The story attached here makes me ABSOLUTELY INSANE. Don’t read it….especially if you’re an attorney. You see, as an attorney practicing in Florida, I am required to be a member of the Florida Bar. I pay big money every year so that (theoretically at least), my interests as an ethical and responsible attorney are properly represented. The truth of the matter is, The Florida Bar doesn’t so often represents my interests and is routinely asleep at the switch when it comes to issues that effect consumers or real attorneys that help real people in the trenches every day….I can (grudgingly) deal with that.
What makes me insane is knowing that the Florida Bar is frequently actively working against me and consumers by supporting big business and interests that are opposed to consumers and The Little Guy like me. The article quotes an attorney that represents the Florida Bar, and while he gets it right that the Non-Judicial Foreclosure Act, was an “embarassing” piece of legislation….he is not firmly in the camp of Lawyers Defending Homeowner Rights….yet.
What the Florida Bar misses~and has from the beginning of this crisis~is that we ethical, responsible, “dirt on our boots” attorneys have an unprecedented opportunity to show Floridians that attorneys are here to support and defend you….THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF FLORIDA!
When we attorneys defend our neighbors in this crisis, the perception of attorneys practicing in this state changes for ever.
So Mr. Dunbar (and leadership from the Florida Bar) this is your formal, official, heartfelt invitation…..
Join me and the People of the State of Florida on Wednesday April 21 at 9:00 am at The Capitol. Let’s make an agreement that we’ll all start working together to preserve, protect and defend the rights (especially property rights) of real Floridians.
From that day forward, the People of the State of Florida began to see attorneys in a whole new light…
But one last thing….
“”The idea of doing this faster, quicker and better is good,” said Pete Dunbar, a Tallahassee attorney representing the Real Property division of the Florida Bar.”
This going faster, quicker and better is not good Mr. Dunbar….remember, you also represent the Conference of Circuit Judges of Florida. A big part of our fight is to make sure our judges and their staff are properly funded and that courts and the rule of law are properly respected. I don’t like seeing my judges’ caseloads explode overnight while their assistants go crazy juggling fourteen phone lines while they’re being suffocated and inundated by new foreclosure files.
Going faster and quicker is not better when the end result is more problems for your circuit judges down the road as they try to sort this mess out. (Hint: The title problems all this faster, quicker is causing.) How bout you use your clout to help relieve some of the pressure felt by our foreclosure judges? How bout the judges getting their fair share of funding…they do account for 25% of the entire judicial funding after all. (According to Senate analysis) If foreclosures bring in 25% of the judicial budget, how much of that revenue goes toward the staff, salaries and expenses borne by foreclosure judges? Wouldn’t we have a better chance of sorting all this mess out if our judges had the time and resources to work with the Defense bar?
Please join our side in this fight. We’re on the side of properly funded and respected judges, not the Fat Cat interests, Title Companies, Developers and other interests that prop up the Real Property Section of the Florida Bar.
