Board Certification

Why Florida Bar Board Certification is Important

What is Florida Bar board certification? The Florida Bar board certification was “established by The Florida Supreme Court in 1982 to recognize an attorneys’ special knowledge, skills, and proficiency in various areas of law and professionalism and ethics in practice.”

Regan Atwood P.A., a Jacksonville, Florida, law firm with offices in Orlando, Florida, has three attorneys who are Florida Bar board certified: attorney Jeffrey C. Regan, the managing partner of Regan Atwood P.A., is one of a small group of attorneys in the state of Florida, that holds double Florida Bar board certifications. Attorney and partner F. Eugene Atwood, and attorney and partner Charles “Chad” R. Walker, Jr., are board certified in construction law.

What is Board Certification?

Florida is different than most states because Florida offers board certification for attorneys, a process which involves a peer review, and specialty competency exams. The Florida Bar Board of Legal Certification handles lawyer board certification.

Board certification requires that an attorney has practiced a minimum of five years. The attorneys are vetted, peer-reviewed, and have to demonstrate exceptional ability in their specific practice area and sit for an exam.

Board certified attorneys must recertify every five years, which requires substantial continuing and advanced education credits in certified areas. In business litigation certification, the trial of five cases every five years along with input from the judges in those cases is required.

The Florida Bar states that seven percent of Florida attorneys are board certified. Only board certified attorneys are allowed to state that they are specialists within a practice area. An attorney must be board certified to be deemed expert. Specialist and expert are words that are proudly stated by the Regan Atwood board certified attorneys.