People, including some of my partners, often ask why a lawyer would want to spend time at Bar meetings. The answer is easy for those of us who have become part of the "active minority" within a Section of the Bar, but much harder to understand if you have never participated in any meaningful way with BLS activities. So, rather than have me try to explain it, I invite you to come and experience the BLS in person. The "pay-back" is certainly not monetary, but the rewards in personal expansion, intellectual stimulation and professional development are, as the commercials say, "PRICELESS."

     We have five meetings over the course of the fiscal year which runs from July 1 through June 30.  Our first meeting is always the Annual Retreat, which we hold over Labor Day Week-End at the Ritz Carlton Beach Resort in Naples. This is our "kick-off meeting" where we set the goals and agendas for the year, meet new committee members and really get to know one another. There are CLE programs, committee meetings, social  & recreational activities, and time for BLS members to bring their significant others and families and relax.  Unfortunately, the "kick-off " for this year was last month, so, my apologies if you missed that meeting. This Labor-Day week-end event is truly a special time, and definitely worth a try in 2010!

    Our Spring Retreat will be held at The Four Seasons Hotel in Toronto, Canada April 28 - May 2, 2010. This promises to be a very special meeting with receptions with members of the Ontario bench and bar, a side trip to Niagara Falls, the Canadian wine country, and a myriad of activities within the beautiful world-class city of Toronto. The Spring Retreat is traditionally held outside the state of Florida, and sometimes, outside the U.S., and this is a wonderful opportunity to enhance friendships, meet new people, see different places, and often, experience different cultures. A full schedule of activities and calendar will be posted in November.

    Our final Meeting of the 09-10 fiscal year will be in conjunction with The Florida Bar Annual Meeting, at the Boca Raton Resort, June 24 - 26, 2010. This is also a "full-service" meeting with all committees and subcommittees meeting and one or two social events. This is also the meeting where I turn over the reigns as Chair to my successor Michael Higer, so it will be a good meeting to attend in person.

    At all of these meetings our Chapter 608 LLC Drafting Task Force, chaired by me, with the invaluable assistance of our Reporter Greg Marks and our recording secretary Steve Lear, will be holding drafting sessions in connection with our detailed evaluation of wholesale replacement of the Florida Limited Liability Company Act. This Task Force is typical of the long-standing commitment of the BLS to bringing updates and "fixes," as well as occasional entire re-writes of our Florida Business Entity Statutes. The BLS has taken the lead in drafting and seeking enactment of amendments of our Business Corporation Act, our Not- For-Profit Corporation Act, our General Partnership and Limited Partnership Acts, our LLC Act, the Florida Securities and Investor Protection Act, aspects of the Florida Uniform Commercial Code, and various other state statutes like the Trademark Act and the Assignment for Benefit of Creditors statute, which affect the commercial community of Florida.  These activities are some of the most rewarding for our membership. CLE credit is available for lawyers who participate in the LLC Drafting Sessions as there is a lot of subject matter expertise communicated in these sessions. A full listing of the LLC Drafting Task Force meetings will be made available on the web-site. There will be a special two full-day drafting session in Miami beginning the evening of February 25th and continuing all day on Friday & Saturday February 26 & 27, 2010.

    The BLS is really run by the Executive Council which is comprised of almost 100 lawyers, law school professors, and judges from around the state. A truly talented and dedicated group who take their roles seriously, yet manage to enjoy their work in a collegial atmosphere,  and particularly meld at our hospitality suites at the meetings.  Many of our EC members have built life-long friendships as a result of their interactions within BLS. We are  particularly fortunate to have always enjoyed very active and lively participation from judges on the federal (particularly bankruptcy) and state courts. The past two years, Florida "Business Court" Judges have joined us at the Annual BLS Retreat in Naples to discuss activities within their respective circuits. The Annual View From The Bench Bankruptcy Program (held in Tampa and Miami) is always sold-out, and is a MUST attend program for bankruptcy lawyers. The opportunity to get to know our judges, work with them on projects of interest, and contribute to the profession and the practice of law in Florida is unique and special. 

    Our substantive standing Committees are:   
Antitrust, Franchise & Trade Regulation, under the leadership of  Jason Murray & academic chair Marilyn Cane;

                                                                          
Bankruptcy/UCC Committee, under the leadership of  Jason Burnett and Judge Cathy McEwen & academic chair Jeff Davis; 

                                                                            
Bankruptcy Judicial Liaison Committee, under the leadership of Judge Paul Hyman and Lori Vaughn ;

                                                                            
Business Litigation Committee, under the leadership of  Jon Polenberg & Judge Ed LaRose ;

                                                                           
Computer & Cyber Law Committee, under the leadership of  Steve Teppler &  Steve Milbrath ;

                                                                          
Corporations, Securities & Financial Services, under the leadership of J.C. Ferrer,  &  academic chair Stu Cohn

Intellectual Property Committee, under the leadership of  Joel Rothman and Robert Thornburg;                               

State/Federal Judicial Liaison Committee under the leadership of  Judge Bill Van Nortwick, Judge Mary Scriven, David Ackerman & Steve Fender;

    In addition to our always stimulating substantive Committees,  we do a tremendous amount of work through our "non-substantive " committees which really keep the BLS moving. Those Committees include:

Communications Committee, under the leadership of Peter Valori, Kacy Donlon and Leorra Hermann

                                                                   
Continuing Legal Education, under the leadership of  Alan Aronson

                                                                   
Diversity Committee, under the leadership of  Jason Murray, Judge Mary Scriven, and Judge John Olson

                                                                   
FICPA Liaison Committee, under the leadership of Diane Noller Wells, Stef Rubin, and Nick Lioce

                                                                   
Legislation Committee, under the leadership of Brian Gart, Gary Teblum, and our lobbyist Bill Wiley

                                                                   
Long Range Planning Committee, under the leadership of Roberta Colton & Judge Michael Williamson

Membership and Law Student Relations Committee, under the leadership of Doug Bates & Jeanne Seewald

                                                                   
Retreat & Sponsorships Committee, under the leadership of Lisa Schiller and Alan Howard

    Permit me to draw special attention to two recent additions to BLS, our newly-formed Diversity Committee and our recently introduced FICPA Liaison Committee.  The Diversity Committee is comprised of judges, academicians, and lawyers who represent a  broad cross-section of our membership. The focus of the Diversity Committee is to make the BLS an open and inclusive Section of the Bar, welcoming to all lawyers who are interested in enhancing diversity,  and mentoring lawyers of varied backgrounds and interests who want to become leaders of the Section and the Bar.   The FICPA Liaison Committee is focused on our outreach to the FICPA community of accountants. Its goal is to facilitate communication and interaction between The Florida Bar and the Florida Institute of Certified Public Accountants.

    All of our Committees welcome the involvement of anyone interested in their activities, and I encourage everyone interested to contact the respective Committee leadership for more information.

    Finally, our immediate Past-Chair is Russ " Mr. Barcelona" Blain, our Up & Comer is Leyza "I'll do it" Blanco, our Section Administrator is Valerie  "Not you Again" Yarbrough, our Web-site guru is Tracey "it needs work" Eller, our Section lobbyist is William "pass that bill" Wiley, our Council of Sections Representative is Marsha "what are they trying to do now" Rydberg, and our Board of Governors Liaison is Gwynne "liked by all" Young.  Dewey Cheatum & Howe is not our outside counsel.

    Hope to SEE you soon!

    All the Best, Lou