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This e-mail digest is dedicated to the interaction and education of volunteer speaker members of The Florida Bar Speakers Bureau. Submit items of interest to Mirieth Valenciano Marín at MValencianoMarin@flabar.org, or mail to The Florida Bar Speakers Bureau, 651 E. Jefferson Street, Tallahassee, FL 32399-2300. Photos sent by e-mail should be in jpg and gif format.

May 2, 2012. Issue 90



Open speaker requestU.S. flag
Topic: Criminal Law (general issues and career issues)
When: May 17
For whom: Miami Community Charter School
Where: Florida City
Time/Length: from 8 a.m. to 11:30 a.m.
Audience: Middle & High School students
Details: Career Day activity. Speakers will rotate on up to 14 classes for 15 to 20 minutes presentations. Looking for a judge and an attorney.


If you are able to take this engagement or if you know someone who will be willing to take it, please e-mail mvalencianomarin@flabar.org. First qualified speaker who answers this request will be booked for the activity. Thank you.

Welcome new speakers

We are pleased to announce that Ronald Kaniuk, Zachary McCormick, Thomas Meyer and Sarah Shullman joined the Speakers Bureau in April. We hope they find this volunteer experience a fulfilling one.


Monthly notes from groups

  • "Mr. Craig (James Craig) did an excellent job!" He talked about credit issues to the Republican Club of East Polk County.
  • "Mr. Tiffany was well prepared and gave an excellent presentation. Our group remained captured and intently interested. Mr. Tiffany mixed humor with historical facts and maintained the group's attention." He talked about the 2nd Amendment to the Winter Have 9-2 Project.
  • About Robert Murphy: "Excellent speaker, very knowledgeable. Any organization would benefit from Mr. Murphy. Wonderful choice of speakers." He talked about consumer rights to the Pilot Club of Fort Lauderdale.

Volunteer Opportunity

Consumer Pamphlets Revision
The Florida Bar Public Information Department is looking for volunteers to review some of its consumer pamphlets and tips. These publications educate the public about a variety of legal issues. The pamphlet in need of revision is The Revocable Trust in Florida. The tips to be revised are Buying a Mobile Home, How to Avoid Being a Victim of Auto Repair and Service Station Gimmicks, Identity Theft, Rights and Duties of Tenants and Landlords and Your Rights and Responsibilities When Applying for Credit or Loans.

Each volunteer will receive 50 copies of a selected consumer pamphlet for free.

Please, contact Mirieth Valenciano at mvalencianomarin@flabar.org if you are interested in this opportunity.


Speaking tips


Bookending Your Speech: A Master Technique
from http://sixminutes.dlugan.com/

Bookending Your Speech: A Definition

Picture a pair of bookends — that is, matched objects that are used to bound a series of books on a shelf. From a practical perspective, bookends support the books to ensure that they stay together. Aesthetically, however, they do much more. Bookends neatly (and often artistically) provide visual symmetry for the books on display. In doing so, they draw more attention to the row of books, and give the impression that these books are special and to be admired.

When you “bookend your speech”, you provide similar support for the body of your speech. By opening and concluding your speech with a common element, you neatly (and often artistically) provide cognitive symmetry for the speech which you have delivered. You draw more attention to your words, and give the impression that your message is special and to be accepted.

Bookending your speech is an elegant technique, and conveys the impression that your speech was crafted very carefully with a precise attention to detail. This boosts your credibility as your audience will be more likely to conclude that your entire speech was crafted with similar care, and therefore can be trusted.

Ways to Bookend Your Speech

There are a variety of strategies that you can adopt to bookend your speech. Choose the one that best fits your speech. Make sure that whichever strategy you use, your bookending element is closely related to your theme. Bookending your speech with random elements would be like bookending a set of classic literature novels with a pair of baseballs — functional, but not particularly meaningful.

1. Tell two halves of a story.
      • Open your speech by introducing a story. You should not tell the whole story. . . just enough of the story to establish some conflict and introduce a character. Then, you proceed with the core of your speech.
      • At the end of your speech, pick up the story where you left off, and tell it to its conclusion.
      • Be sure that the story is intimately tied to your speech content. For example, if your speech is about following your dreams, you might tell a story where the main character follows her dreams. (The first half would explain that she is following her dream; the second half would tell how it turned out.)
    2. Ask a question, and answer it.
        • Open your speech by posing a question to the audience.
        • Conclude your speech by providing the answer.
        • For added effect, you can hint that the answer will come at the end.
        • A twist on the question-answer theme is to issue a challenge or a puzzle, and provide the solution.
      3. Use the same (or similar) quotations.
          • Open your speech with a quotation.
          • Close your speech with the same quotation.
          • This works best if your speech message has breathed new life into the quotation. Your goal is to have the audience reinterpret the quotation in light of your speech.
        4. Use contrasting quotations.
            • Open your speech with a quotation.
            • Close your speech with a quotation that opposes the original quotation.
            • Just as when using the same quotation as bookends, you want the audience to reinterpret the opening quote. Perhaps the opening quote is a commonly held belief, while the closing quote is a disruptive idea which your audience will now be more likely to accept.
          5. Use contrasting concepts.
              • Open your speech with a concept or theme.
              • Close your speech with a contrasting concept or theme.
              • For example, you might open with a story about birth, and close with a story about death.
              • Or, you might open with a story about being a student, and close with a related story about being a teacher.
              • Or, you might open with a story taken from your youth, and close with a related story about your own child.
            6. Use humor.
                • Open your speech with a humorous story or statement.
                • Close your speech with another humorous statement, which either builds on the first, or references it in some way.
                • When using this bookending strategy (and the others too), be sure to use the same keywords both times so your audience “gets” the humorous reference (e.g. if you open with a joke about a “red handbag”, don’t close with a joke about a “ruby purse”.)
              7. Use a prop.
                  • Open your speech with a prop.
                  • Close your speech by using the prop a second time.
                  • This strategy works best if you combine it with other strategies. For example, when introducing the prop, you might pose a question about it. Then, in your conclusion, you can answer that question.
                8. Use a slide.
                    • Open your speech with a visual slide.
                    • Close your speech with the same slide, or perhaps a slightly modified version of the first.
                    • This works if the the picture you are displaying can be reinterpreted by your audience as a result of your speech message.
                    • As a twist, your opening slide can be cropped to hide part of the image, while the concluding slide can reveal the full image. Again, this allows your audience to reinterpret the original image.
                  9. Use any other common element.
                      • Open your speech by referencing a fact, a word, a phrase, a movie title, etc.
                      • Close your speech by referring back to the same fact, word, phrase, movie title, etc. in a meaningful way.
                      Bookending your speech is a master technique that is easy to apply, whether you are a professional speaker or a novice. Just today, I attended a Toastmasters meeting where a new member was delivering his first speech. He opened his speech humorously by “confessing” that he detested umbrellas. He then closed his speech by declaring his dream that umbrellas be banned by legislation. (The overall speech was humorous, and this particular humor fit well.)


