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Florida lawyer Jim Martin has provided legal advice on a full range of legal matters in Florida for over 30 years, is an author and speaker, and is rated AV by Martindale.

RESUMES
James W. Martin 
Erica K. Smith

Photo of James W. Martin by Jorge Alvarez
     
JAMES W. MARTIN
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Summary

Florida lawyer Jim Martin has provided legal advice on a full range of legal matters in Florida for over 30 years, is an author and speaker, and is rated AV by Martindale.
Education
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Stetson University College of Law, J.D. 1974
-Stetson University, B.S., Mathematics 1971
-Georgia Institute of Technology
Bar Admissions
-
Florida
-US District Court (M.D. Fla.)
-US Court of Appeals (11th Cir.)
-US Supreme Court
St. Petersburg Bar
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Business Law Section, past chair
-Probate Section, past chair
-Real Property Section, past chair
-Technology Section, past chair
The Florida Bar
-Probate Rules Committee, past member
-Coordinating Committee on Technology, past chair
-Law Office Management Section, past secretary
Community Positions
-Salvador Dali Museum, Trustee, Secretary & Attorney
-St. Petersburg City Council, former Councilman
-Tampa Bay Regional Planning Council, past representative
-Leadership St. Pete, 1980 graduate
-Leadership Tampa Bay, 1988 graduate
-Florida Trust for Historic Preservation, past trustee
-Pinellas County Arts Council, past councilmember
-St. Petersburg Chamber of Commerce, past board attorney
Listings & Awards
-Martindale-Hubbell "AV" rating
-Who's Who in America
-Who's Who in the World
-Who's Who in the South and Southwest
-Who's Who in American Law
-Who's Who in Entertainment
-Who's Who of Emerging Leaders in America
-Leading Florida Attorney (lawlead.com)
-Florida Bar Journal Barbara Sanders Memorial Writing Competition Award
Speaker
-"Snakes in the Grass: Hidden Real Property Issues in Probate", St. Petersburg Bar Association Probate & Real Property Section (2008)
-"Drafting a Clear As-Is Agreement", St. Petersburg Bar Association Real Property Section (2007)
-"Ten Tips for Handling Complex Probate", St. Petersburg Bar Association Probate Section (2007)
-"Drafting the Settlement Agreement That Stays Out of Court", American Bar Association Convention, Tort & Insurance Practice Section, Chicago (2001)
-"The Lawyer's Conscience: Professionalism and Ethics in Writing", Florida Bar Convention (2001)
-"Forming a Small Music Business: The Who Meets the Whys and the Wherefores", Florida Bar Entertainment, Arts & Sports Law Section annual meeting (2001)
-"How to Write Letters Nonlawyers Will Read", Florida Bar Convention(1999)
-"The Lawyer's Conscience: Professionalism in Writing Contracts and Wills for a Mechanistic World", Florida Bar Convention (1998)
-"Writing the Contract That Stays Out of Court", Florida Bar Conventions (1994, 1997, 2000)
-"The Technology You Need to Project the Vision of Your Case," Bench & Bar Conference, Stetson College of Law, St. Pete.-Clearwater Bar Associations (2003)
-"Godzilla in Cyberspace: Art Meets the Internet Police; Legal Tips for Artists Working Online," Volunteer Lawyers for the Arts, Pinellas County Arts Council (2002)
-"Tech Check for Lawyers," "Document Scanning System for Lawyers," & "Computer Security for Lawyers," St. Petersburg - Clearwater Bar Associations Technology Seminar (2004)


 

   Books & Articles by James W. Martin

See Publications page to download articles

Books Author
-West's Florida Legal Forms: Real Estate
-West's Florida Legal Forms, Business Organizations (co-author with Greg Yadley)
-West's Florida Legal Forms, Specialized Forms
-West's Legal Forms 2d, 3d & 4th, Volume 29 Nonprofit Corporations
-West's Florida Corporations System
-LOM's Florida Corporation System Manual
-Florida Jur Forms (annual supplements author)

Articles Author
-"I Want to Sign an Electronic Will", The Practical Lawyer, ALI-ABA (June 2009)
-"Don't Print That Email", The Practical Lawyer, ALI-ABA (April 2009)
-"Ten Tips for Handling Complex Probate (With Forms)", The Practical Lawyer, ALI-ABA (Aug 2008) -"Going Paperless...Or Not", The Practical Lawyer, ALI-ABA (Oct 2007)
-"A Model Electronic File Policy for the Law Office", The Practical Lawyer, ALI-ABA (April 2007); The Florida Bar News (Nov 1, 2006)
-"May I Shred My Scanned Paper Files", The Florida Bar News (Dec 1, 2006)

