Regional Counsel honored for outstanding contributions to the community
Attorney Ita Neymotin was awarded the Medal of Honor by the Collier County Bar Association as part of its Law Week celebration on Wednesday, April 29. Neymotin was nominated by her peers for going above and beyond in her contributions to the community.
As a member of the Ave Maria School of Law Curriculum Committee advisory board, Neymotin was looking for a way to help improve the professional prospects of students three years ago when she decided to start an internship program. Thirty-five students have participated in the 
program to date, which allows them to experience first hand the inner workings of Florida’s criminal and civil law. Neymotin calls the program a win-win situation for interns and potential employers alike. Her office has even hired several of the people that have gone through the internship program.
The Medal of Honor also recognizes Neymotin’s volunteer service as a teacher of the Florida Advanced Criminal Law and Procedure class at Ave Maria School of law. She has incorporated many guest speakers into her classes, including judges and attorneys that present law and procedure to the students.
In addition to the Collier County Bar Association’s Medal of Honor, Neymotin was recently awarded the Distinguished Alumnus of the Year Award by Capital University Law School in Ohio. In celebration of that prestigious honor, she was also presented the Commissioner’s Award by the Commissioner of Franklin County, Ohio.
Along with attorney Frank Abernathy, nephew to Martin Luther King, Jr. confidant, Ralph Abernathy, Neymotin returned to the former USSR upon the Ukrainian government’s invitation to consult on how it could better protect the civil liberties of the Ukrainian people.
Neymotin is Regional Counsel with the Office of Criminal Conflict and Civil Regional Counsel of the Second District Court of Appeal Region of Florida. Neymotin is the youngest attorney, and the first woman, appointed as Regional Counsel in the state of Florida. In that position she is responsible for the 14 counties that make up the Second DCA Region, managing 140 attorneys and support staff with an annual budget that exceeds $9 million. The Regional Counsel defends parties when the Public Defender’s office has a conflict in a case. The office also represents indigent clients in juvenile dependency as well as certain types of civil cases. Neymotin is responsible for the counties including Lee, Collier, Hendry, Charlotte, Glades, Polk, Pasco, Pinellas, Hillsborough, Manatee, Dade, and Sarasota Counties.
Office of Criminal Conflict and Civil Regional Counsel
Second District Court of Appeal Region, Florida
In 2011, Ita Neymotin was appointed by Governor Rick Scott to lead The Office of Criminal Conflict and Civil Regional Counsel (OCCCRC) of the Second District Court of Appeal Region of Florida. It is one of five regional counsel offices created by the legislature in 2007 to provide legal representation to indigent persons in criminal cases in which the court grants the Public Defender’s motion to withdraw and appoints the OCCRC, in dependency and civil cases, and certain statutorily authorized civil commitment proceedings. OCCCRC also handles appeals and post conviction motions. As noted under Statute 27.511, the Florida Legislature states “it is the intent of the Legislature to provide adequate representation in a fiscally sound manner, while safeguarding constitutional principles.” Over the last few years, the Regional Counsel offices have saved Florida taxpayers millions of dollars while providing quality representation to its clients. For more information visit flrc2.org.
