Michelle Suskauer was recently named to be a panelist on The Influencer Series to discuss the most important issues facing Florida:
Now in its second year, the Miami Herald, el Nuevo Herald and the Bradenton Herald are launching a discussion about the important issues facing the state of Florida. We’ve assembled a panel of 50 influential Floridians from a variety of industries and perspectives who will offer their views through the end of the year.
Michelle along with the other panelists was asked what they think is the top issue facing Florida and some possible solutions state leaders should be exploring to address that problem. Michelle responded:
For The Florida Bar, the top issue facing Florida is ensuring our judicial system operates as a co-equal branch of government and our courts remain fair, impartial, accessible and adequately funded to protect the rights of Floridians and provide for the peaceful resolution of disputes. I respect the roles and procedures of the legislative and executive branches and trust the judgment of our state’s leaders who know providing access to justice to 21 million people must be a priority. As Florida’s population grows, it is important for the judicial branch to recruit and retain skilled workers and for the courts to have the technology needed for an efficient system. As the judicial branch is focused on fairness, we should all advocate to fund the courts’ budget priorities for the benefit of our citizens and businesses who turn to the courts for justice. Additionally, the need for criminal justice reform has reached crisis proportions and our legislative leaders are working on pressing issues including increasing inmate rehabilitative services and addressing staffing shortages. For Florida to thrive and for our citizens’ welfare and safety, our courts and justice system must be able to serve everyone.