Center Court - The Newsletter of the Orange County Clerk of Courts
Expanding Access to Justice to More Citizens

I am very happy to announce my office in partnership with the Orange County Bar Association (OCBA) has expanded Self Help Center services to Apopka in order to bring access to justice closer to more people who may be in need of legal assistance. 

Apopka is the second largest city in Orange County and the Self Help Center can provide much needed low cost attorney consultations for anyone who can’t afford an attorney. The Apopka site will now be the second location to offer Self Help services.

The Self Help Center was one of my major priorities that I launched in 2015 at the Orange County Courthouse to help underserved customers. Self Help services are available every Tuesday at the Clerk’s Office in the Apopka Service Center at 111 N. Rock Springs Road Apopka from 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.

The Self Help Center assists with issues involving Family Law, Small Claims, and Residential Evictions. Attorney consultations are available and may be scheduled in 15-minute sessions, for up to 1 hour per day, per person at a cost of  $1 per minute. To schedule an appointment directly online, go to our website at www.myorangeclerk.com.  
Legal Matters Forum
Free Legal Forum Hosted in Apopka

With the opening of the new Self Help Center, Apopka was the right place for our latest legal forum. We partnered with OCBA to host the free forum Legal Matters: Access to Justice Workshop at the Apopka Community Center, in downtown Apopka earlier this month.  

The free forum included information about the Clerk’s Office Self Help Center, filing and dealing with a divorce, and navigating an eviction. A panel of OCBA attorneys also gave great information during a Q & A session with citizens who attended.    

Legal Matters was created as a service for the public as an educational program. Look for our next one in Spring 2018.  
Court Dates Now Available on Our Website

Many of our customers call us looking for an upcoming court date for themselves or a family member. In order to save you time, I have partnered with the 9th Circuit Court to help you find an upcoming court hearing, date, time, and location without having to make a phone call.  

The first step is to go to the Clerk’s Office website at www.myOrangeClerk.com and click on “Court Dates” from the top navigation bar. From that page, you can find a court date by entering a case number or a defendant’s or party name. 

You can also search by date to see an entire listing of court hearings scheduled for an upcoming day. Go to our website at www.myorangeclerk.com to start your search.
Search Court Dates
OCBA State of the Courts

Recently I was able to join my judicial partners for the Orange County Bar Association’s State of the Courts. In addition to sharing all our latest projects to improve technology and access to justice, I was able to discuss our recent statewide budget challenges. I continue to personally work with Clerks of Court to improve our statewide funding model, but unfortunately I recently had to make the tough decision to close our Sand Lake Service Center because of budget cuts.  
Clerks Care About Our Community

Last month my deputy clerks and I were very busy making a difference in the community through our various Clerks Care community outreach initiatives. We picked up hammers, walls and roof trusses to help build a Habitat for Humanity home. In 6 hours, we were able to build the frame of a house for a deserving family in West Orange County. Habitat for Humanity is dedicated to eliminating substandard housing locally and worldwide through constructing, rehabilitating, and preserving homes.    
 
My office also reached our United Way fundraising goal and we couldn’t have done it without all of my staff who pitched in by donating money, time, and hard work. The official grand total reached is $27,542.30, which tops our fundraising goal from last year. Recently I presented the “big” check to the Heart of Florida United Way. Thanks again to all who helped with this year’s fundraising drive.  
Orange County Clerk of Courts Hosting a ThanksGIVING Hurricane Relief Drive
Our community has faced challenges this year with the hurricane season. Hurricane Irma affected us locally and Hurricane Maria affected fellow Americans in Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands. The desire to give back to those in need was expressed by many of my staff. 

Now that we are getting into the holiday season, I can’t help but think of those who continue to struggle to get back on their feet. Starting November 13th and ending November 21st, the Clerk of Courts will be hosting a “Clerks Care ThanksGIVING Hurricane Relief Drive” to benefit the Second Harvest Food Bank of Central Florida. All 5 branch locations will be open for the public during normal business hours as a collection site for: water, non-perishable food, diapers, baby food, and toiletries. 

For more information, you can visit our website at www.myorangeclerk.com
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Tell Us How We're Doing
If you have recently conducted business with the Clerk’s Office, I’d like to hear from you. Customer service is at the core of what we do for the citizens of Orange County. 
Please take a moment to let us know what we did well as well as where we still have opportunities to improve.
Give Feedback
November Star Performer
Congratulations to Vanya Atkinson, our Star Performer for the month of November. Vanya is a deputy clerk in the Traffic division. Colleagues say she goes above and beyond as an individual and a team player. She is reliable, prepared, dedicated, and thorough.
"Vanya completes her responsibilities each day with a smile on her face" said a teammate. "When Vanya is caught up with her reports, she willingly seeks out additional tasks within the office. I can always count on Vanya for assistance. She always looks for ways to help simplify or streamline our processes and make improvements."
In the Community
Left: Clerk Russell and staff were honored at the "He Got Up" luncheon for their service at their annual event assisting thousands of customers. Center: Clerks for a Cure team attended the annual Making Strides Against Breast Cancer walk. We raised over $1,700 towards breast cancer research. Right: Our staff assisted countless homeless military veterans in getting their driver’s license reinstated at a Veterans Drivers License Reinstatement Clinic hosted by the Community Legal Services of Mid-Florida.
Upcoming Events
  • Tuesday, November 14th: Valencia College International Career Fair
  • Tuesday, November 28th: State of the African American Chamber of Commerce Address

Tiffany Moore Russell
Orange County Clerk of Courts
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