June 2021

It was a rainy Friday morning, as Saron Musa found us a coveted street-side parking spot at the corner of NW 17th Ave. and NW 16th St., in the up-and-coming neighborhood of Allapattah.

Come to think of it, looking at the freshly paved roads, wide and clean sidewalks, and brightly lit pedestrian areas, it seemed like Allapattah may have graduated past the “up-and-coming” stage already. (This seems to also be born out in crime statistics, which show total crime in Allapattah down about 30% over the past 5 years.)

After parking, the biggest concern for Saron, Danielle Hall, Nathifa Parker, and I was staying dry. However, it didn’t take long for us to spot the “red carpet” to our destination. In this case, the “red carpet” was a hot-pink overhang that spanned the majority of the first level of the newest addition to the resurgence of Allapattah—No. 17 Residences.Continue Reading No. 17 Residences: Where Vision Meets Hard Work

The last thing on my mind when I entered into finals season last fall, at the end of my first (and entirely online) semester of law school, was where I would be working in the summer. My first finals season was filled with stress and a total lack of familiarity with the law school system,…

Trivia Night with the Litigation Practice Group

Wednesday night the Summer Associates had our first social event with a Practice Group. Trivia Night, hosted by Carl Boccuti, had us split into groups of 4-5 with the Litigation Practice Group to compete for the ultimate prize, bragging rights for the rest of the summer. The questions included everything from Rihanna’s birthplace to…

Brian Adler and David Jessup Jr.

Dr. Maya Angelou left us with the following words: “[P]eople will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.” Small gestures can have a tremendous impact. Collectively such experiences create a culture. Before I started as a summer associate at Bilzin Sumberg this month, a small yet validating gesture led me to submit an application for employment to the firm.

It was March 2020, days before the world shut down. My day had a rocky start with a “Breakfast with the Bench” event at 7:30 a.m., where a law student’s nightmare came true: I spilled coffee on my white shirt—the same shirt I needed to wear to my interview at another firm later that day between my second and third classes. #MiamiTraffic made the prospect of returning home to change my shirt a pipedream.

But, it wasn’t the Miami traffic that got me; it was the interview at the firm. I received a less-than-warm greeting from the receptionist before waiting thirty minutes for the interviewing attorney. While the interview went fine, upon my departure I was informed by the receptionist that parking wasn’t validated for interviews. So, I returned to campus and entered class late in my stained shirt, with $21 less in my pocket.
Continue Reading Go Where You Are Validated

(L to R Jessica Buchsbaum, Betsi Cobas, Lucas Pizzutti, Saron Musa, David Jessup, John Trach, Nathifa Parker, Joseph Beguiristain, Joy Spillis Lundeen and Danielle Hall)

Last Friday, the summer associates and I had the honor of meeting Bilzin Sumberg Partner and Construction Group Leader, Joy Spillis Lundeen. Joy, a recent addition to Bilzin Sumberg, is regarded as the reputed go-to person for all things construction and has an impressive roster of clients.

Born and raised in Miami, Joy reflected on the dramatic changes to Miami’s skyline since her childhood and recalled the excitement she felt, and continues to feel, when admiring the City’s continued development. Interestingly, her passion for construction was largely inspired by her upbringing. Growing up, Joy’s family owned a leading, Miami-based architectural firm that contributed to the development of many well-known structures throughout South Florida. This familial backdrop inspired Joy to study architecture in college and when contemplating an area of law in which to specialize, construction seemed to perfectly align with her interests. Since then, Joy hasn’t looked back as she continues to trail blaze through an often male-dominated construction field.Continue Reading Constructing Our Future-One Attorney Spotlight at a Time

(L to R Jessica Buchsbaum, Betsi Cobas, John Trach, David Jessup, Lucas Pizzutti, Saron Musa, Joseph Beguiristain, Danielle Hall, Nathifa Parker, Jay Sakalo)

Today, we are excited to kick off our summer associate program!

This summer looks a little different than previous summers but we are excited for a hybrid program…