Greetings!
Have I ever told you how much I appreciate each and everyone of our Members? Our Support the Troops collection drive was incredible and that was due to our Members sending us names, collecting items, collecting donations and coming together on a bright Saturday morning. We laughed a lot while munching on bagels and learned a little bit more about each other while we sorted items, packed and labeled boxes and finally loaded up the packages to deliver to the airport. Our postal worker was a Veteran himself and made sure we had all of our packages in order. Due to everyone's efforts over the past three months, we were able to pack forty-two boxes to send out to Louise Anderson, Robert May, Todd Campbell, Quintin Ludewig, Paul Baker II, and Jorden Conners. I would like to thank our Members, Jan DeJulio, Marisa Green, Leslie Irick, Jean Hinton, Anne Hughes, Audrey Hughes, Peonca Grier, Diana Bonilla, Jorge Cruz, Teri Martin, Megan Martin and Antoinette Braga. I would like to thank the following for their monetary donations: Nancy Koitto, Marty Hartley, Esq., the wonderful people at Shutts & Bowen, and Jan DeJulio. Due to everyone's efforts we were able to cover our postage fees. We heard from one special service member and his story is below in the Support the Troops section of our newsletter.  | |
Photo: Front Row (Left to Right): Jorge Cruz, Peonca Grier and Diana Bonilla; Back Row (Left to Right): Antoinette Braga, Jan DeJulio, Leslie Irick, Jean Hinton, Natalie Colon, Audrey Hughes, Marisa Green, Megan Martin and Teri Martin.
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The fall equinox signals the final quarter of the year, earlier sunsets and the holidays. I really love the fall in Florida. It's cool enough to hang outside and still wear shorts. As usual, CFPA has many opportunities coming up during the next couple of months with luncheons, CLE courses and events, so get out your calendars and start saving some dates. There are two opportunities to meet other members and make some great contacts. Please contact Gidget Zook and/or Linda Ralston via e-mail to let them know you wish to attend either the October 13th or the October 19th luncheon. Remember to bring your business cards. We are still in the middle of our Review Course and our CLE committee has been busy developing interesting seminars for our members. The first, Deciphering the Medical Record, is being held on October 27 for 1.5 CLE credits. The second and final seminar for our year is Basic Guardianship Practice for Paralegals for 4.0 CLE credits. Although I am a real estate paralegal, I find both courses to be interesting and I know I will learn something new. More information is below so check it out and I hope to see you there. You can't miss our membership meeting and Halloween "Prowl" Costume Party. So find your costume, bring your business cards and plan to join us for food, drinks, purchase raffle tickets and win some prizes. U.S. Legal Support, Inc., is our sponsor, and our favorite rep, Stephen Ciarrocchi, has promised to wear a costume. You have to come, just for that! See if you can pick me out in my costume. All raffle ticket dollars will go to our fourth quarter charity, Harbor House. More details below on date, time and location. This is also a great opportunity to renew your membership. Please save the date for our Annual Meeting and Holiday Party on December 2nd and we mean PARTY! It will be CFPA's last event of the year and we intend to celebrate the past year with our Members and just have a great time. We appreciate IKON's sponsorship of our newsletter this month and as a supportive Patron Member of CFPA. If you wish to know more about IKON, please click on their logo below which is linked to their web site. Sincerely,
Natalie F. Colon, CP, FRPCertified Paralegal/Florida Registered Paralegal CFPA President - 2011 |
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Election Committee calling for Nominations ...
The Elections Committee is calling for
Nomination for the 2011 Term.
There are still some vacancies on the Executive Committee and the Board of Directors.
The deadline to submit your Declaration of Candidacy for one of the following positions has been extended to October 14, 2011:
Executive Committee Board of Directors
Vice President/President-Elect Minimum of 3 and
Second Vice President Maximum of 7
Secretary
Treasurer
NALA Liaison
If you are interested in running for office and you have been an Active Member of CFPA for the past 12 months please complete the Declaration of Candidacy Form below and email it to Jean Hinton, Elections Committee Chair - Elections@cfpainc.org.
