Thank you to everyone who participated and attended the BLS Labor Day Retreat. It was a great weekend of memories with family, friends and colleagues. This year’s retreat was at the JW Marriott on Marco Island, as the Retreat’s usual location, the Ritz Carlton Naples was undergoing renovations. The Retreat was a great success which included traditional events like Casino Night, The Judge William Van Nortwick Wine Tasting, the Sunday Night Dine Around and Whiskey Tasting, but it also included new events like a Service Outreach Project led by our Chair Douglas Bates, 10k Alley Games Night with Karaoke sponsored by Moecker and Associates, the Legislative Update CLE and a family beach day. The new location was very family friendly and it was wonderful to see so many members with their families. Next year we are back at the Ritz Carlton and we hope to see you all there!

April Stone, 2022 Retreat Chair

The Labor Day Retreat was the scene of the inaugural BLS Legislative Update. Legislative liaison Doug Bell kicked off the seminar with an insider’s view of what happened in Tallahassee during the 2022 Session and what to expect in 2023, followed by Seventeenth Circuit Judge Fabienne Fahnestock and Joseph Van de Bogart updating the case law under the amended summary judgment rule, Tara Trevorrow discussing the Section’s Dorothy L. Hukill Financial Literacy bill, Jim Murphy and Chemere Ellis presenting the Section’s efforts on modernizing Florida’s Service of Process statutes, and Robert Barron concluding with a detailed analysis of the U.C.C.’s new “Pick Your Partner” provisions. It was a great seminar and the Legislation and Business Litigation Committees are looking forward to presenting at next year’s Retreat.

Former IP Committee Chair Dineen Pashoukos Wasylik taught a CLE entitled Copyright Small Claims: Is it Working? at the annual retreat. The Copyright Claims Board began taking cases in June, and Dineen provided a comprehensive overview of the procedures for appearing before the CCB, including what kinds of cases qualify for CCB resolution, what remedies are available through the CCB process, and the nuts and bolts of the eCCB system and case cycle. Dineen also analyzed the cases filed so far for trends, and provided her predictions on how the cases would continue to proceed.

Neal Levin and Connie Lahn spoke at a well attended CLE program moderated by Daniel Gonzalez. The program was full of practical advice on the psychology of fraud and how understanding can assist creditors in their recovery efforts.