Florida Bar Press Releases - June 2004 - RUSSIAN LEGAL ORGANIZATION TO STUDY OPERATIONS OF THE FLORIDA BAR - CORAL GABLES ATTORNEY MATTHEW DIETZ RECEIVES 2004 G. KIRK HAS HUMANITARIAN AWARD

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RUSSIAN LEGAL ORGANIZATION TO STUDY OPERATIONS OF THE FLORIDA BAR

June 11, 2004

TALLAHASSEE, FL -- The Florida Bar is joining with the Office for Distributed and Distance Learning of Florida State University to host a study tour for delegates from The Federal Chamber of Advocates of the Russian Federation, the federal regulatory body for Russian lawyers, from June 14-18, in Tallahassee.

The Federal Chamber was established by Russian legislation in 2003 and has mandatory membership from 89 regions. In the Russian Federation, a lawyer must pass a regional bar exam and join the regional bar to become an "advocate" and member of the Federal Chamber. He or she can then represent clients in criminal matters and in commercial litigation before an arbitrage court.

The 11 participants, who represent the federal chamber and several regional chambers, will begin their study on Monday, June 14, at The Florida Bar headquarters in Tallahassee. The program at the Bar will consist of meetings and presentations on The Florida Bar's membership requirements, fees, record-keeping and benefits, lawyer regulation procedures, and continuing legal education.

Also included in the study tour will be visits to the Supreme Court of Florida , the 2nd Judicial Circuit/Leon County Courthouse and Public Defender's office, Florida State University College of Law, the distance learning program of FSU, and several area law firms.

After completing the study, the Federal Chamber will draft a plan to implement continuing legal education courses for its membership, create public information materials and draft a "Model Law for Constituent Entities of the Russian Federation" regarding governance.

The tour was planned and coordinated by the American Bar Association Central European and Eurasian Law Institute (ABA/CEELI) and received funding from the U. S. State Department Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement (INL) with assistance from The Florida Bar and its International Law Section.

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CONTACT: Francine Andía Walker, The Florida Bar
DATE: June 11, 2004
TELEPHONE: 850-561-5762 (office) or 850-321-7846 (mobile)

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CORAL GABLES ATTORNEY MATTHEW DIETZ RECEIVES 2004 G. KIRK HAS HUMANITARIAN AWARD

June 29, 2004

TALLAHASSEE -- Matthew Wilson Dietz was recognized with the G. Kirk Haas Humanitarian Award by 2003-2004 Florida Bar President Miles A. McGrane, III. The award was presented on Friday, June 25, 2004, during the Bar’s Annual Meeting in Boca Raton.

Matthew Dietz has been practicing in the areas of discrimination, employment law, personal injury and civil rights litigation since 1996. Having litigated more than 40 cases in the federal courts, Mr. Dietz is a leader in the practice of disabilities law. As a result of his work on recent landmark cases, he has contributed to the law to define the legal rights and obligations of both cruise lines and retail stores, guaranteeing access for the disabled.

Mr. Dietz served as the 2003-04 Chair of the Public Interest Law Section of The Florida Bar. To educate the public, he has frequently shared his expertise regarding disability rights and discrimination through speaking engagements to various community and civic groups.

Established in 1998 by then Bar President Edward R. Blumberg, this award recognizes a Bar member for his or her meritorious service and allows the recipient to provide a scholarship award to a student at a law school of his or her selection.

The lawyer for whom the award is named, G. Kirk Haas, was a member of The Florida Bar who practiced in Miami, Florida, until his untimely death in 1987. He was noted by colleagues for his humanity and legal ethics as well as his skill and professionalism.

Haas was a native of Miami who received his undergraduate degree from the University of South Florida. He attended law school at Mercer University and after graduation served as an assistant state attorney. He later practiced civil law with the firm of High, Stack, Davis and Lazenby. Haas served on the board of directors of the Dade County Bar Association.

The award recipient is selected annually by the President of The Florida Bar and is presented each year when the Bar’s leadership is installed. The recipient then designates a Florida law school and the dean selects a second-year student who “demonstrates an exceptionally high degree of integrity, ethics, professionalism and a concern for others” to receive the $2,500 scholarship.

CONTACT: Jennifer Krell-Davis, The Florida Bar
DATE: June 29, 2004
TELEPHONE: 850/561-5669

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