Marks Gray news media and first amendment attorney, Edward L. Birk is the Chairman of the Jacksonville Bar Association’s Health and Wellness Committee. Jax Daily Record shared the news that the committee along with the Florida Bar and the American Bar Association has made attorney mental health awareness an initiative, but committee members said another issue is client mental health issues and how that can affect their attorney. The committee is organizing a seminar that would provide Continuing Legal Education (CLE) credits for attorneys on mental health issues.  The committee will consider topics and presenters for the planned seminar. It may be formatted as a morning session and an afternoon session with lunch and a keynote speaker at the intermission. More than one ethics CLE credit may be applied for through The Florida Bar.

Marks Gray attorney, Gerald W. Weedon, is a board member of the National Alliance of Mental Illness (NAMI) of Jacksonville, Florida. Mr. Weedon recently presented to the Jacksonville Bar Association on NAMI and the importance of mental health awareness. By bringing mental health awareness to the forefront we begin to chip away at the stigma that surrounds mental illness and embrace those who are marginalized by society.

About NAMI 

From this humble beginning emerged the National Alliance on Mental Illness – now known as NAMI – and a national grassroots movement was born. During the past two decades, thousands of parents, spouses, siblings, friends, and the ill have worked tirelessly to bring mental illness out of the shadow. NAMI has built its organization on four cornerstones: Support, Education, Advocacy and Research. With more than 220,000 members in 2002, and 1200 state and local affiliates in all 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and American District of Samoa and Canada. NAMI’s members work to bring hope and progress to thousands of people with a severe mental illness.