Hoeveler assigns homework

So what to do when a law clerk hears a sitting juror bitching on the phone about her service, the other jurors, and saying that she had already made up her mind to convict the defendant? Judge Hoeveler kicked the juror off and then gave her an interesting homework assignment: he told her to read an eight-page printout of an article from the Harvard Journal of Law & Public Policy by Manhattan lawyer Gerald Walpin. Title is "America's Adversarial and Jury Systems: More Likely to Do Justice.'' Hoeveler told the juror to give him a written summary -- within 15 days. "I want you to read that thoroughly. . . . Then write me a letter telling me what you think of it and what you think of the jury system.'' Juror is Kimberly Branam-Callahan Cipolato, who was represented by Joel Kaplan. She's a legal secretary at Duarte & Ariz in Coral Gables. Hoeveler's law clerk is Mandana Dashtaki, 26 year old Harvard grad. Read the whole article by Joan Fleischman here.

New County Attorney

Today the Daily Business Review covers our new county attorney, Murray Greenberg. Everyone loves Murray:

Greenberg starts out in the county’s top legal job with a solid base of goodwill, even from lawyers who have done battle with his office over the years. “Murray is one of the finest lawyers and people I’ve ever known,” said Greenberg Traurig land-use attorney and shareholder Cliff Schulman. “Murray’s a straight shooter, and I think everyone else in that office will follow that lead.” Fort Lauderdale lawyer Bruce Rogow, who represents Citizens for Reform, a business-backed political action committee that supports Alvarez’s campaign for a strong-mayor form of government, said the county attorney’s office “has been a wonderful office with a great reputation under the kind of joint leadership of Bob and Murray.”

Congrats to Murray on this promotion.

Martinez Nelson team up

The Daily Business Review follows up on the new JNC with an article here. "The new Federal Judicial Nominating Commission formed by Republican U.S. Sen. Mel Martinez and Democratic Sen. Bill Nelson marks something of a return to the bipartisan, collaborative model employed by former Sens. Con-nie Mack and Bob Graham in the 1990s. The 56-member statewide JNC announced last week, while heavy with Republicans, includes some Democrats. Martinez, who was elected last November, oversaw the process, while Nelson, elected in 2000, picked about a quarter of the members. According to Skip Dalton, general counsel for Martinez, the two senators will also collaborate on final picks before they’re sent to the White House."
The article explains that while mostly made up of Republicans, there "are a handful of Democrats" which include: "Mark Schnapp, a former federal prosecutor and a partner at Greenberg Traurig in Miami; Michael Hanzman of Hanzman & Criden in Miami; and Steven E. Chaykin, a former federal prosecutor and a partner at Zuckerman Spaeder in Miami."

Blog update

Based on numerous e-mail recommendations, I've added links to our judges in the sidebar. And below the polls, there are a couple of links to blogs and websites that I check. More to follow.

New federal JNC

The Daily Business Review has an article today: New Federal JNC formed for Florida. "U.S. Sen. Mel Martinez, R-Fla., has announced the formation of a new statewide federal judicial nominating commission to provide the White House with recommendations for nominees to the federal courts and top law enforcement posts in Florida. According to Martinez’s office, the 56-member commission was named in cooperation with Bill Nelson, his Democrat counterpart, and other members of the Florida congressional delegation. That could signal a return to the bipartisan federal judicial nominating process that was in place throughout most of the 1990s when Republican Sen. Connie Mack and Democratic Sen. Bob Graham collaborated on federal appointments. In the last few years, the federal JNC was appointed by Gov. Jeb Bush and other leading Republican elected officials, including U.S. Rep. E. Clay Shaw Jr."

"The members from the Southern District include chair Justin Sayfie, Roberto Martinez, Barry Silverman, Tom Tew, Mark Schnapp, Luis Perez, Manny Kadre, Gonzalo R. Dorta, Robert Dunlap, Peter S. Sachs, Scott A. Srebnick, Charles Garcia, Dexter Lehtinen, Beverly A. Brame, Jillian Inmon, state Rep. Ellyn Bogdanoff, Thomas Panza, Steven E. Chaykin, Joseph Reiter, and Michael Hanzman. Their first task will be to help select a successor to former Miami U.S. Attorney Marcos D. Jimenez."