ELULS prepares legal aid lawyers for hurricanes.

A small but enthusiastic group of legal aid attorneys, law students, and citizen activists gathered in Pensacola recently to confront issues facing Florida communities during post-hurricane rebuilding.

A joint project of Florida Legal Services and the Access to Justice Subcommittee of the Bar's Public Interest Committee of the Environmental and Land Use Law Section, the workshop "Environmental Justice - In the Aftermath: A Look at the Effect of Hurricanes on the Environment and Affordable Housing" aimed to bring awareness to attorneys serving the poor of the disparity of storm environmental impacts. The workshop also tried to provide those attorneys with tools needed to identify similar issues with their clients and

to properly address them. Featured speakers included Leslie Powell and Rocky Cabagnot of Legal Services of North Florida; Francine Ishmael of Citizens Against Toxic Exposure, Inc.; Howard Jones of Holley Action Group; Marilyn Kershner of Florida Community Loan Fund; Nicole Kibert of Carlton Fields; Deborah Schroth of Florida Legal Services; Randall Webster of Sapient Consultant Group; and Jeanne Zokovitch of WildLaw. They touched on a number of topics, including disposal of construction debris, green building, and the inclusion of affordable housing in rebuilding efforts.

"I have never had such a good time listening to so much bad news," said Barbara Curbelo Cusack. "I am motivated to research more about these issues."

The Florida Bar Foundation underwrote the majority of the costs for the CLE-accredited workshop, enabling participants to attend for a nominal fee. Plans are in the works to repeat the workshop in other locations.

Attorneys and law students with an interest in environmental justice may visit the ELULS Web site at www.eluls.org for more information on upcoming workshops. Other resources are available on the Web site, including basic information intended for practitioners outside of the environmental field and the general public.

Bar Rules Online

The Rules Regulating The Florida Bar are available in the Regulation section of the Bar's Web site--floridabar.org--in a key word searchable database and are now in one 103-page PDF document for printing as a desk reference.