THE END OF AN ERA & JUDGE JOHNSON INVESTITURE .....

THE CAPTAIN REPORTS:

THE END OF AN ERA ....... BUT FIRST

JUDGE CHARLES "CHARLIE" JOHNSON INVESTITURE

County Court Judge Charles "Charlie" Johnson, recently appointed to the Circuit Court bench by Governor Scott, will be formally sworn in at his INVESTITURE OF JUDGE CHARLES JOHNSON, on Friday, February 19, 2016 at 12:15 PM.  The Investiture takes place at the Civil Courthouse, located at 73 West Flagler Street, 6th Floor, in the Ceremonial Courtroom.

Guests are advised to arrive early if they want a seat inside the courtroom.  There is an overflow room with a video screen available on the same floor.

Congrats again for a well deserved accomplishment.

ROBBINS, TUNKEY, ROSS, AMSEL, RABEN, & WAXMAN .....

In the mid-1970s, Fred Robbins and Bill Tunkey were ASAs working for Richard Gerstein.  They left that office and joined Paul Pollack's firm.  Jeff Weiner soon joined them.  In 1977, Jeffrey Weiner, Fred Robbins, and Bill Tunkey created the law firm Weiner, Robbins, Tunkey.

Soon thereafter, Alan Ross left Kogan and Kogan to join the new firm.  In 1982, Bob Amsel signed on right out of law school. David Raben left the PD's office in 1983 and joined the growing firm. And Benjamin "Benji" Waxman rounded out the firm in the mid-80s. There were many other associates over the past four decades that worked at the one and only criminal defense law firm in the State of Florida. (Two names that come to mind that worked there over the years include Barry Wax and Mark Eiglarsh.  Who else worked there?).

The firm lasted 39 years, a lifetime in the legal community in this day and age.  Jeff Weiner left in 1992 and they renamed the firm Robbins, Tunkey, Ross, Amsel, Rabin & Waxman.  Finally, earlier this month, after 39 years, the immutable Robbins, Tunkey, et al decided to break up.

They were known as Florida's oldest and largest exclusively criminal defense law firm. They were the exception to the norm in criminal defense firms, where the average size is one.  While many criminal defense lawyers share space and overhead, their firms are kept separate because of the issue of conflict of interest.  Robbins, Tunkey bucked that norm and created a powerhouse law firm of seasoned attorneys who did nothing but criminal defense law, on a State and Federal level.   Nearly all were former ASAs or APDs and they were really good at their craft.

We can tell you that the dissolution was amicable.  According to Bob Amsel, "we had all come to a point in our careers where we were all in different places and this change seemed to make sense."  We understand that a new firm has been born at the familiar location on SW 3rd Avenue.  That new firm is called Ross, Amsel, Raben, Nascimento (Joseph).  Fred Robbins and Bill Tunkey are sharing space together in the same building, while Benji Waxman has moved his digs to a new location.

Good luck to the newly named firm and to all of the other attorneys who once made up "the largest exclusively criminal defense law firm in Florida".

ELECTION CENTRAL .......

In Election 2016 news, yet another attorney has filed to run in Group 34 of the Circuit Court.  Attorney Mark Blumstein, a member of The Florida Bar since 1996, has filed in a Group that now includes five candidates: Renee Gordon, Antonio Jimenez, Denis Martinez Martinez-Scanziani, Luis Perez-Medina, and Blumstein.

Mr. Blumstein went to Nova law, he speaks Italian and Spanish, and his practice covers just about all areas of the law, according to his web site, which states that "our firm practices extensively in litigation, contractual disputes, business torts, military affairs as well as many other practice areas."

To date, there all still four contested Circuit Court Groups, and David Young is still uncontested in an open seat.

CAPTAIN OUT .....
Captain4Justice@gmail.com