lawyers. In addition, there were 174 suspensions, 49 public reprimands, 39 admonishments, and 52 probations.

Prior Review

From time to time, the Bar has authorized studies of this regulatory function to ensure the Bar's process is as effective and current as possible. In this regard, Miles McGrane, as the 55th president of The Florida Bar, initiated a comprehensive study of lawyer regulation in 2003. This study, which lasted 33 months, was chaired by Hank Coxe, who later became the 58th president of the Bar. Under the Coxe Commission, several programs were initiated, including the Attorney Consumer Assistance Program (ACAP), which screens all complaints, and a listing of 10-year disciplinary histories...