Craig Waters

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For more than a month following the November 7, 2000, election, Florida's vote for the presidency remained undecided and too close to call, with the outcome hinging on legal decisions from the Florida Supreme Court that were announced by Waters on live worldwide television. [32] [33] The first decision occurred on November 21, 2000, when Waters announced a court ruling extending the vote-counting deadline previously set by Florida Secretary of State Katherine Harris. The second was on December 8, 2000, when Waters announced a decision requiring a statewide recount of ballots. The United States Supreme Court overruled this last decision on December 12, 2000, in an opinion that effectively handed the presidency to George W. Bush. [34] Waters is portrayed in the HBO Movie Recount by the actor Alex Staggs. The film, which had a broadcast premiere on May 25, 2008, chronicled the events in Florida during the presidential election lawsuits and appeals.

Election 2000 in reality and in film

Speeches and educational lectures

Waters has given many speeches on issues he has explored in his professional life, including one on at the 10th international Court Technology Conference organized in 2007 by the National Center for State Courts. [35] He is coauthor of a professional paper describing how state and federal disability laws will require rethinking current practices in creating and maintaining court websites. [36]

Election 2000. Satellite trucks parked near the Florida Supreme Court during the 2000 Presidential election dispute. The Florida State Capitol is in the background. Election2000news.jpg
Election 2000. Satellite trucks parked near the Florida Supreme Court during the 2000 Presidential election dispute. The Florida State Capitol is in the background.

He previously spoke on the technology of disasters, dealing with court emergency preparedness following the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks and the extensive hurricane seasons of 2004 and 2005.[ citation needed ]

In early 2014, he spoke at Stetson University College of Law in St. Petersburg, Florida, as part of its Institute for the Advancement of Legal Communications. At that time, he met with faculty and students to survey the growing role of high-tech communications in informing the public about the role of courts and lawyers in our society. He drew on his experiences with Bush v. Gore and examined how the communications challenges of that earlier constitutional crisis might have played out using the technology available in 2014.

Writings and scholarship

Craig Waters
Craig Waters During the 2000 Election Appeals.jpg
Craig Waters briefs worldwide media, December 2000,
in Bush v. Gore
Spokesman for the
Florida Supreme Court
In office
June 1, 1996 –February 28, 2022

A writer and legal scholar, Waters' works include "Waters' Dictionary of Florida Law" published by London-based Butterworths, a three-volume treatise "AIDS and Florida Law" also published by Butterworths, and several dozen scholarly articles on various subjects generally related to civil rights, AIDS and disability law, court emergency preparedness, and the use of technology to improve court and media relations. He is coauthor of a comprehensive article on Florida Supreme Court protocol and jurisdiction. [34]

In 2008, the article "Technological Transparency: Appellate Court & Media Relations after Bush v. Gore" was published by the Journal of Appellate Practice & Process. It chronicled the emerging use both of public spokespersons and high-technology communication increasingly employed by courts worldwide in the 21st century. [34]

Other activities

Waters is the founding president of the Florida Court Public Information Officers, Inc., [37] a federally recognized tax exempt organization. [38] He has been heavily involved in activities of The Florida Bar, including serving on the editorial board of the Florida Bar Journal and the Florida Bar News. He also serves on the Florida Bar Media & Communications Law Committee and has chaired and hosted many of its ongoing programs of outreach to media. These include the annual Florida Bar Reporters Workshop held each fall at the Florida Supreme Court Building, a program for training journalists in reporting on the courts and the law. [39] A native of Pensacola, Florida, he has been a member in good standing of the Florida Bar since May 1987. [25]

