Last week, 11th and 12th-grade Constitutional Law students from Pompano Beach High School visited the central courthouse where they spent the morning touring and observing, and the afternoon arguing for their cause. The group of 30 split up to argue two recent cases held before the Supreme Court — Bostock v Clayton County and Kansas v Glover. Judge Carol Lisa Phillips and Judge Carlos Rodriguez graciously volunteered their time to “judge” both arguments, and assisted the acting judges in determining the winning side for each team.

The Thomas J. “TJ” Reddick, Jr. portrait unveiling ceremony took place last week in the Central Courthouse in front of a large crowd of dignitaries, judges, members of the family, and the public. Earlier this year, the North Tower of the courthouse was named for Judge Reddick, the first black attorney to practice law in Broward County,  the first black judge in Broward County, and the first black judge elected in the State of Florida. The portrait was commissioned by the TJ Reddick Bar Association and the Broward County Bar Association, and presented to Judge Reddick’s family members. The portrait is on permanent display behind glass in the walkway connecting the west tower to the north tower.

The Broward County Bar Association held their 2019 Broward Bench and Bar Convention last week, inviting attorneys and judges alike, to spend the day learning and networking.

In mid-October, some of the Seventeenth Circuit’s JAs volunteered to host a Q&A session for a weekend paralegal class at Broward College. The “Paralegal Eagles” met with Judicial Assistants Kim Oliva, Kim Cox, Roxanne Chang, Paula Galluccio, and Marcul Joseph who answered questions for two hours with the students and educated them on the Court System.

Last week, many of the Seventeenth Circuit’s judicial assistants participated in a semi-annual brown bag lunch where they meet to talk about best practices, issues, and other topics to foster camaraderie.