The Art of Jury Selection in Florida: A Beginner’s Guide (Recorded Packages)

What You Will Learn

Part 1

Lawyer Questioning — First the Law

• Getting sufficient time to question
• What is pre-trying
• How to not pull objections
• Questionnaires and more

Cause Challenges

• Hardship and cause challenges
• Reasonable doubt
• Rehabilitation and reasonable doubt

Peremptory Challenges

• Number of Peremptory Challenges
• Standard for granting Peremptory Challenges
• Three-part test for evaluating an objection based on discrimination
• Preservation Pitfalls

Part 2

Lawyer Strategies

• What kind of jurors are you looking for, or more importantly, who don’t you want on your case
• The importance of educating the jurors about the law, being fair and impartial
• Effective strategies for questioning potential jurors

Investigating Jurors During Selection

• Demonstration on how to investigate jurors during the selection process
• How attorneys manage the information uncovered about individual jurors
• How judges handle and rule upon undisclosed information by jurors

Zoom and Pandemic Challenges

• Difficulties for jurors and how that impacts your jury selection
• Difficulties for the court and what some courts are doing or proposing
• Challenges for attorneys and suggested approaches
• Cause challenges

Demonstration and Analysis

Final Tips from the Bench

Testimonials

“Judge was great.  Learned a lot about how FL will permit open ended questioning to root out prejudice.  The insight from the judge and the young but experienced trial lawyers was very helpful.”  Vincent Indeglia, Esq.

“The speakers were extremely knowledgeable; When there was more of a panel discussion as opposed to a single speaker talking for extended periods of time made for the best learning experience. Excellent seminar, highly recommend to anybody that wants to learn about jury selection.” – Matthew Baron, Esq.

“Great program, wouldn’t change anything.” – Glenn Danas, Esq.

“The program was very good. Very thorough.” – Thomas Anthony Trapani, Esq.

“Fantastic program. Impressed with preparation.” – Francis Carroll, Esq.

“Speakers were all very good.” – Hamden H. Baskin, III, Esq.

“Excellent presentation.” – Nelon Kirkland, Esq

“Excellent program.” – Shirley A. Gauvin, Esq.

“The presentations were high quality as always.” – Brian C. Unitt, Esq.

“Good choice of topics.” – Wendy Lascher, Esq.

“I thought it was all great.” – Polly Estes, Esq.

“I thought the program was excellent.”  Ellen R. Serbin, Esq.

“Excellent program. Last three panels were especially good.”  Deborah Drooz, Esq.

“The content at this program was very useful.” – Sarah Birmingham, Esq.

“Excellent and comprehensive, as usual.” – Brian Beckwith, Esq.

“Great stuff.” – Abram Genser, Esq.

“Speakers were excellent.  Content was excellent.” – Eric Faulkner, Esq

“Excellent presentation.” – Nelon Kirkland, Esq.

“Fantastic program. Impressed with preparation.” – Francis Carroll, Esq.

“Very Helpful.” – Raul Aspuru, Esq.

“Informative and practical.” – Barbara Paige, Esq.

“Gave great nuts and bolts on Jury Selection, not just topical but in-depth.” –  Michael Lynott, Esq.

“The mock voir dire was helpful.”

“It was very well put together by all presenters.”

“It was extremely helpful, especially to the younger lawyers who have never selected a jury.”

“Very experienced speakers providing value advice.”

“It was very well put together by all presenters.”

“I think it was extremely helpful, especially to the younger lawyers who have never selected a jury.”

“Very experienced speakers providing value advice.”

“Informative.”

“The program was helpful.”

“Overall good content and delivery. More real life examples are always appreciated.”

“It was great!”

“Exceeded my expectations.”

“Very Informative and engaging.”

Faculty

Hon. Milena Abreu
Circuit Court Judge
11th Judicial Circuit of Florida

Judge Abreu was elected to the bench in August of 2019.   She currently serves in the Hialeah Civil Division wherein she presides over Personal Injury Protection cases, landlord tenant, small claims and Domestic Violence cases. She was also a four time nominee to the Governor’s office for judicial appointment prior to being elected. 

