Gwynne Alice Young to Become Florida Bar's 64th President

Tampa attorney Gwynne Alice Young will be installed as the 64th president of The Florida Bar, with Eugene K. Pettis, a Fort Lauderdale attorney, sworn in as president-elect, during the Bars Annual Convention June 22 at the Gaylord Palms Resort and Convention Center in Orlando, the Bar announced Tuesday.

Young, a shareholder at Carlton Fields, is the fifth woman elected to the Bars highest post.

She is also the fifth attorney from the firm to lead the Bar.

According to a release from the Bar, Youngs objectives will include expanding legal opportunities for minorities and women, ensuring adequate funding for the courts and for legal services to the poor, and educating Bar members and the public about judicial merit retention.

"We need to make sure that every member of this organization has an opportunity to participate in all aspects of Bar work and that the legal profession reflects Florida's diverse population, Young stated in a release.

The release from the Bar adds that Young plans to be out on the road, speaking to civic groups, helping voters understand what is at stake in the Nov. 6 election during which three Florida Supreme Court justices and 15 appeal court judges will be on the ballot.

A graduate of Duke University and the University of Florida College of Law where she was executive editor of the Florida Law Review, Young became the first female assistant state attorney in the Hillsborough state attorney's office. She joined Carlton Fields in 1977.

Her work involves representing insurers in insurance coverage matters, real property litigation, probate and trust litigation, and other business disputes.
In 2003, Young earned The Florida Bar President's Pro Bono Award.

In June 2013, Pettis will become its first African-American leader.

A founding member of Haliczer Pettis & Schwamm in Fort Lauderdale, Pettis graduated from the University of Florida College of Law in 1985 and began practicing later that year. His practice focuses on medical malpractice, personal injury, professional liability and commercial litigation.