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IN THE CIRCUIT COURT OF THE THIRTEENTH JUDICIAL
CIRCUIT OF THE STATE OF FLORIDA, IN AND FOR
HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY
GENERAL CIVIL DIVISION
NEIL J. GILLESPIE,
Plaintiff,
vs. CASE NO.: 05-CA-7205
BARKER,
a Flo
WILLIAM
RODEMS & COOK,
rida corporation;
J. COOK,
P.A.,
and
DIVISION: "F"
Defendants.
Transcript of Proceedings
BEFORE: HONORABLE RICHARD
Circuit Judge
A. NIELSEN
TAKEN AT: In Chambers
Hillsborough County Courthouse
Tampa, Florida
DATE: October 04, 2006
TIME: Commencing at 9:15 a.m.
REPORTED BY: SONJA BONANNO
Court Reporter
Notary Public
State of Florida at Large
BERRYHILL &ASSOCIATES
501 East Kennedy Blvd., Suite 1225
Tampa, Florida 33602
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]_ APPEARANCES:
2 On behalf of the Plaintiff:
3 Neil J. Gillespie, pro se,
4 Appearing via telephone
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6 On behalf of the Defendants:
7 RYAN CHRISTOPHER RODEMS, ESQUIRE
Barker, Rodems & Cook, P.A.
8 300 W. Platt Street, Ste. 150
Tampa, FL 33606
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INDEX TO
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Proceedings 4
Certificate of Reporter 12

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PRO C E E DIN G S
THE COURT: This is Judge Nielsen.
MR. GILLESPIE: Yes, good morning, Judge.
This is Neil Gillespie.
THE COURT: Good morning, sir. Ryan Rodems --
is that correct?
MR. RODEMS: Yes, sir.
THE COURT: -- lS present In the court --
hearing room.
MR. GILLESPIE: Judge, I want you to know that
I am appearing today by telephone because I am too
ill to attend the hearing. And I am trying to get
assistance from the Court for the Americans with
Disabilities Act accommodation and I just found out
yesterday that that wouldn't happen. This is not a
new claim. I have been on permanent disability
since before I met the defendants.
THE COURT: All right, sir. And has that --
what has impacted your ability to respond to the --
as I understand it, you are seeking a continuance
of the hearing this morning?
MR. GILLESPIE: Yes, Your Honor. And I have
word from my insurance company that they are likely
to provide counsel to represent me. And I have
been in contact with Mr. Rodems no less than three
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times within the last week and on a phone call
yesterday, and he has not responded to any of my
communications. I have also been in touch with the
Court about this matter as well.
THE COURT: All right. And, Mr. Gillespie,
just so the record is clear, and I will see that if
these letters have not been filed that they will be
filed, but there was
MR. GILLESPIE: I am sorry, I didn't hear you,
Judge.
THE COURT: I said I will be sure that the
letters are filed, if they have not already been
filed, relating to your request for accommodation
pursuant to the Americans with Disabilities Act.
And I believe there has been at least two, perhaps
three, letters that you have provided to either our
ADA coordinator or myself. And I further
understand that you have been provided
correspondence in the last day or so from our Court
counsel's office advising you --
MR. GILLESPIE: Yes, Judge.
THE COURT: Let me finish, please.
advising you that in the view of the Court
counsel's office, the ADA accommodation does not
reach to the accommodation that you have requested,
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to wit, that you be provided an attorney to
represent you In these proceedings.
And, so, as I said, that is part of the record
at this point. And I understand your position now
as to this hearing this morning. I will ask
Mr. Rodems for a response to the Motion for
Continuance.
MR. RODEMS: Well, first of all, Your Honor,
lS Mr. Gillespie taking the position now that he
is, by reason of his disability, unable to further
represent himself in this matter? Because I think
if he is, that is going to clearly dictate the
proceedings. If he announces that he is too ill to
represent himself further in this matter, then
is going to have to hire an attorney.
THE COURT: Well, Mr. Rodems, as I understand
his position is, he is not able to handle this
hearing this morning and that, apparently, he
believes that he may have counsel provided at the
expense of his insurance company relating to, I
guess, a counterclaim pending in this matter.
Is that your position, Mr. Gillespie?
MR. GILLESPIE: Yes, it is, Judge. And once
we get -- once I have counsel, I think I will be
able to clear up any other issues that may be a
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barrier, but I do intend to have representation.
2 I just wanted to mention that the Court
3 counsel that you referenced in regard to the ADA, I
4: spoke with him yesterday. His opinion is his own
5 opinion. He could not provide me any citations to
6 case law. I just wanted to make that clear.
7 THE COURT: Yes, sir. Well, do you have any
8 citations that you wish to provide to the Court at
9 this time with respect to your request?
