Nominations are being sought for the Appellate Practice Section's annual Adkins Award, established in 1995 to honor those who have made significant contributions to the field of appellate practice in Florida. The Award, presented at the Section's Annual Dessert reception on Thursday, June 24, 2004 in Boca Raton, celebrates the memory of James C. Adkins.

Please send a letter describing the nominee's contributions to appellate practice to:
The Appellate Practice Section, c/o Austin Newberry
The Florida Bar
651 E. Jefferson Street
Tallahassee, Florida 32399-2300.

Nominations may also be e-mailed to Austin Newberry or faxed to 850-561-5825. All nomination should be received no later than 5:00 p.m. on Monday, May, 24, 2004.

Nominations are being sought for the Appellate Practice Section's annual Pro Bono Award. This award was created to honor the extensive contributions of time and skill made by appellate practitioners on behalf of Florida's poor. Please send a letter describing the nominee's appellate pro bono activities to:

Please send a letter describing the nominee's contributions to appellate practice to:
The Appellate Practice Section, c/o Austin Newberry
The Florida Bar
651 E. Jefferson Street
Tallahassee, Florida 32399-2300.

Nominations may also be e-mailed to Austin Newberry or faxed to 850-561-5825. All nomination should be received no later than 5:00 p.m. on Monday, May, 24, 2004. The award will be presented at the section's annual dessert reception on Thursday, June 24, 2004 in Boca Raton.

Be sure to calendar the one-hour lunch-time Appellate Telephone Conference CLEs, which began February 24, 2004. Appellate Telephone Conference CLE Committee Chair, John Mills, has spearheaded the first Telephone Conference CLE for appellate lawyers, designed primarily for Section Members, with issues principally at an intermediate to advanced level. They are held the third Tuesday of every month, starting at 12:10 p.m., for 50 minutes, ending at 1:00 p.m. These CLEs are conducted once each month.

The first seminar was hosted by Matt Conigliaro, and featured a joint presentation by Judge Martha Warner and Chief Judge Gary Farmer of the Fourth District Court of Appeal. They spoke on technology in the courts, including how the judiciary is improving itself through the use of electronic storage and transmission of documents. The judges explained the pilot programs that are planned for the electronic filing of appellate briefs, and discussed what practitioners can expect from electronic filing in the future.

The second seminar was also hosted by Matt Conigliaro, and featured separate presentations by Judge Jacqueline Griffin of the Fifth District Court of Appeal and Judge Morris Silberman of the Second District Court of Appeal. Judge Griffin spoke on expanding the appellate courts, specifically the potential addition of a Sixth District Court of Appeal. She discussed the needs of the appellate courts and the results of various formal and informal studies on whether, or at what point, to expand the present number of districts. Judge Silberman spoke on appellate brief writing and offered insights on how to effectively communicate points through appellate briefs, including some specific do's and don'ts for appellate practitioners.

The third (April) seminar was hosted by Louise McMurray with the assistance of Rob Weill. It addressed recent developments in the law of the case doctrine, including the most recent Florida Supreme Court pronouncements regarding application of law of the case to errors arising prior to judgment that were not made the subject of an appeal. The shift from broad application of law of the case to all errors that "were or could have been" raised on appeal to a presumably more narrow application to issues actually heard and determined on appeal was the focus, along with the new specter that "waiver" of an issue may still result in application of law of the case after remand.

The timing and content of these conferences could not be better for Section Members. So be sure to mark your calendars, and sign up promptly when the notices are sent so that you do not miss these terrific seminars.

The Appellate Practice Section is always looking for articles for publication in The Record or the Florida Bar Journal. Submissions for The Record may be made to Siobhan Shea, Editor,or Valeria Hendricks, Co-Editor. Submissions for the Florida Bar Journal may be made to Tom Hall, Publications Committee Chair and Clerk of the Florida Supreme Court.

Please direct your ideas and drafts to Siobhan Shea and Valeria Hendricks, Editor and Co-Editor of The Record.