This sad news comes from one of his colleagues via the FACDL listserv:
Colleagues, it is with great sadness that i inform you of the passing of Arturo Alvarez. Arturo was an excellent lawyer no matter what type of case he handled. He was a great friend to many and an excellent athlete. We again lose an invaluable asset and friend to the legal profession and our community.
As soon as i receive any information on the services i will post it.
Thank you,
Frank Quintero Jr.
Arturo Alvarez lived the history we always think others made. He came to Miami at a time when Cubans were discriminated against. He was a prosecutor for Richard Gerstein ;Head of the Litigation for the City Of Miami Attorney's Office; A founding member of the Cuban American Bar Association; member of various state and federal Judical Nominating Committees including the 3rd DCA, the Florida Supreme Court, and US District Court; and a member of the North Miami City Hall of Fame.
There isn't a lawyer in this city who didn't know that Arturo Alvarez was not only one of the finest trial lawyers in the nation, but a true gentleman. Kind, decent, friendly, always ready to lend an ear and help out. And as Frank said, no discussion of Artie would be complete without recognition that he was a life long athlete. He was legendary among the lawyer football leagues.
Artie made his make on our community, our legal system, and among his friends. He will be long remembered and missed.
8 comments:
I join in with the many tributes for Art Alvarez. He was already a star in the State Attorneys Office when I started in 1974. Over the years we maintained a solid frienship. Not only was he a natural born trial lawyer, but as a man he exhibited the best of human values. We not only lose another of the old Gerstein gang, but we also lose someone whom we could always say was a friend. He always had time to talk and remember tales of the old Gerstein days. I am truly saddened at his passing.
He was a very kind man and excellent lawyer. RIP Artie, and condolences to your family.
Rest in peace!
Wasn't he a football star in high school and college before going to law school?
This is devastating news. Artie was in the Justice Building during its glory years in the 70s. We would try cases against the ASA fight like hell and after the verdict go for a beer together. We would date there secretaries and they would hit on ours. Artie was a great trial lawyer in civil and criminal cases. We tried cases in Key West together when he was an ASA and even though he asked the judge to hold me in contempt, we went out for a beer together. Artie was a fabulous athlete. He played for the "Bad News Bears" softball team which consisted of both ASA's and PD's and few ringers. The Bears always won their league and for the most part were undefeated as Frankie's Pizza. His brother, Carlos was an all-american wide receiver for the GATORS starting in 1969 and thereafter. Carlos made the front cover of Sports Illustrated Magazine as one of the best in the country. Many say, Artie was actually better than Carlos but had knee injuries in high school and that ended his football career. His other brother, Caesar is the head at Greenberg Trauig. They are all GATORS. Artie always had friendly words to say to all and a smile on his face, In the 70s he actually somehow acquired a new silver porsche 911 that was the envy of all at that time. I am shocked by his sudden passing and will miss him immensely.He was a tremendous trial lawyer, athlete, and most important a person. I am so sorry he passed in the manner he did.May he rest in peace and condolences to his family and brothers. This is an awful loss for all.
Had the chance to be in courtroom 5-7 this week. What an absolute dump. Stains dotting the carpet. Ugly posters displaying the DUI fines from 2004. Electrical wires taped down with duct tape that peeled off years ago. A dozen cops clustering around the state's table, asses bumping into the podium, and a bailiff climbing over people and chairs to reach defendants. That county court is where most Miamians encounter the criminal justice system, in these shitty neon-lit rooms hovering around 85* inside, is insane. (Not to mention that in the time it takes to fix one floor of the escalator China has built seven skyscrapers and an eight lane highway).
Miami needs a courthouse. It currently has an embarrassment.
Anonymous raises a valid point. For folks coming to the county court, they walk away with a real negative feeling. Even though county court has always been the step-child of circuit court, the public deserves better than some garbage can make-shift courtroom. I hate to sound old, but the building was a dump when I got here in 1974, and it still is a shabby, dumpy building today.
Yeah! But in that "shitty" courtroom which belongs to Judge Lizzet Martinez, more justice is dealt out in an hour than in most fancy marble and wood courtrooms in a month. I'll take justice in a nitty gritty courtroom over getting railroaded in a fancy courtroom
room any day!
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