10 MR. GILLESPIE: I am not an attorney and I
11 have not been to law school, and that is why I am
12 getting an attorney who can provide those. One
13 problem ln this
14 THE COURT: Well, Mr. Gillespie, let me
interrupt a moment. Just, again, so the record is
16 clear then, I am going to deny your request for an
17 ADA accommodation consisting of a provision of an
18 attorney to represent you ln this case. It's the
19 Court's view that the American with Disabilities
20 Act was not designed for the purpose of providing
21 counsel, but rather to accommodate disabilities in
22 the traditional sense of ability to hear, ability
23 to see, ability to be able to be mobile or
24 immobile, to require breaks during proceedings
25 because of some physical disability that does not
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permit a litigant to spend long periods of times ln
court or in hearings.
And, so -- again, so the record is clear, your
request for an accommodation is denied. I am going
to grant your Motion for Continuance; however
how much time do you need to hear a response from
your insurance company, sir?
MR. GILLESPIE: Your Honor, I have a call into
them this morning and I am waiting for a call back.
I have also provided Mr. Rodems with the name and
telephone number of the adjustor. I don't know if
he has independently confirmed this or not.
THE COURT: So, is your answer that you don't
know at this time how long it will be before your
insurance company responds?
MR. GILLESPIE: It should be within a week or
so, on the outside. I am waiting for a call back
today. That is all the only information that
can tell you.
THE COURT: All right. Thank you. Then this
hearing will be continued to on or after October
18, 2006.
MR. GILLESPIE: Thank you, Judge.
MR. RODEMS: Your Honor?
THE COURT: Yes, Mr. Rodems.
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MR. RODEMS: Before we go off the record, may
I inquire as to whether Mr. Gillespie intends to
hire counsel should his insurance company decline
to provide counsel? Because at this point he has
made several references to the fact that he is not
trained as a lawyer, and his experience and actions
in this case bear that out.
And now, with this raising of the disability,
if he is asserting to the Court that his disability
is so severe that he needs the Court to appoint an
attorney to him, not withstanding that the ADA
won't allow it. What I would like to suggest to
the Court is, if Mr. Gillespie is not going to have
insurance-company-provided counsel, he advise the
Court whether he intends to hire his own counsel.
And I think that my clients are entitled to some
sense of direction so that we can move the case.
THE COURT: I will thank Mr. Rodems.
Mr. Gillespie, here is what I will ask you to do,
sir. And, Mr. Rodems, if you want to include this
in the continuance order. That on or before the
date indicated you need to advise the Court and
counsel, that is opposing counsel
MR. GILLESPIE: Judge?
THE COURT: Yes, sir.
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MR. GILLESPIE: The phone line 1S breaking up.
I didn't know if I lost you.
THE COURT: All right. You need to provide a
letter within the next two weeks, that is on or
before October the 18th. Fax it to the Court and
fax it to Mr. Rodems. You need to do several
things in that letter:
1: Advise us what the response 1S of your
insurance company.
Number 2: Advise us whether you are seeking
counsel; whether that be some sort of pro bono
counsel provided by legal aid or some other means
or hire counsel on your own, all right?
MR. GILLESPIE: Thank you, Judge. I will do
that.
THE COURT: And if you don't have counsel in
place on October 18, that letter also needs to
indicate how long it would be before you would have
counsel in place. And then, finally, if you don't
intend to hire counselor retain counsel on or
after October 18th, you should state that as well.
MR. GILLESPIE: Thank you, Judge. I will do
that.
THE COURT: And I suppose -- one final thing,
Mr. Gillespie, since Mr. Rodems has inquired, you
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would need to answer the question, assumlng you
don't have counsel in place, do you intend to
represent yourself in this proceeding going
forward?
MR. GILLESPIE: Yes, Judge.
THE COURT: All right.
MR. GILLESPIE: Thank you, Judge.
THE COURT: Any other questions?
MR. GILLESPIE: Not from me, Your Honor.
MR. RODEMS: No, sir. I will prepare the
proposed order.
THE COURT: Very well, sir. And I will hear
back from you on or after October 18th.
MR. RODEMS: And I will send a copy of the
order to Mr. Gillespie with a sufficient amount of
time before I send it to the Court.
THE COURT: Very well. Thank you.
(End of proceedings.)
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CERTIFICATE OF COURT REPORTER
STATE OF FLORIDA
COUNTY OF HILLSBOROUGH
I, SONJA BONANNO, COURT REPORTER for the
Circuit Court of the Thirteenth Judicial Circuit of the
State of Florida,
DO HEREBY CERTIFY that I was authorized to,
and did report the proceedings and evidence in this
hereinbefore-styled cause, as stated in the caption
attached, and that the preceding transcript attached
hereto is a true, accurate and correct computerized
transcription of my report of the proceedings had at
said session.
I FURTHER CERTIFY that I am not employed by or
related to the parties to this matter nor interested in
the outcome of this action.
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my
hand and seal in Tampa, Hillsborough County, Florida,
this lOth day of October, 2006.
J
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