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51 Fla. B. News 1 (2024)

handle is hein.barjournals/flabn0051 and id is 1 raw text is: Measure Seeks to Protect City and County Attorneys - Page 11 STe Florida Bar Volume 51, Number 1. FloridaBar.org/News January 2024 [ USaverage =2.8 s . 6 2.3 144 1 .1 1.64 . 1.6 2.8 1.3 FLORIDA HAS A POVERTY RATE, according to the ABA Profile of the Legal Profession, of 13.1%, compared to the national poverty rate of 11.5%. And there are just 1.7 civil legal aid attorneys serving every 10,000 Floridians, compared to the national average of 2.8 civil legal aid attorneys serving every 10,000 impoverished Americans. ABA study finds civil legal aid still lacking By Alexandra Glorioso Senior Editor Not only are there relatively more poor people living in Florida than in the nation overall, but there are also relatively fewer paid attorneys helping them sort out the legal troubles that affect their basic needs. That is according to the latest annual profile of the legal profession by the American Bar Association. Its inclusion this year of details on civil legal aid attorneys is new and motivated in part by a 2022 Legal Services Corporation report that determined the poor get help with just 8% of their legal issues. This sheds light on their distribution nationwide and scarcity, the profound impact of their role, and the urgent need to increase their presence in many communities, wrote ABA President Mary Smith about paid civil legal aid attorneys in the introduction to the organization's fifth annual profile. Florida has a poverty rate, according to the profile, of 13.1%, compared to the national poverty rate of 11.5%. And there are just 1.7 civil legal aid attorneys serving every 10,000 Floridians, compared to the national average of 2.8 civil legal aid attorneys serving every 10,000 impoverished Americans. In some places in Florida, it's even worse. In Ocala, a metropolitan area of almost 400,000 people, there are only three civil legal aid attorneys, earning it special attention at the top of the report. Compared to all 50 states, See ABA, page 7 Bill would allow more family members to recover damages in medical negligence cases By Jim Ash Senior Editor Florida House members are renewing a bipartisan effort to eliminate a Florida law that prevents some surviving f a o ri n g members from for medical BELTRAN negligence. Rep. Mike Beltran, R-Riverview, and Rep. Johanna Lopez, D-Orlando, are co-sponsoring HB 129, otherwise known as the Keith Davis Family Protection Act. Florida law is unique in that it limits the awarding of punitive damages to a See Recover, page 8 Board reviews guidelines for the use of Al in the practice of law By Jim Ash Senior Editor Meeting for the last time in 2023 in December, the Board of Governors approved a raft of proposed rule revisions that included some of the nation's first guidelines for the use of generative Al in the practice of law. During a marathon session in a Destin conference room, the board voted unanimously to recommend a handful of proposals by the Special Committee on Al Tools & Resources, a panel President Scott Westheimer fonned just this summer. The special Al committee has been extremely busy since we first met in August, said Co-Chair Gordon Glover. Proposed amendments to Rules 4-1.1 (Competence), 4-1.6 (Confidentiality), 4-5.1 (Responsibilities of Partners, Managers, and Supervisory Lawyers), and 4-5.3 (Responsibilities Regarding NonlawyerAssistants) remind lawyers that use of generative artificial intelligence impact their ethical obligations in numerous areas. The proposals will be forwarded to the Supreme Court for final consideration. Shortly after the vote, G l o v e r detailed for the board a handful of AI-related projects the committee is developing, including WESTHEIMER researching and vetting possible certification and disclosure requirements for lawyers and self-represented litigants. The committee considered Ethics Opinion 79-7, which See Al, page 5 Chief Judge Miller details the First Circuit's massive cyberattack 'The reason I chose to speak on this today is to stress the importance of getting practitioners, law firms, organizations, to realize the im- portance of cybersecurity. Because it can and will happen to anyone.' By Jim Ash Senior Editor First Circuit Chief Judge John Miller was in his bathroom shaving when his cell phone rang on September 29. Given the hour, 6:30 a.m., Miller knew it wasn't good news. It was my court administrator on the line, and he was saying we have been the victim of a cyberattack, and they have everything, Miller said. At a December 1 meeting in Destin, Miller told the Board of Governors that with the state's help, the circuit recovered from a massive cyberattack without suffering a major disruption to court operations. And fortunately, through the team that we have, we have been able to recover a great majority, if not everything of what we lost, he said. Recovery wouldn't have been possible See Cyberattack, page 9 IFFLA FUNDING FLORIDA LEGAL AID FFLA ESTIMATES that two million Floridians benefit from its civil legal aid grants each year. Those grants pay for salaries of attorneys who provide these Floridians living near the poverty line with free legal representation to resolve matters affecting their basic needs. New name, same mission: Florida Bar Foundation becomes FFLA By Alexandra Glorioso Senior Editor The Florida Bar Foundation on December 7 officially changed its name to FFLA-which stands for Funding Florida Legal Aid to underscore its mission of supporting critical civil legal aid programs. Funding Florida Legal Aid succinctly describes what we do, making it easier for everyone to understand the role we play, said Murray Silverstein, FFLA president. Though our name has changed, our mission, staff, board members, and operations remain the same. The organization is responsible for administering money swept from the interest earned on trust or IOTA accounts that attorneys use to store their clients' money as civil legal aid grants. As part of that program, FFLA distributed $33.9 million in December to 35 groups offering free representation to Floridians in need. It has also distributed $3.7 million in pro bono support this year. Silverstein noted that the nonprofit is well known in the legal community for its role in increasing access to the civil justice system, and was focused with this rebranding on raising their public profile. Now, we begin our work to educate those outside of the legal community about our mission, the critical need See FFLA, page 10 3.S 1.8 3.6 2.8 2.1 Cl 0 C9 WCO <SO0. 0~ 0 C 0 N 0 S0 cJ C.) 0 j 0. N >. Q) 4- 0 0 Z W4 a1 f0 0 E 4.4' 23 2.6 2.9 24 L2 12 2.1 1.2 L.g I em iawv Pope i. 7 z 1.7 28 -n

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