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Upcoming CFPA Luncheon ...
The next Winter Park/Maitland luncheon will be on Thursday, October 13, 2011 at 11:45 a.m. at Olive Garden Located across from the Winter Park Village on 17-92/Orlando Avenue For more details on the Winter Park Lunch please contact Gidget Zook at gidget.zook@burr.com 
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ The next Downtown Orlando Luncheon will be held on Wednesday, October 19, 2011 at Tijuana Flats at 12:00 p.m. 8 N. Summerlin Ave., Orlando 
For more information on the Downtown Lunch, please contact Linda Ralston at Linda.Ralston@rissman.com |
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CFPA Membership Meeting and Halloween Party ...
Paralegals on the Prowl
Sponsored by:
U.S. Legal Support, Inc.
October 18, 2011
at Blank Space
201 E. Central Blvd.
Orlando, FL(on the corner of Central and Rosalind)Membership Meeting
5:30 to 6:00 p.m.
Halloween Party
6:00 to 8:00 p.m.
Attire is Halloween Costumes
Members: FREE
Non-Members: $5.00
or an item from the Harbor House Wish List
(see list below in the 4th Quater Charity section of this newsletter).
Come on our for a "Prowling" good time!!! There will be Door prizes and raffle tickets for sale. Beer, Wine and Spooky Snacks will be provided. All proceeds go to CFPA's 4th Quarter Charity, Harbor House.
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Upcoming CLE Seminars ...
Deciphering the Medical Record
October 27, 2011
6-8 p.m.
Location: Baker & Hostetler
Orlando, FL
Speaker: Joan Magnusson, RN
October Seminar Registion Form
Basic Guardianship Practice for Paralegals
Saturday, November 12, 2011
from 8:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.
Location: Upchurch Watson White & Max
Maitland, FL
Speakers will be:
Theresa Barton, Professional Guardian
Ian L. Gilden, Esquire
Ann Marie Giordano Gilden, Esquire
Circuit Judge John D. Galluzzo
Circuit Judge Kenneth R. Lester, Jr.
Circuit Judge Donna McIntosh
November Seminar Registration Form
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SAVE THE DATE!!!  2011 Annual Meeting/Holiday Party which is scheduled for Friday, December 2nd at the Downtown Sheraton located on Livingston Street.
If vendors are interested in having a booth at this event, please email Nikki Rodeman at social@cfpainc.org |
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CFPA's 4th Quarter Charity ...
Harbor House is Orange County's only state-certified domestic violence facility and seeks to eliminate domestic violence in Central Florida by providing safety, shelter, empowerment, education and justice. Harbor House provides safe shelter, a 24-hour crisis hotline, counseling, and emotional support, and legal advocacy for thousands of domestic violence survivors and their children each year.
Harbor House also prepares survivors for re-entry into the community - connecting them to resources that will enable them to live independently, safely and peacefully. If you or anyone you know needs help, please contact a Harbor House Advocate: 407-886-2856 (TTD) or 1-800-500-1119.
CFPA will be collecting items on their wish list along with monetary donations through the month of December.
Harbor House Wish List
If you have any questions or if you would like to know how you can assist with out 4th Quarter Charity, please contact:
Natalie F. Colon, CP, FRP
Certified Paralegal/Florida Registered Paralegal
CFPA President - 2011
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CFPA's Annual CP Review Course
CFPA's 2011 Certified Paralegal ("CP") Exam Review Course is underway and takes place each Wednesday evening from 6:00 - 9:00 pm from August 24 - October 19, 2011. We are offering a per class option for those seeking CLE hours.  | |
CP Review Course Attendees
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Alex Finch, Esq. - Lecturing on Family Law
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Registration Form and the Course Schedule are available below and on CFPA's website at www.cfpainc.org. Like last year, this year's course will be presented at Keiser University located at 5600 Lake Underhill Rd. in Orlando.
If you have any questions, please contact CFPA Review Course Coordinators, Anne Hughes, ACP, FCP, FRP or Cassie Snyder, CP, FRP at ReviewCourse@cfpainc.org. |
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CFPA on the Web ...