While in practice, Judge Abreu was a licensed trial attorney for over 20 years, handling death penalty and homicide cases. She has tried well over 100 jury trials to verdict and was one of only six women in the entire county certified to try death penalty cases.  Prior to winning the election, Judge Abreu also served as one of the Traffic Hearing Magistrates for the County presiding over civil traffic infractions. She was a Martindale Hubbell AV rated Preeminent attorney proudly serving our South Florida community.

Judge Abreu has served on many voluntary bar organizations and is the former chair of two Florida Bar Ethics Grievance Committees overseeing lawyers professionalism conduct.   

Judge Abreu has dedicated a lifetime to public service both professionally and personally serving her community with fairness, respect and humility. 

Hon. Miguel M. de la O
Circuit Court Judge
11th Judicial Circuit of Florida, Criminal Division

Miguel M. de la O is a Circuit Court Judge for the 11th Judicial Circuit of Florida. He practiced law in Miami for over 20 years before his election as a Circuit Court Judge in 2012.

Judge de la O attended Florida State University, graduating cum laude with degrees in political science and criminology. He graduated with high honors from the Florida State University School of Law, where he was an Editor on the Law Review.

After law school, he worked for Steel Hector & Davis and Sonnett, Sale & Kuehne. In 1994, he co-founded de la O & Marko. Judge de la O was an AV-rated trial and appellate lawyer, serving as lead counsel in more than 40 criminal and civil jury trials and 25 appeals. Judge de la O is assigned to the Criminal Division, where he has presided over more than 30 felony jury trials.

Hon. Diego M. Madrigal III
Circuit Court Judge
9th Judicial Circuit Court of Florida, Family Division

Diego M. Madrigal, III was appointed to the 9th Circuit Bench in June 2019 by Governor Ron DeSantis and was retained for a full six year term without opposition in April 2020.  He currently serves in a Unified Family Court division in Osceola County where he hears Domestic Relation and Domestic Violence Injunction cases.  Prior to his appointment to the bench, he was a trial lawyer in Orlando where he tried a variety of cases, mostly dealing with personal injury.  He is a proud double Gator, and received both his Bachelor’s Degree and Law Degree from the University of Florida.  

Hon. Lisa S. Walsh
Circuit Court Judge
11th Judicial Circuit of Florida, Circuit Appellate Division

Judge Lisa Walsh is a circuit court judge, currently presiding in the civil division of the 11th Judicial Circuit of Miami-Dade, Florida, and has previously served in the criminal and dependency divisions. From 2008-2011, Judge Walsh was a county court judge assigned to the civil division. Before becoming a judge, she practiced law for sixteen years, in both the trial and appellate state and federal courts, and also served as a Special Master for the City of Miami Beach. Judge Walsh received an “AV Preeminent” rating from Martindale-Hubbell and was named in Super Lawyers and Florida Trend Legal Elite.

Judge Walsh was the 2015-2016 President of the National Association of Women Judges, and served on NAWJ’s board for five years prior to assuming presidency. She was an adjunct professor of appellate advocacy at St. Thomas Law School. She has been part of the faculty and administration of Florida’s Advanced Judicial College, Florida Judicial College, and the Florida Circuit Court Conference education committee since 2008.

Prior to becoming a judge, Judge Walsh was the President of Miami-Dade Florida Association for Women Lawyers, Vice-Chair of a Florida Bar Grievance committee, a member of the Board of Directors for Legal Services of Greater Miami, where she was awarded for her commitment to equal justice, and a member of the Florida Bar Criminal Executive Council and the Appellate Rules Committee. Judge Walsh is the recipient of the 2010 Judge Alan Schwartz Judicial Excellence award by the Dade County Bar Association. She has received the “Devorah Judge” Award by the Miami Jewish Legal Society. She was named “Outstanding Women in Government & Law” by the Miami-Dade Commission for Women, received the 2015 Mattie Belle Davis Award from Miami-Dade FAWL and the Alumni Leadership Award by the University of Miami Law School. Judge Walsh has mentored for Educate Tomorrow and Big Brothers/ Big Sisters.

Judge Walsh obtained her undergraduate degree from Northwestern University and her law degree from the University of Miami School of Law.

