Big
Changes Afoot!
As many of
you have already heard, Robin Davis will be leaving as the ADR Director
effective July 1, 2008. She joins the faculty at the UF College of Law as a
Skills Instructor in the Mediation Clinic Program and Associate Director of the
Institute for Dispute Resolution. We will continue to see Robin on a regular
basis, however, when she accompanies clinic students to court on Friday
mornings. Congratulations Robin!
Also
effective July 1, 2008, Judge Green and Judge Jaworski will be rotating to
criminal divisions. Judge Mary Day Coker and Judge William Davis will be our
new civil division judges. Please join us in welcoming them both to the civil
bench.
More Reminders – Please Note
- Remember
to make contact with parties as soon as possible after you are assigned a case.
Even before you ever approach the mediation desk to pick up the court file,
make sure that the parties know who you are and understand that you will be
with them shortly. If a plaintiff has multiple cases, you should leave the jury
box when the first mediation case is assigned in order to make contact with the
first defendant. You can then wait by the door to make contact with subsequent
defendants. We cannot stress enough how important it is to follow this
procedure. Our observations from the other side of the courtroom confirm that
mediators who follow this protocol facilitate a much smoother and user-friendly
process.
- There
are live microphones in the jury box. Everything you say is being recorded and
monitored by court reporting staff and becomes a matter of public record. Act
professionally and discretely at all times.
- If you
arrive at the courtroom after court has started, do not walk to your seat in
the jury box while the judge is giving the opening statement. Wait until after
the first case is called. It is perfectly fine to wait in the back of the
courtroom, but walking across the courtroom while the judge is talking is
disruptive and distracts litigants from the important message at hand.
- It is
never permissible for a mediator to write in the court files. If you need to correct
or update information in the file, write the changes on a separate piece of
paper and include the loose paper in the file when you return it to the Clerk.
Observation of Mediators
Program
staff will be observing all mediators on an ongoing and continuing basis. At a
minimum, observers are looking to establish that all mediators are delivering
the required opening statement and otherwise abiding by the Rules of Ethics
governing mediators. The ultimate objective, however, is to help everyone become
the most effective mediator that they can be.
2008 Court Holidays
|
Monday,
May 26th |
Memorial
Day -
Courthouse closed |
|
Friday,
July 4th |
Independence
Day -
Courthouse closed |
|
Monday,
September 1st |
Labor Day
-
Courthouse closed |
|
Tuesday,
September 30th |
Rosh
Hashanah Holiday - Court
Administration closed |
|
Thursday,
October 9th |
Yom
Kippur Holiday - Court
Administration closed |
|
Tuesday,
November 11th |
Veterans'
Day -
Courthouse closed |
|
Thursday
and Friday, November 27th and 28th |
Thanksgiving
-
Courthouse closed |
|
Thursday
and Friday, December 25th and 26th |
Christmas
-
Courthouse closed |
If you are a person with a disability
who needs any accommodation in order to participate in this proceeding, you are
entitled, at no cost to you, to the provision of certain assistance. Persons with a disability who need any
accommodation in order to participate should call Jan Phillips, ADA
Coordinator, Alachua County Courthouse Family and Civil Justice Center, 201 E.
University Ave., Gainesville, FL 32601 at (352) 337-6237 within two (2) working
days of your receipt of this notice; if you are hearing impaired, call (800)
955-8771; if you are voice impaired, call (800) 955-8770.