weLComeBaCkFrommvaC !
Military & Veterans Affairs Committee Chairs : RobertBarton – RumbergerKirk & JanaeThomas – Quinteros , Prieto , WoodandBoyer , P . A .
wearecontinuingtolook forinnovativewaystosay “ thankYou ” tothe100 + lawyerswhohavejoinedthe vLarinoneormoreofthe 17areasoflawitcontains .
We would first like to thank Matthew Hall and Alex srsic for their wonderful leadership and mentorship over the last Bar year . We are both honored to serve as MVAC ’ s new co-chairs and look forward to serving our members and the community this Bar year .
As your incoming committee chairs , we are excited to find new and engaging ways to further this committee ’ s efforts and continue our connections with our local active-duty , reserve , guard , and veteran community . new co-chair , Janae Thomas , is an attorney at Quintairos , Prieto , Wood , and Boyer , P . A ., where she practices nursing home defense . she is also a United states Air Force member , serving as a Judge Advocate general in the reserve unit . Co-chair robert Barton is a veteran of the United states Marine Corps , where he served as an infantryman in the Afghanistan theaters . He is currently an associate at rumbergerKirk , representing insurance companies in coverage disputes and bad faith claims in state and federal courts .
one of the pieces of the MVAC that we are most proud of is the Veterans Legal Assistance registry , or VLAr , the state of Florida ’ s first registry that connects veterans seeking legal assistance with lawyers willing to provide reduced rate or pro bono services for veterans in need . We are continuing to look for innovative ways to say “ Thank You ” to the 100 + lawyers who have joined the VLAr in one or more of the 17 areas of law it contains . If you are interested in seeing the list , check it out on the HCBA website under the “ For The Public ” tab or go to http :// tinyurl . com / veteranslegal registry . ( Contact us if you would like to be added to the registry ). Another big focus of our committee will be continuing the established legacy of community volunteering at local and regional “ stand-down ” events , including the annual Veterans Day stand-down held in Tampa , and the spring stand-down hosted by the Bay Pines VA Medical Center . some of our other , equally as important , events include providing guidance and support to the Judge Advocate general Corps stationed at MacDill Air Force Base , promoting the 13th Judicial Circuit ’ s nationally recognized Veterans Treatment Court , while also recognizing our judiciary and Bar members that have prior military service . In the upcoming Bar year , we will be offering many events in the way of education . our education subcommittee plans to host multiple CLEs this year and are always looking for new and exciting topics to cover . If you have any programming you would like to see , please do not hesitate to reach out . We look forward to serving the committee , the Bar , and the community in a meaningful and impactful way . Please feel free to join us for a meeting or an event to share your thoughts with us as well . no military experience is required to join the committee , and we welcome a diverse civilian , military , and veteran culture of our membership to help expand the committee ’ s reach and impact . n
Authors : Robert Barton – Rumberger Kirk & Janae Thomas – Quinteros , Prieto , Wood and Boyer , P . A .
Check out the Veterans Legal Assistance Registry ( VLAR ) online on the HCBA website under the “ For The Public ” tab or at http :// tinyurl . com / veteranslegalregistry .
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