ORLANDO, Fla. – Florida Attorney Willie E. Gary, also known as "The Giant Killer", will keynote the ninth annual Florida A&M University (FAMU) College of Law Hooding Ceremony on May 11, 2013. The event will take place at 10 a.m., at the Hilton Orlando, 6001 Destination Parkway, near International Drive.
Attorney Gary is a graduate of Shaw University in Raleigh, N.C., and North Carolina Central University School of Law in Durham, N.C., where he earned the juris doctor degree. He was admitted to the Florida Bar in 1974, and with the assistance of his wife Gloria, opened the first African-American law firm in Martin County, Fla. His practice has since grown into the partnership Gary, Williams, Finney, Lewis, Watson & Sperando, P.L., operating four offices, including their newest location in downtown Orlando.
Attorney Gary will address the spring 2013 candidates, after their juris doctor degrees are conferred in Tallahassee during the university’s Commencement Exercises on May 4, 2013. The Hooding Ceremony will recognize more than 150 candidates, including the fall 2012, spring 2013, and summer 2013 graduating classes.
The FAMU College of Law’s Hooding Ceremony is a public event; however, seating is limited, and there is a parking fee at the Hilton Orlando.
Additional information on the Hooding Ceremony will be made available as the event approaches. For more information on Attorney Willie Gary, visit the firm’s website at http://www.garylawgroup.com/gary/index.html.
The FAMU College of Law was founded in 1949 on the main campus in Tallahassee. After graduating 57 lawyers, the law school was closed by the state of Florida in 1968. The Florida Legislature voted to reopen the law school in 2000 and Orlando was selected as the location. The re-established FAMU College of Law opened its doors in 2002 and is now housed in a state-of-the-art facility in downtown Orlando’s Parramore neighborhood. The FAMU College of Law received full accreditation from the American Bar Association in July 2009, and has consistently been ranked in the top five for Diversity by U.S. News & World Report since 2007 -- achieving the top rank on three occasions.