-"I Want to Probate a Will in Federal Court", The Florida Bar News (June 1, 2006)
-"How to Sue an LLC Member Without Piercing the Corporate Veil", The Florida Bar News (Sep 1, 2004)
-"Is the Law of the Body a Body of Law?", The Florida Bar News (June 1, 2004)
-"Be Careful Using Form Real Estate Contracts," The Florida Bar News (April 30, 2004)
-"Forget to Put Your Client's Address in the Judgment?", The Florida Bar News (Mar. 1, 2004)
-"Construction Contractors in Florida Are Incorporating," The Florida Bar News (Feb. 1, 2004)
-"The Technology You Need to Project the Vision of Your Case," The Practical Litigator, ALI-ABA  (Mar 2004); The Florida Bar News (Oct 15, 2003)
-"Practice Tip: It's Okay to Contact the Judicial Assistant," St. Petersburg Bar Association Paraclete (Nov 2003) 
-"A File Management System for Lawyers," The Florida Bar News (Sep 15, 2003)
-"Jim's Three Favorite Technology Tools," The Florida Bar News (July 15, 2003), ALI-ABA CLE Review (Dec 26, 2003)
-"Legislature Limits Homeowners' Rights to Sue Contractors," The Florida Bar News (June 1, 2003)
-"Drafting the Contract or Settlement Agreement That Stays Out of Court," The Brief (ABA Tort Trial & Insurance Practice Section, Winter 2003); The Best Articles Published by the ABA (ABA General Practice, Solo & Small Firm Section, Sep 2003)
-"Forming a Small Music Business: The Who Meets the Whys and Wherefores," The Practical Lawyer ALI-ABA (Mar 2002)
-"Putting Your Entertainment or Sports Clients' Nest Egg in Florida: Legal Ways to Preserve Wealth," Entertainment, Arts & Sports Law Section Newsletter, Florida Bar (May 2001)
-"Fifty Tips for Writing the 21st Century Contract That Stays Out of Court", ALI-ABA Practical Real Estate Lawyer & Florida Bar Journal (Nov 2000), The Florida Bar Journal 2001 Barbara Sanders Memorial Writing Competition Award,  ALI-ABA's Practice Checklist Manual for Drafting Leases IV, June 2003
-"How to Write Letters Nonlawyers Will Read", The Practical Lawyer (ALI-ABA Jan 2000), Florida Bar News (Sep 1, 1999)
-"How to Write Contracts and Other Documents as a Professional in a Mechanistic World" ("The Lawyer's Conscience: Professionalism in Writing Contracts and Wills for a Mechanistic World"), The Practical Real Estate Lawyer (ALI-ABA Nov. 1999), Florida Bar News (Aug 1, 1998)
-"Fifty Tips for Writing the Contract That Stays Out of Court", The Practical Real Estate Lawyer (ALI-ABA May 1998), Florida Bar News (Aug 1, 1997) 
-"Execution of Florida Legal Documents", Special Pamphlet, West Pub. (1992, 1994, 1995)
-"A Ban on 'Adult Only' Communities and Much More:  The Fair Housing Amendments Act of 1988", Probate & Property, Real Property, Probate & Trust Law Section, American Bar Association (Sept/Oct 1989)
-"How to Protect the Plaintiff in a Structured Settlement", Trial Magazine, ATLA (1982)
-"A Client Letter", The Practical Lawyer, ALI-ABA (___)


 

Photo of Erica K. Smith      

ERICA K. SMITH
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Summary

Erica Smith is a magna cum laude graduate of Stetson College of Law and a graduate of the College of William & Mary (Phi Beta Kappa).

Education
-Stetson University College of Law, Juris Doctor, Magna Cum Laude
-The College of William and Mary, B.A., International Relations - Latin America

Bar Admissions
-Florida
-US District Court (M.D. Fla.)

Honors & Awards
-Stetson Law School: Stetson Honors Program; National Deans List; Highest Grades Awards: Civil Procedure, Research & Writing I, Family Law, Local Government Law
-College of William & Mary: Phi Beta Kappa, Golden Key National Honor Society, National Spanish Honor Society

Professional Activities
-St. Petersburg Bar Association, Real Property Section, co-chair
-The Florida Bar
-American Bar Association

Articles Author
-"Mortgages, Easements and Other Hot Topics", The Paraclete, St. Petersburg Bar (Oct 2008)
-"St. Petersburg Rezoned: New Land Development Regulations (LDRs)", The Paraclete, St. Petersburg Bar (May 2008)
-"Fair Housing: What Lawyers Need to Know", The Paraclete, St. Petersburg Bar (June 2008)
-"What's New in the Clerk's Office", The Paraclete, St. Petersburg Bar (July 2008)

Internships
-Legal Intern to Hon. Philip J. Federico, Circuit Court Judge, Pinellas County, Florida, 2006
-Legal Intern to Hon. John C. Wolfe, City Attorney, City of St. Petersburg, Florida, 2006