Tuesday, August 21, 2012

Meeting Minutes - August 16, 2012

The meeting was called to order by President Megan Fitzpatrick at noon and Treasurer Brittan Mitchell led the association in the Pledge of Allegiance.

The guest speaker and sponsor from Professional Retirement Services failed to show up to the meeting.

President Fitzpatrick then introduced the new officers of the Citrus County Bar Association who are:
     
          President- Megan Fitzpatrick
          Vice-President- Tanya Williams
          Treasurer- Brittan Mitchell
          Secretary- Adam Czaya
          Past President- Steven Fichtman

President Fitzpatrick then moved to change CCBA meetings from Wednesdays to Thursdays. The motion was seconded by Jack Moring, there was no discussion, and the motion was unopposed. CCBA meetings were then officially moved from Wednesdays to Thursdays.

President Fichtman then gave a summary of the events that are planned for the 2012-2013 CCBA year. A golf tournament to raise money for the Bar Association was discussed and Tanya Williams volunteered to be in charge of that committee. A 5k run was also discussed to increase member participation in the CCBA.

President Fitzpatrick then discussed Law Day and the theme was revealed to be “Realizing the Dream: Equality for All,” which will commemorate the 150th anniversary of the issuance of the Emancipation Proclamation.

President Fitzpatrick then discussed the success of the “Wagon of Cheer,” ultimately called the “Bar on Wheels,” which raised $1,400 for the Key Training Center. Attorneys from the CCBA donated 20-30 bottles of alcohol for the charity.

President Fitzpatrick then informed the CCBA that the scholarships awarded during the 2011-2012 CCBA year were distributed to the students who won them.

The final event that was discussed was Relay for Life, which will be moved from Lecanto to Inverness this year.

In lieu of a guest speaker, President Fitzpatrick discussed several changes occurring in the Clerk’s office in the near future, including e-filing, e-service, and re-opening fees. E-service begins on September 1st for most cases, not including juvenile, traffic, and criminal cases. E-filing is scheduled to begin on October 1st but may be pushed back to the end of autumn. Re-open fees were amended with the following updated legal opinion:

“Reopen fees are due at the time a party files a pleading to re-open a proceeding if at least 90 days have elapsed since the filing of a final order or final judgment with the clerk. If a fee is not paid upon the filing of the pleading as required under this section, the clerk shall pursue collection of the fee pursuant to s. 28.246.”

Finally, future CCBA meetings were discussed. Jack Moring will be giving a series of CLEs during the Family Law Section of the CCBA on adoption and the October CCBA meeting will feature Keith Long and his CLE called “Social Media: An Ocean that Lawyers Swim in.”

Secretary Adam Czaya then reminded the members that the CCBA has a Facebook page that members are strongly encouraged to follow by clicking “Like” on the page. The link is https://www.facebook.com/citruscountybar and will include updates on the types of food that will be offered at the next meeting, the guest speaker, the CLE topic, and more.

Also mentioned was the Citrus County Bar Association’s new blog located at http://citruscountybar.blogspot.com/, which will include meeting minutes, a calendar with upcoming meetings, membership information, and general updates on CCBA events.

President Fitzpatrick ended the meeting at 12:45pm and noted that the next meeting of the Family Law Section will be held on September 20, 2012.

Thursday, June 28, 2012






The Citrus County Bar Association will be sponsoring a "Wagon of Cheer" for a silent auction as part of the Key Training Center's annual Run for the Money fundraising event to fund their work with developmentally disabled adults. CCBA asks each of it's members to donate a bottle of liquor or a cash donation to make a purchase of a bottle of liquor. You are permitted to include a custom label or business card on the bottle.

You can bring your donations to Megan Fitzpatrick (213 N. Apopka Ave., Inverness, FL 34450) or contact Megan's office to have your donation picked up this afternoon (Thursday, June 28th).

Wednesday, June 27, 2012

New Officers Elected

Judge Patricia Thomas Swears in the Officers for the Upcoming Year
Officers Pictured Left to Right: Steven Fichtman, Brittan Mitchell, Megan Fitzpatrick, Adam Czaya, Tanya Williams
Today's CCBA meeting saw the election of new officers. The Board for the upcoming year will be:
  • President: Megan T. Fitzpatrick
  • Vice President: Tanya M. Williams
  • Secretary: Adam A. Czaya
  • Treasurer: Brittan L. Mitchell
  • Immediate Past President: Steven D. Fichtman
Angela Vick from the Citrus County Clerk of Court informed the group of recent changes regarding online foreclosure auctions, electronic filing, email service of process, and re-opening fees. 

As a reminder, there will be no general meeting in July and our next meeting will be in August.