You can find CFPA on these social networking sites:
Facebook
Linked In
Twitter
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CFPA's Half Year Membership ...
CFPA IS NOW OFFERING 1/2 year memberships which are only in effect from July 1st each year through December 31st.
To continue your membership after December 31st, you must renew at the full year membership price. Renew during the renewal period to avoid late fees!!
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CFPA 2011 Scholarship Application ...
The 2011 Scholarship Application has now been updated and is available for students to complete & begin submitting for this great financial opportunity!
CLICK HERE FOR: 2011 Scholarship Application
Deadline to submit is October 28, 2011* *All Applications received post marked after this date will not be considered. Should you have any questions or like additional information about our organization, please feel free to e-mail the Board of Directors Chair, John Starks, Jr., FRP.
CFPA-Member Only Scholarship $500.00
If you are a CFPA member currently enrolled in a Legal Studies Program in any of the area schools, you may be eligible for a CFPA-sponsored scholarship of $500.00!
Open to Non-members are the 2nd & 3rd place awards!
If you are a NON-member but currently enrolled in a Legal Studies Program in any of the area schools, you may be eligible for a CFPA-sponsored scholarship of $400.00 or $300.00!
A warm CFPA thank-you goes out to the educational institutions who support CFPA with their Patron membership you support us so we can support you!
*Recipients of the CFPA Legal Studies Scholarship are awarded their prize during the Annual Meeting -- this year it's December 2, 2011 -- and are also given a one-year membership in CFPA and placement on the Student Relations Committee!
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CFPA on the Go and on Your Mobile Phone ...
 CFPA recognizes that all the information on our website makes it difficult to load on some mobile devices.
As such, we have recently completed work on a MOBILE WEBSITE which is designed to put the most reviewed info in the palm of your hand.
Please take the time to review & provide feedback so we can decide whether or not to continue. Maintaining a second website is resource intensive and if it does not benefit the membership (that's YOU!), those resources are best used in other areas (such as scholarships, community service & networking mixers). There's a survey/poll on the home page of the full website which makes providing feedback easy... so get out your IPhones, Blackberrys, (and whatever other mobile devices are out there!) and be sure to favorite:
paralegal.mynetworksolutions.mobi
Take it out for a test run, kick the tires and be sure to visit the full website at www.cfpainc.org and tell us what you think!
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Update on Mandatory E-Filing ...
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Judge Judith Kreeger
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Court asks for an implementation schedule for mandatory e-filing By Gary BlankenshipSenior Editor - The Florida Bar News A schedule for implementing mandatory electronic filing of court documents in Florida - including for criminal cases - has been requested by the Florida Supreme Court. The court, in an August 8 administrative order, directed the Florida Courts Technology Commission, in consultation with the Florida Courts E-Filing Authority Board of Directors, to file an implementation schedule for e-filing within 30 days of the order. The order came as part of case no. SC11-399, which deals with amendments to various procedural rules necessary to accommodate electronic filing. The FCTC was ordered to submit "a supplemental comment which proposes a plan for phased-in implementation of mandatory e-filing by attorneys. The plan should specifically identify any unique issues regarding implementation of mandatory e-filing in the criminal divisions of the circuit court and for criminal appellate matters." Judge Judith Kreeger, chair of the FCTC, said the group may have to ask for a short extension but said the court's request is logical. She noted that the pending rules case, set for oral argument on October 4, already has a provision to make e-filing mandatory. She said the time extension request would encompass both the schedule and the oral argument date. "I believe that the FCTC is going to ask the court to postpone the oral argument by a few weeks for several reasons: There just isn't enough time to do what they want," Kreeger said. "We want to do a good job and do the kind of comprehensive job that the court wants." Problems, she said, include that many people are on vacation in August, and it can be difficult to round them up for a meeting. Plus, the terms for a third of the FCTC's members have expired, and the commission is waiting for those members to be reappointed or replaced. The court's request is logical, Kreeger added, because the proposed changes to the procedural rules provide that at some point electronic filing for the courts will be mandatory. "I think what they're looking for is, 'OK, what's going to be the [phase-in] plan, all at once, [court] division by division, court by court?' "They want us to flesh out a logical, orderly time frame that can realistically be obtained," she said. "We need input from clerks and courts around the state." She said an FCTC working group would be meeting as this News went to press to address the issue. She said it was likely that a modest delay of a month or so would be enough to accommodate the court's request. Whenever the phase-in schedule is submitted, the order provided that, "Parties wishing to file comments to the proposed phase-in plan shall do so within 10 days of the filing of the supplemental comments of the FCTC."
