Two years ago, leaders of The Florida Bar — the organization that represents the Sunshine State’s 100,000-plus lawyers — launched its Vision 2016 Commission to study areas it considered critical to the future practice of law. One preliminary recommendation, that out-of-state lawyers be permitted to practice in Florida without passing the Bar exam, has stirred controversy. Bar President Ray Abadin, a Miami lawyer, stressed in a recent email interview that there’s much more to the commission’s work. Excerpts of that interview follow. A full transcript is online at OrlandoSentinel.com/opinion.
Q: What’s the story behind The Florida Bar undertaking the Vision 2016 study?
A: The Vision 2016 Commission was created in 2013 in response to our changing world.
Think of the ways technology has changed your life. You can buy anything from a toothbrush to a car, find a cure for the sniffles, read the daily newspaper or keep up with old friends — all from a phone that fits into your pocket.
Technology was already changing the legal profession, too, and yet the delivery of many legal services and the rules governing the profession remained rooted in past generations.
The goal of Vision 2016 was to look at critical changes in the practice of law — and to help us overcome our natural resistance to change. “We can’t miss the future,” said then-Bar President Eugene Pettis, who created the commission.
So, 68 members from the legal profession, public sector and business community have addressed four key areas: access to legal services, technology, legal education and Bar admissions.
On access, the Bar has worked closely with the chief justice of the state Supreme Court in establishing the Florida Commission on Access to Civil Justice.
On technology, Vision 2016 has looked at ways to integrate technology into courts and law offices. Our Board of Governors recently approved a proposed requirement expanding technology-related continuing legal education.
On legal education, Vision 2016 has examined ways that law schools can better prepare lawyers for a changing profession.
On Bar admissions, the commission is also examining some national and international issues: licensing nonlawyers to do some limited legal work, a uniform national bar exam, ownership of law firms, and crossing practice borders. Note that The Florida Bar has not taken a position on any of the admission issues.
The Bar’s goal is to foster dialogue rather than advocate for any particular issue. Indeed, we have gotten our more than 100,000 members talking and learning about the changes and issues. In this fast-paced world, we don’t want to let others drive the changes in our profession.
Q: Of the four areas addressed in the study, admission seems to have generated the most attention because of the reciprocity issue. So why let lawyers from out of state skip the Bar exam to practice in Florida?
A: Reciprocity has indeed gained a lot of attention — and generated a lot of misinformation.
Basically, admission by motion/reciprocity allows Florida lawyers to take advantage of opportunities elsewhere and in return provides out-of-state lawyers with a way to practice here in Florida. Breaking down borders reflects a reality of the 21st century, but there also is the very real fear of a deluge of new lawyers into an already flooded marketplace. A Bar Admission Subgroup of Vision 2016 in a preliminary report recommended that Florida adopt such a policy.
This would not be automatic admission, but would entail strict requirements, including a minimum number of years in practice as well as passage of a stringent character and fitness investigation. Any attorney admitted this way would be a member of The Florida Bar and subject to the associated requirements and discipline.
The discussion this has generated is only the start of an inclusive and transparent process that involves input from Bar members and, if it were to get that far, approval by the Bar’s Board of Governors, the Florida Board of Bar Examiners and, ultimately, the Florida Supreme Court. It’s an essential conversation, but make no mistake, our first duty is upholding the ethics and standards of the profession set forth by The Florida Bar and the Supreme Court.
Q: The Bar is against raising members’ dues to expand access to legal services. What alternative would you advocate?
A: Last year, Florida Bar members donated about 2 million hours and more than $4.8 million toward legal services. Still, funding for legal aid falls far short of what is needed, and most middle-class Floridians find themselves in a legal-services gap — unable to qualify for legal aid, yet unable to afford legal representation. Attorneys alone can’t solve this issue; nor would the Band-Aid solution of raising dues.
There are other options, and the Florida Bar Commission on Access to Civil Justice is exploring them, as is the Vision 2016 Pro Bono Section. Both suggest we can streamline the legal process, thus cutting the cost of representation, as well as make it easier for citizens to represent themselves through simplified forms and online tools. They are also looking into the unbundling of legal services — or limited scope representation — to help people who might need an attorney for advice but not for an entire proceeding. These are just a few of the ideas being considered to knock down the barriers to justice.
Q: What shortcomings in legal education were identified through the study, and how can they be remedied?
A: Each year, America’s law schools graduate more than 40,000 students — many with huge debt and limited prospects.
The Legal Education Subgroup of Vision 2016 spent a year compiling a list of competencies that new lawyers should have and another year investigating ways that law schools could better pass along these skills. This subgroup has identified a number of obstacles to be explored, including the high cost of legal education, a technology gap between what students learn and what is used in practice, and a focus on theory as opposed to new skills.
The goal is not a one-size-fits-all approach to legal education reform but rather a range of ideas that could help law schools best prepare their students to actually practice law and to serve their clients.
Q: How will technology change the practice of law?
A: We live in a world where technology is affecting everything we do and the legal profession is no exception. Technology already has changed the practice of law. In fact, it underlies the entire purpose of Vision 2016.
Third-party providers — think LegalZoom — provide “do-it-yourself” legal services. Technology has changed the way lawyers do research, and it has changed the relationship between lawyer and client. It has made globalization a threat, or an opportunity.
In the end, technology will help us bridge the legal-services gap and open new markets, while people still will need the expertise and professionalism offered by Florida’s lawyers.
Q: There’s a glut of law school graduates in the U.S. compared to available jobs. How bad is the glut in Florida, and what should be done about it?
A: The Florida Bar has no authority over the number of law schools in Florida or the number of graduates they turn out every year. That said, the Bar, and especially the Bar’s Young Lawyers Division, can provide leadership on this issue.
In his installation speech in June, new YLD President Gordon Glover laid out some initiatives.
The push for more access to justice plays into this issue. About 80 percent of Floridians who need legal help go without representation. If we can utilize the great advancements in technology to connect young lawyers with this underserved population, we may solve two problems at once.
The Young Lawyers Division will train young lawyers on how to create a virtual law firm. Webinars will highlight tools that can help a law practice become more efficient, effective and profitable. The YLD can help address outdated rules and regulations that hurt the chances of a young lawyer to compete in today’s marketplace.
The new “Take an Hour Campaign” encourages senior lawyers to meet with a young lawyer — and perhaps develop a mentor/mentee relationship. The new Women’s Affairs Committee will support young women lawyers in their professional and personal growth.
Q: Judges in Florida haven’t been given raises for years, but they make much more than the average Floridian. How do you make the case for increasing judges’ salaries?
A: Salaries for Florida judges have lagged behind inflation and other attorney salaries, federal judicial salaries, and judicial salaries in comparable states. Salaries for our trial court judges ranked No. 5 in the nation in 1997; last year, they ranked 23rd. Florida judges have not had a pay increase in over ten years.
It’s simple: While we have an exceptional judiciary in Florida, in order to continue to attract exceptional judges, they deserve to earn competitive salaries and have the opportunity to stay on the bench for the duration of their judicial careers.
An answer in an earlier version of this interview transcript omitted a step in the process of approval for the reciprocity proposal. The step has been added in this version for clarification.
