CUBAN AMERICAN BAR ASSOCIATION HOSTS LEADERSHIP TRAINING PROGRAM AT ANNUAL FLORIDA BAR CONVENTION
MIAMI — July 1, 2025 – The Cuban American Bar Association (CABA) recently held its third Leadership, Education, And, Development (L.E.A.D.) program session at The Florida Bar’s annual convention on Thursday, June 26 at The Boca Raton hotel in Boca Raton, Florida.
The event kicked off with an early networking session, Cafecito con CABA y Amigos, where guests connected over traditional Cuban coffee and pastelitos. Florida Bar president Roland Sanchez-Medina Jr., president-elect Sia Baker-Barnes and president-elect designate Mike F. Orr, were honored at the event.
L.E.A.D. is designed to provide CABA fellows with the knowledge, skills and tools needed to be effective leaders within CABA, The Florida Bar and their communities. The multiday sessions were designed to assist the diverse and inclusive group of lawyers in becoming better leaders within the legal profession.
“It was a pleasure to host the third L.E.A.D. session at The Florida Bar convention this year,” said CABA’s president, Amanda Fernandez. “Our fellows had a unique opportunity to engage with speakers and to connect with leaders from across Florida’s legal community.”
The third program session, Leadership in Action: Networking and Mentorship, included guest speakers: Chief Justice Carlos Muñiz, Florida Supreme Court; Judge Stephanie Silver, 11th Judicial Circuit, County Court, Miami-Dade County, Fla.; Judge Michael Bagge-Hernandez, 13th Judicial Circuit, County Court, Hillsborough County, Fla; Roland Sanchez-Medina Jr., partner, Sanchez-Medina, Gonzalez, Quesada, Lage, Gomez & Machado, LLP, past president of the Florida Bar and CABA past president; Sia Baker-Barnes, shareholder, Searcy Denney Scarola Barnhart & Shipley, P.A., president-elect of The Florida Bar; and Michael F. Orr, managing partner, Orr | Cook, Florida Bar president-elect designate and Florida Bar Young Lawyers Division Board of Governors past president.
Other speakers included: Juan Fernandez-Barquin, Clerk of the Circuit Court and Comptroller for Miami-Dade County; Marlene Quintana, shareholder, GrayRobinson P.A. and CABA past president; Giselle “G” Gutierrez, managing partner at Exhibit G Law Firm and CABA past president; Ashlea A. Edwards, president of Young Leaders Division Board of Governors and shareholder, GrayRobinson P.A.; Arti Hirani, partner, Meenakshi A. Hirani, P.A. and president-elect Florida Bar Young Lawyers Division and Reno V. Pierre, Assistant County Attorney, Broward County Attorney’s Office and president-elect designate Young Lawyers Division, Board of Governors.
(Note to editor: Link to event photos here.)
Photo captions from left to right:
Photo 1– Gustavo Ceballos, Taylor Diaz, Ivan Feris, John Cervera, Mirelis Castilla, Gabriel Diaz, Chief Justice Carlos G. Muñiz, Amanda Fernandez, Javier-Soto, Patricia Fors, Javier Pagliery, Alexa Duarte, Andy Garcia, and Jessica Pagliery
Photo 2-Judge Melissa Damian, Senior Judge Patricia A. Seitz, Chief Judge Cecilia M. Altonaga and Amanda Fernandez
Photo 3- Judge Bronwyn C. Miller, Judge Chiaka Ngozi Ihekwaba, Chief Judge Nushin G. Sayfie, Dori Foster-Moroles and Amanda Fernandez
Photo 4- Mirelis Castilla, Amanda M. Naldjieff, Jose A. Villalobos, Alexa C. Duarte and Emily Balter
About the Cuban American Bar Association (CABA)
Founded in 1974, CABA is one of the largest bar associations in the state of Florida. Its membership is comprised of lawyers, law students, and paralegals from various backgrounds whose interests include not only those affecting the Cuban community, but human and legal rights issues impacting minority communities. CABA also founded CABA Pro Bono Legal Services and the CABA Foundation, both created on the association’s fundamental values to aid those in need through legal advocacy as well as offering scholarships to law students.
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