Former Doral mayor JC Bermudez joins county ethics board.
The first mayor of the City of Doral, Juan Carlos Bermudez, and St. Thomas University Assistant Professor of Law Marcia Narine were sworn this past May 27th as commissioners on the Miami-Dade Commission on Ethics and Public Trust. Mr. Bermudez is the appointee of the Miami-Dade League of Cities, replacing Kerry Rosenthal. Ms. Narine fills the position jointly appointed by the Law Schools of St. Thomas and the University of Miami, which was recently vacated by U.M. Prof. Charlton Copeland. The Chief Judge of the 11th Judicial Circuit, Bertila Soto, administered the oath of office in her courtroom.
J. C. Bermudez is of counsel at Akerman Senterfitt, where he specializes in land use and zoning, governmental law and procurement and international real estate investment. He was instrumental in the incorporation of Doral and served as the city’s first mayor for two terms. Mr. Bermudez is a past president of the Miami-Dade League of Cities and currently serves on the executive board member of the Beacon Council and on the Adrienne Arsht Center Community Affairs Task Force. The graduate of the University of Norte Dame law school earned his Bachelor’s Degree at the University of Miami.
Marcia Narine teaches civil procedure, corporate governance, compliance, social responsibility, legal ethics, human rights and employment law. Prior to joining St. Thomas University, she was a visiting assistant professor of law at the University of Missouri-Kansas City and served as Vice President and Deputy General Counsel at Ryder System, Inc. Prof. Narine is a member of Leadership Florida and has been a court-appointed guardian ad litem for abused and neglected children. The Harvard Law School graduate earned her bachelor’s degree from Columbia University.
Earlier this month, Dr. Judith Bernier, Academic Program Director for Florida International University’s Center for Labor Research and Studies, took the oath of office, marking the largest change in the makeup of the five-person Ethics Commission in one month since its formation.
The Ethics Commission was created in 1996 as an independent agency with advisory and quasi-judicial powers. It is composed of five members, serving staggered terms of four years each. Through a program of education, outreach and enforcement, the Commission seeks to empower the community and bolster public trust.