Reprinted from The Florida Bar News, Vol. 38, Number 17, Dated September 1, 2011.
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Support the Troops Update ...
 In the President's Message above, Natalie provided you with an update as to what CFPA was able to accomplish this past quarter for our Troops ... thanks to the generous donations we received.
We received the following submission that we wanted to share with you from Anita Lane, FRP on behalf of her co-worker Barbara Ammer regarding her son Lcpl Andrew Ammer - US Marine Corp. The title of his post speaks volumes! Life is too short ... take nothing for granted! Thank you Anita and Barbara for sharing this with us. Andrew has been stationed in the Helmand Province area of Afghanistan since April 2011. Andrew is the gunner of a LAV (light armored vehicle). Andrew will be returning home from Afghanistan in November, 2011. He is very proud and humbled to be serving his country. His mother, my co-worker, Barbara Ammer, and other co-workers have been sending him packages regularly for him to share with his buddies. We are not asking for anything to be sent to him but to another deserving service member. I thought, however, I would share one of his posts that is particularly poignant. I am quite proud of him myself. OOH RAH! Perspective By Andrew Ammer on Wed., 07/27/11 @ 11:56am It's July 27, 2011 and I'm in Afghanistan. I have definitely gained something from this deployment. I have seen how blind most people are and how they take the simplest things for granted like a sink or a bathroom - hell - even a bed to sleep in! I have never taken God's blessings in my life for granted, but I can tell you this after being here and seeing how the locals live, I assure you I never will. Everything these people have they either grew themselves, built it or made it. I also have seen how peoples' priorities change, how some things that mattered like friendship or love seem to take a back burner when someone is 10,000 miles and a large ocean apart. Someone told me on deployment that you learn who will be true, a person's priorities and where you stand with that individual. I can assure you I have found out all these things. My dinner is eaten out of a bag while I'm sitting in the dirt. So when your waitress takes an extra two minutes with your food, cut her some clack and smile because you get a hot meal tonight. When you go to crawl in your bed and you are complaining about the mattress being a little too stiff, don't worry, it's alright because you are sleeping next to the one you love tonight. When you get in an argument with the one you love, apologize and swallow your pride because at least she is there with you to work out the problem. You're not waiting for a message or going weeks without talking to them. You can say what you need to face to face. When you [complain] about being caught at a traffic light, just laugh because most people here don't have cars and the ones I've seen are usually single cab trucks with a minimum of twelve people in them. So be gracious and kind to the ones you love and hold dear. Be gracious to a stranger on the street because you don't have to worry about if they're thinking of shooting you. Above all, give thanks for the men and women who fought for all our rights and comforts we so easily take for granted. And pray for the mothers and fathers who have lost sons; or children who lost daddies or wives who lost husbands, because the sacrifices those men and women have made will never be understood until you have lived the experience. Good, bad, irritating, painful and miserable, it will never be understood. God bless our country and the freedoms we have and the people you love because you never know when you will lose them. Thank you and God Bless You Andrew Ammer and all the soldiers serving our great nation for your sacrifices. Here are some heart warming photos of SPC Robert May and some of his fellow soldiers we are helping:  | These soldiers are at a day care. Part of what they do is go into the Afghan communities (no armor, no weapons) to show that we are friendly and to gain their trust.
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Smartphone Check-Cashing Scam Could Imperil
Lawyers ...
As soon as new technology is developed to make life easier, you can be sure someone will try to find a way to exploit it for criminal gain.
