GAINESVILLE, Fla. (AP) _ The University of Florida is marking the 40th anniversary of a program that allowed Cuban exile attorneys to become licensed to practice in the U.S.
An event is set Oct. 16 in Gainesville to commemorate the Cuban-American Lawyers Program run by the Levin College of Law. Among the scheduled speakers are Florida Supreme Court Chief Justice Jorge Labarga and Stephen Zack, former president of the American Bar Association.
The program was created to give Cuban-born lawyers, judges and political figures the opportunity to attend the law school with a goal of passing the state bar exam and begin practicing. Otherwise the exile attorneys could not pursue their legal careers in the U.S.
Zack says many lawyers who went through the program helped Miami become the international city it is today.