Edward R. Blumberg, Esq.
Partner and Co-Founder
Deutsch Blumberg & Caballero P.A.

Edward R. Blumberg is a graduate of the University of Georgia and earned his law degree from the College of William and Mary. He has practiced continuously in Florida since 1975. He has served as President of the Florida Bar, as a member of the Board of Governors of the Florida Bar and as a member of the House of Delegates of the American Bar Association. He has chaired and served on countless professional committees and groups and provides continuing legal education lectures to lawyers. Since 1983 he has been continuously certified and re-certified in civil trial law by The Florida Bar and The National Board of Trial Advocacy.

Jodie Bush

The Haggard Law Firm

 Jodie Bush is a Florida Registered Paralegal with 30 plus years of experience in the field. Jodie joined the Haggard Law Firm in 2015 and is the assistant to Attorney Todd Michaels. 

A lifelong Floridian, Jodie was born and raised in Miami. She attended Miami Dade Community College and moved on to Florida State University. During her summers while at Florida State, Jodie was an undergraduate intern in the Miami Dade State Attorney’s Office, working with attorneys in the adult and juvenile felony divisions. Upon graduation and receipt of her Bachelors Degree from Florida State, she went to work for the State of Florida Auditor General’s Office as a field investigator for the Welfare Fraud Division. 

While working with the Auditor General’s Office, Jodie returned to school and obtained her Paralegal Certification from the University of Miami, and upon graduation began her career as a Litigation Paralegal. 

Since becoming a Paralegal, Jodie has been afforded a vast amount of opportunity and responsibility in the firms she has worked for, including Preddy Kutner & Hardy, Josephs & Jack, and the Russo Appellate Firm . She is experienced in handling all aspects of a case from intake to conclusion in the areas of: personal injury/wrongful death, products liability, multi-district litigation, security negligence and medical malpractice 

Cosme Caballero, Esq.
Partner
Deutsch Blumberg & Caballero P.A.

Mr. Caballero is a graduate of the University of Miami School of Law where he served as Articles & Comments Editor of the University of Miami Law Review, where he published an article titled Curbing Corporate Abuse from Jurisprudential Off-Sites: Problematic Paradigms in United States v. Textron Inc. Following graduation, Mr. Caballero was admitted to practice law in Florida.  He was also admitted to practice in the United States District Court for the Southern District of Florida and the Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals. He is a member of the Dade County Bar Association and is a Florida Bar  Grievance Committee Member for the 11th Judicial Circuit.

Dawn Giebler-Millner, Esq.

Dawn Millner focuses her general litigation practice in the areas of product liability, employment, commercial and complex civil litigation. She has served as trial attorney in numerous cases involving claims of product liability, breach of contract and employment discrimination.

Kimberly E. Lorenz, Esq.
Partner
Davey Law Group, P.A.

Kimberly is a civil trial attorney representing national retail, hospitality, entertainment, and corporate clients, as well as individuals and small businesses throughout the state of Florida.  She takes pride in being the go-to for all her clients’ litigation needs, from small questions and pre-need counseling through a jury trial, and has zealously represented her clients in the areas of commercial and business litigation, premises liability, negligent hiring/retention, and probate litigation. She provides her clients with efficient, effective and aggressive representation, as well as on-call employment and HR assistance, risk management, compliance assessments and loss-shifting strategies to protect her clients from future loss and claims.

A Double-Gator, Kimberly graduated Cum Laude from the University of Florida’s Levin College of Law and holds a Bachelors’ degree in Journalism.  She is routinely recognized by Super Lawyers as a Top Young Lawyer and Rising Star in Florida, and by the Orange County Bar Association for her outstanding commitment and service as a Guardian Ad Litem.

Outside of work, Kimberly is heavily involved in events planning and marketing strategy for her clients, and with various community development boards dedicated to showcasing Orlando’s vibrant business and cultural community. A life-long Orlando resident, she resides there with three generations of her family.

Douglas J. McCarron, Esq.
Partner
The Haggard Law Firm

Douglas J. McCarron is an accomplished trial lawyer with significant experience handling a wide variety of cases including negligent security, pool drowning, dram shop, and construction and auto accidents. 