                      The Florida Bar News

                      Law Day
                      Florida attorneys will join bar associations and other legal groups throughout the country to celebrate Law Day. on May 1, The Florida Bar observes Law Day to commemorate the rule of law, the judiciary and its place in American society. This year’s Law Day theme,                       “No Courts, No Justice, No Freedom,” provides an outstanding opportunity for the nation to reflect on the role our courts and judiciary have played throughout our country’s history.

                      The Florida Bar News
                      The                       May 1 Bar News is now available with stories including:
                        • The clerks warning about delays in civil cases.
                        • The Supreme Court requiring that lawyers provide their business email addresses to the Bar.
                        • The governor vetoing funding for civil legal assistance.
                        Annual Convention - Online Registration Now Open
                        Then, Now, Always... A Heritage of Leadership                         is the theme for the 62nd Annual 2012 Florida Bar Convention to be held June 20 - 23 at the Gaylord Palms Resort and Convention Center, Orlando/Kissimmee. Participate in your choice of 14 CLE courses, 12 luncheons and special events, committees and section meetings, General Assembly and more. Make your hotel reservation early before rooms sell out. Review the convention website for updates.

                        April President's Video Message
                        Florida Bar President Scott G. Hawkins discusses the                         Judicial Merit Retention education program The Vote's in YOUR COURT, Annual Convention and Lawyers Helping Lawyers. Alternate video formats are available.

                        Compliant filings
                        Visit the Florida Supreme Court website to find the requirements, recommendations and resources for accessible filings and judicial branch records. The Florida Courts E-Filing Authority Board website is also available for review.

                        JNC Vacancies:
                        The Vote's in YOUR COURT
                        The Florida Bar encourages you to learn more about judicial merit retention with our educational program                         The Vote’s in YOUR COURT. This coming November, you will be asked to vote whether to retain the justices and appeals court judges listed on the ballot. This is called judicial merit retention.

                        The LREC is now seeking nominations for Justice Teaching Awards
                        The Law Related Education Committee will name a Justice Teaching volunteer and a select committee judge of the year during the Bar’s Annual Convention in June. These awards will be given to the nominees who have most exemplified the spirit and purpose of Justice Teaching; that is, dedication to the bringing of civic education to the children of Florida. The nomination form can be accessed at www.justiceteaching.org/info.shtml. Deadline: Tuesday, May 10.


                        ABA News

                        ABA Focus Group Offers Indigent Defense Reforms
                        A diverse focus group of criminal justice experts convened by an American Bar Association committee has issued strategies for improving government systems that provide representation in criminal cases to people who cannot afford a lawyer.

                        ABA Urges for Support of VAWA to Maintain Public Safety Programs
                        Calling the bill the single most effective federal effort to respond to domestic violence and sexual assault, American Bar Association President Wm. T. (Bill) Robinson III urged senators to support S. 1925, the Violence Against Women Reauthorization Act of 2011, in a letter sent to Capitol Hill today (April 26).

                        New Cyber Security Legislation is Critical for Combating Cyber Threats, says Secretary Napolitano
                        Increased attacks in cyberspace, which include those on network services and utilities such as water and electricity, prompt the need for the enactment of new cyber security legislation that would give the Department of Homeland Security more authority to combat such attacks, said Janet Napolitano.

                        All 50 States Represented for First Time During 2012 ABA Day in Washington
                        In a historic first, the American Bar Association welcomed participation from all 50 states in the association’s annual effort to connect policymakers with their constituents in the legal profession.

                        Only Two Weeks Left to Make a Difference Without Leaving Your Desk
                        With two clicks of a mouse, you can provide homeless veterans with access to justice, help foster children transition to independent living, or build awareness of Law Day! The American Bar Association recently launched the “Make Your Likes Count” sweepstakes on Facebook, which invites legal professionals to support three ABA Fund for Justice and Education charities.


                        Quote of Note

                        "Be sure you put your feet in the right place, then stand firm."
                        ~                        Abraham Lincoln

                        #    #    #

                        Mirieth Valenciano Marín
                        Speakers Bureau Liaison
                        The Florida Bar,
                        651 E. Jefferson Street,
                        Tallahassee FL 32399-2300
                        1-800-342-8060, extension 5773
                        850/561-5733 (fax)
                        Mailto:                        MValencianoMarin@flabar.org

                        May 2, 2012. Issue 90

                        [Revised: 05-02-2012]