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References

  1. ↑ "Retiring Supreme Court Spokesman Honored - Florida Trend". www.floridatrend.com. Retrieved 2022-10-10.
  2. ↑ "Retiring Supreme Court Spokesman Honored - Florida Trend". www.floridatrend.com. Retrieved 2022-08-24.
  3. ↑ Morgan, Lucy (2022-02-11). "Craig Waters honored for groundbreaking changes that opened the FL Supreme Court to the world". Florida Phoenix. Retrieved 2022-08-24.
  4. ↑ "Retiring Supreme Court Spokesman Honored". News Service of Florida. Retrieved 2022-08-24.
  5. ↑ "Craig Waters receives Pete Weitzel/Friend of the First Amendment Award". The Florida Bar. Retrieved 2022-08-24.
  6. ↑ "Longtime Florida Supreme Court spokesman Craig Waters to retire". Tampa Bay Times. Retrieved 2023-04-19.
  7. 1 2 "Longtime Florida Supreme Court spokesman Craig Waters to retire". Tampa Bay Times. Retrieved 2021-12-10.
  8. ↑ "Pensacola State College Alumni News, March 11, 2020". 11 March 2020.
  9. ↑ "Pensacola State College Alumni News, March 11, 2020". 11 March 2020.
  10. ↑ "Pensacola State College Alumni News, March 11, 2020". 11 March 2020.
  11. ↑ "Pensacola State College Alumni News, March 11, 2020". 11 March 2020.
  12. ↑ "Florida Bar honors Craig Waters with Susan Spencer-Wendel Award for lifetime achievement". Tallahassee Democrat. Retrieved 2023-10-16.
  13. ↑ Phoenix, Florida (2022-02-15). "Craig Waters honored for groundbreaking changes that opened the Florida Supreme Court to the world". Florida Politics . Retrieved 2023-10-16.
  14. ↑ "Florida Court Public Information Officers renames its Lifetime Achievement Award after Craig Waters". The Florida Bar. Retrieved 2023-10-16.
  15. ↑ FCPIO Members Tribute to Craig Waters , retrieved 2023-10-16
  16. ↑ Brown, Jessica (2022-06-30). "Former Florida Supreme Court Communications Director Craig Waters appointed to Foundation board". The Florida Bar Foundation. Retrieved 2023-10-16.
  17. ↑ "Florida Supreme Court". Supreme Court. Retrieved 2024-11-08.
  18. ↑ "Longtime Supreme Court Spokesman to Retire". News Service of Florida. Retrieved 2021-12-19.
  19. ↑ "Florida Supreme Court Gavel to Gavel Video Portal". wfsu.org.
  20. ↑ Waters, Craig. "Openness works, retiring Florida Supreme Court spokesman says | Opinion". Tallahassee Democrat. Retrieved 2023-04-19.
  21. ↑ "Florida Supreme Court Gavel to Gavel Video Portal". wfsu.org. Retrieved 2022-08-25.
  22. ↑ "Longtime Florida Supreme Court spokesman Craig Waters to retire". WKMG. The Associated Press. 2021-12-10. Retrieved 2022-08-24.
  23. ↑ "TMI - The First Amendment and the Media 1999 ONLINE". 2007-10-09. Archived from the original on 9 October 2007. Retrieved 2021-12-19.
  24. ↑ "Longtime Florida Supreme Court spokesman Waters to retire". NewsTimes. 2021-12-10. Retrieved 2021-12-19.
  25. 1 2 "Supreme Court Communications Director Craig Waters To Retire". Supreme Court. Retrieved 2021-12-10.
  26. ↑ "Pioneering the Digital Age | Ninth Judicial Circuit Court of Florida". ninthcircuit.org. Retrieved 2022-08-24.
  27. ↑ "Openness works, retiring Florida Supreme Court spokesman says | Opinion". www.yahoo.com. Retrieved 2022-08-24.
  28. ↑ Crochet, Jim. "'I was so proud': An appreciation of Craig Waters, from recount to retirement". Tallahassee Democrat. Retrieved 2023-04-21.
  29. ↑ Florida Court Public Information Officers, Inc., official website
  30. ↑ Flemming, Paul (2022). "Celebrating the career of Craig Waters" (PDF). Historical Review (Fall/Winter 2022): 10.
  31. ↑ "Florida Supreme Court". Supreme Court. Retrieved 2024-11-08.
  32. ↑ "Florida was perfect climate for HBO's "Recount"". Reuters. 2008-05-29. Retrieved 2022-08-25.
  33. ↑ "HBO's 'Recount' captures 2000 election emotion". Gainesville Sun. Retrieved 2022-08-25.
  34. 1 2 3 Journal of Appellate Practice & Process, Technological Transparency, Fall 2007
  35. ↑ "Waters, Craig". ncsc.contentdm.oclc.org. Retrieved 2022-08-25.
  36. ↑ "The Florida Supreme Court's Initiatives to Improve Access and Build Public Trust and Confidence". The Florida Bar. Retrieved 2022-08-25.
  37. ↑ "Florida Court Public Information Officers". FCPIO. Retrieved 2022-08-25.
  38. ↑ "Florida Court Public Information Officers renames its Lifetime Achievement Award after Craig Waters". The Florida Bar. Retrieved 2022-08-24.
  39. ↑ "Supreme Court Communications Director Craig Waters retires". The Florida Bar. Retrieved 2023-10-16.
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