Doug served as an Assistant State Attorney in Miami-Dade County for four years. While there, Doug was a member of the Career Criminal Unit where he distinguished himself in over 50 trials prosecuting violent crime. Upon leaving the State Attorney’s Office in 2000, Doug began to focus on representing victims of serious and catastrophic injury. 

Doug joined The Haggard Law Firm in 2006 and became a partner in 2007. Since joining the firm, he has recovered over 150 million in verdicts and settlements for his clients. In Garcia v. Arbors Apartments, Doug successfully obtained a million jury verdict on behalf of the Garcia family. This negligent security/wrongful death case found the owners and managers of the apartment complex guilty of failing to provide adequate security on their property. Doug has been able to recover similar results in cases throughout Florida. Doug served as President of the Miami-Dade Trial Lawyers Association in 2013 and was recently appointed by the Florida Supreme Court to serve on the Civil Standard Jury Instructions Committee. Doug is also a member of the American Board of Trial Advocates and the Florida Justice Association. 

Outside the office, Doug enjoys spending time with his wife Becky and their three boys, Jack, Finn and William Andrew (Drew). Doug and Becky are extremely active in a number of local charities and truly believe in giving back to the community. Doug was born in Atlantic City, New Jersey but moved to Miami as a young boy. He graduated from Miami Archbishop Curley Notre Dame High School. Doug received his Bachelors of Science in 1993 and his Juris Doctorate in 1995, both with Honors, from Florida State University.

Todd J. Michaels, Esq.
Partner
The Haggard Law Firm

Todd Michaels Esq, a lifelong Miami-Dade resident, joined The Haggard Law Firm in 2009. In May 2014, he was named a partner. Todd handles a wide array of the firm’s cases involving wrongful death and catastrophic personal injury, representing clients who were injured through the negligence of others. His practice primarily involves negligent security throughout the State of Florida and nationwide.  Todd has been a frequent speaker on various aspects of negligent security law to different legal and security industry groups and has had articles relating to negligent security cases published.  In addition to his negligent security work, Todd also handles rideshare (Uber/Lift) liability, premises liability, aviation, pool drowning, auto accident and other injury cases.

In 2019 Todd Michaels tried a medical malpractice wrongful death case alongside co-counsel Daniel Harwin that resulted in a .5 million verdict in Broward County Court. The case involved the death of a mother of four children due to avoidable complications during childbirth caused by a condition the medical team responsible for her care was aware of. The jury took two hours to deliberate afTer a four day trial.

Todd was lead counsel in the negligent security case of Snell vs. Family Food Saver. The trial resulted in a verdict of .7 million for the Snell family. It was the largest premises liability verdict in the State of Florida that year. 

Michaels has been twice named Most Effective Lawyer by the Daily Business Review and has been named several times to the Best Lawyers in America and Super Lawyers lists, including the Top 100 Super Lawyers. among several other annual honors. In 2019 he was recognized as a BRONZE EAGLE Award Winner by the Florida Justice Association The prestigious honor is bestowed to those who have shown an extraordinary contribution to the FJA EAGLE Program. Michaels is also an FJA Board Member, Fellow, and  Executive Committee Member, among other positions.

In 2018 Michaels was selected by his peers to become one of the distinguished and exclusive Fellows of The Academy of Florida Trial Lawyers, the National Trial Lawyers,  Top 40 Under 40, and is a member of ABOTA, along with several other organizations. Nevertheless, Todd Michaels often says that his greatest accomplishment was becoming a father to his two sons, Ashton and Jackson Michaels.

Before joining The Haggard Law Firm, Todd served as an assistant public defender for nearly five years. During his last year with the public defender’s office, he worked as a felony training attorney, supervising other felony trial lawyers. After leaving the public defender’s office, Todd served as a federal public defender and a private criminal defense practitioner. He tried in excess of fifty trials in both the State and Federal Court systems.

Sabrina Puglisi, Esq.