It should come as no surprise that charlatans have come up with a new scam using smartphones that has been perpetrated on at least one Florida title agent and could be easily adapted to target lawyers.
The Florida Land Title Association recently reported an incident to its members where a title agent fell victim to a fraud scheme involving depositing checks via smartphone.
According to a bulletin Old Republic National Title Company in Tampa sent its title agents and officers and an alert issued by The Fund, here is how it went down:
A couple was issued a check for closing proceeds. They then left the agent's office but returned several hours later and asked the agent to wire the proceeds instead. The agent took the check back, voided it - rather than stopping payment on it - and wired the proceeds to the couple's account. The agent was apparently completely unaware that the check had already been deposited using a smart phone.
"More and more banks, and even online payment sites like PayPal, offer downloadable applications for smart phones like iPhone and Android that use the phone's camera feature to take a picture of the front and back of a check and deposit it into the payee's account. The danger in this technology is that there are no markings on the check indicating whether it has been processed because the image is only scanned and not run through a machine as it would have been had it been deposited at an ATM or with a bank teller," Old Republic warned.
The key to preventing such a scam is to protect checks as if they were cash while they are in your office and also to refuse to exchange them for other forms of payment after they have left your office.
"Even exiting the closing room for a few minutes to make copies or get someone a glass of water and leaving signed checks on the table could result in disaster, since it takes less than a minute to take a picture of the front and back of a check with a smart phone and deposit it," according to Old Republic's bulletin. "Upon returning to the room, the agent might then be told that the sellers had changed their minds about the check and want a wire instead. The agent might not catch on to the scam until it is too late because the check will have been deposited without being removed from the closing room."
Reprinted from The Florida Bar News - Volume 38, Number 18, September 15, 2011
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Florida Certified Paralegal Exam ...
 To all those who are already a Certified Paralegal ("CP") or an Advanced CP.
The Paralegal Association of Florida and The University of Central Florida are pleased to offer a one day review course for the preparation of the Florida Certified Paralegal exam. 8 hours of Continuing Education Credit including one hour of ethics has been approved by NALA. It is not necessary to take the exam to receive the credit. Attached is the brochure with information for the course.
Florida Certified Paralegal Workshop and Exam
October 22 - 23, 2011 |
 Recent Changes in Requirements for Florida Registered ParalegalsRULE 20-7.1 GENERALLY A Florida Registered Paralegal shall adhere to the following Code of Ethics and Responsibility: (a) Disclosure. A Florida Registered Paralegal shall disclose his or her status as a Florida Registered Paralegal at the outset of any professional relationship with a client, [attorneys - deleted] lawyers, a court or administrative agency or personnel thereof, and members of the general public. Use of the initials FRP meets the disclosure requirement only if the title paralegal also appears. For example, J. Doe, FRP, Paralegal. Use of the word "paralegal" alone also complies. In re Amendments to Rules Regulating the Florida Bar. In re Amendments to Rules Regulating the Florida Bar (Biannual Report Housekeeping) - So.3d --, 2011 WL 2637460 (Fla.,2011) Bill Statsky | Jul 13, 2011
www.statsky.blogspot.com Via Paralegal Gateway - http://paralegalgateway.com/2011/07/13/disclosure-of-status-florida-requires-more-than-calling-oneself-frp/ |
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NALA - ACP Course Announcement ...
 The National Association of Legal Assistants is pleased to announce a new APC course, Commercial Bankruptcy, is now available! Check out the Press Release below: NALA ACP Press Release |
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From the Editor ...
 If you have any legal articles or topics of interest that you would like to see covered in the next issue of the Carpe Diem please feel free to share them with me, Cassie Snyder, CP, FRP at: Editor@cfpainc.org |
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Membership Corner
Welcome New Members:
Linda Lullman, CP
Diane Miller, FRP
Kelly Wright
Marvin Rannells, FRP
Danielle Taylor
Amanda Niznik
Osma Castro, CP
Leigh Filetti
Michele Phillips
For Membership Information and Application CLICK HERE
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Our Sponsor:
Document Efficiency
At Work
www.ikon.com
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