A Brief History of the Escambia-Santa Rosa Bar Association

A Brief History of the

Escambia-Santa Rosa Bar Association

The Florida State Bar Association, a voluntary membership organization, was founded in 1907. One of Pensacola’s most prominent attorneys of the day, W.A. Blount, was one of the founders. He became the fifth president of that association in 1911. Later, Mr. Blount became the first Florida lawyer to be elected President of the American Bar Association (920-21).

In 1950, the Florida State Bar Association was succeeded by The Florida Bar. It was created by the Supreme Court of Florida as an integrated bar, membership in which is required as a condition to practice law in the state. Voluntary local bar associations have continued and they, as well as individual attorneys, now receive considerable assistance and encouragement from The Florida Bar.

The first local bar association for lawyers from Escambia and Santa Rosa counties was the Society of the Bar of the First Judicial Circuit. It was chartered as a non-profit corporation by order of then Circuit Judge, Thomas F. West, dated July 25, 1929, with the following officers:

President: Philip D. Beall, Sr. Vice President: L.L. Fabisinski (Escambia County) Vice President: R.A. McGeachy (Santa Rosa County) Vice President: T.R. James (Okaloosa County) Vice President: S.K. Gillis (Walton County) Secretary-Treasurer: John M. Coe

These six, plus Purl G. Adams of Crestview, D. Stuart Gillis of DeFuniak Springs, and Sam Pasco of Pensacola were designated as the Executive Council. A total of 19 lawyers signed the Petition for Incorporation, one of whom was J. McHenry Jones, who was admitted to the Bar in 1923. The unique name selected for this early bar organization, The Society of the Bar for the First Judicial Circuit, attracted much statewide interest, and was frequently commented on favorably at legal meetings, in all sections of the state.

When the “Society” was chartered in 1929, there were probably fewer than 75 lawyers in the entire First Judicial Circuit. Law office locations were confined to the four county seats. With some irregularity, monthly meetings were usually held at rotating locations among the four counties.

The meetings were held with dinner, and included such locations as the old Florida Town Hotel, the Valparaiso Inn, the Walton County Country Club, and the San Carlos Hotel. Supreme Court Justices and other state officials were often available to be guest speakers at the dinner meetings of the “Society.”

The original 1929 charter of the “Society” provided for the nonprofit corporation to exist for a period of 99 years. A later proposed amendment would have changed this to “perpetual existence.” The drafters of these charter provisions were dreamers whose dreams were not to come true. By 1971, there were two separate bar associations in the First Judicial Circuit, the Okaloosa-Walton Bar Association and the Escambia-Santa Rosa Bar Association. The latter was chartered as a nonprofit corporation on March 12, 1971. It was contemplated that the “Society” would continue in a less active role under a revised charter with quarterly, or at least annual, meetings for all of the members of these two offspring associations whose presidents would automatically serve as vice presidents of the continuing “Society.” After a few years, the “Society” ceased functioning.

Since its inception, the Escambia-Santa Rosa Bar Association (ESRBA) has had strong leadership. That leadership has led to a Bar Association that supports approximately 700 members and is intricately involved in the community. The Escambia-Santa Rosa Bar Association’s mission is to engender fellowship among members of the Association; to maintain standards of the Bar; to foster and uphold respect for the laws of the State of Florida and of the United States; and to disseminate among members information from time to time as to current events in legal circles.

The ESRBA publishes three publications in partnership with Ballinger Publishing: The Summation Weekly newspaper, The Summation Quarterly magazine and an annual membership directory. The membership directory includes current contact information for all Escambia-Santa Rosa Bar Association members, Courts, Clerk of Courts, and other useful law-related contact information. Association member updates are printed quarterly in The Summation Quarterly.

History Continued

A Lawyer Referral Service is operated by the ESRBA office. It currently has more than 50 members and is open to all Escambia-Santa Rosa Bar Association members. The yearly dues are $150, and there is a 10% referral fee.

There are approximately 24 local CLE Live Seminars on various topics sponsored by the Escambia-Santa Rosa Bar Association each year. Most of the seminars are recorded and available for download and purchases at cle.esrba.com. Member and nonmember rates are determined by the number of approved CLE credits.

A Bench/Bar Conference, which is held every two years, gives the Bar and Judiciary a chance to address problems and clarify procedures. Usually a two to three-hour conference, it is split into four sections: family law, criminal law, civil litigation, and tips and procedures. Member and nonmember rates depend on the number of approved CLE credit hours.

The ESRBA office is located at 260 S. Tarragona Street, Suite 160, Pensacola, Florida 32502. Hours of operation are Monday through Thursday from 8 a.m. until 4 p.m. and Friday from 8 a.m to 2 p.m. The office phone number is 434-8135. The general email address is esrba@esrba.com.