Puglisi Law

Sabrina Puglisi is a Florida Board Certified Criminal Trial attorney since 2008. Prior to starting her own firm, Puglisi Law, in 2011, she has the unique experience of having worked for both the Miami-Dade Public Defender’s Office and the Federal Defender’s Office for the Southern District of Florida where she gained invaluable experience as a trial attorney handling hundreds of different cases from pre-trial to trial.

She is recognized as one of Florida’s Super Lawyers for Criminal Defense in South Florida’s Legal Guide.

Ms. Puglisi graduated from the University of Miami, School of Law in 2000. Prior to that she attended Florida International University where she graduated Magna Cum Laude.

Ms. Puglisi volunteers her time for different voluntary bar organizations. She is the current President of the Miami-Dade County Bar Association; past president of the Florida Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers (FACDL), Miami Chapter; and a Director for FACDL statewide.

In addition to the Florida Bar, Ms. Puglisi is admitted to practice in the District of Columbia, all three districts of federal court in Florida (Southern District, Middle District, and Northern District) and the Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals. She has also practiced in federal courts around the country.

James N. Robinson II, Esq.
Partner
White & Case, LLP

Drawing on his significant experience in state and federal courts handling virtually every type of civil case, Jim’s practice is primarily focused on commercial trial work. He works to limit his clients’ exposure and to protect their interests.

Jim has particular experience of representing regional and national law firms in legal malpractice lawsuits. In such cases he takes a thorough, hands-on approach, managing all aspects of the lawsuits.

Many of Jim’s recent commercial cases include representation of clients connected to the banking industry. Such cases include representation of financial technology (fintech) companies involved with merchant services and credit card processing in both domestic and international disputes. In addition, Jim has represented a series of banks against multimillion-dollar lender liability lawsuits, most of which were resolved with summary judgment in Jim’s clients’ favor. For banking clients, Jim also brings his experience of prosecuting dozens of commercial foreclosure lawsuits on loans totaling over US $ 1.5 billion. Jim represents foreign and domestic corporations in contract disputes, regulatory and compliance matters, and consumer class actions at various stages, including appeals. He has successfully defended numerous director and officer liability actions, and has successfully represented real estate developers and contractors in real estate disputes throughout the United States.

Jim is an active member of a number of professional associations, including the Federal Bar Association, the Trial Lawyers Section of The Florida Bar, the International Law Section of The Florida Bar, the Miami-Dade County Bar Association and the J. Reuben Clark Law Society.

He has taken lead roles in a significant number of professional committees, including as the Chair of the International Litigation and Arbitration Committee (2008), the Chair of the International Litigation and Arbitration Committee Conference (2007), a Steering Committee Member on the International Litigation Update (2005–2006), and as a Chair of the FGCU Alumni Association Board of Directors (2009–2011). He has also served on the Law Alumni Council, University of Florida Levin College of Law.

Fees

Three Recorded Package options to choose from:

Video (with sound)* Recording & Materials Package – CD or Download:  $425

Audio Only* Recording & Materials Package – CD or Download:  $425

Order both the Video* and Audio Only* Packages for only $50 more – CD or Download:  $475

*The Video recording is a video of the webinar (with sound). The Audio recording is audio only, for those who wish to listen to it without visuals (such as in the car).

Note: All downloads must be downloaded to a computer first, before transferring them to another device.

For CDs, please add $8.50 shipping and, in CA, sales tax.

This program will be recorded live on December 7 & 9, 2021.

(Recorded packages are available approximately two to three weeks after the seminar is held.)

CLE Credit

FL General:  This program is approved for 8.0 General CLE units in Florida through 09/30/2025.
FL Board Certified:  This program is approved for 8.0 Florida Board Certified CLE units in Civil Trial, Criminal Appellate Law and Criminal Trial Law through 09/30/2025.

CA General:  This program is approved for 6.5 units of general CLE in California.

NY General: This course is eligible for approval, under New York’s CLE Approved Jurisdiction policy, for 6.5 CLE units. Pincus Professional Education is a CA Accredited Provider, which is a NY approved jurisdiction. See Section 6 of the New York State CLE Board Regulations and Guidelines for further information.

This program is approved for CLE in the states listed above.  Upon request, Pincus Pro Ed will provide any information an attorney needs to support their application for CLE approval in other states other than what is listed above.