About Carole Hawkins
Carole Hawkins is full-time freelance journalist who has written more than 2,000 articles on business and public policy for The Florida Times-Union, Jacksonville Business Journal and other regional newspapers. She has received awards from the Georgia Press Association and the Florida Press Club for business and feature writing.
Articles written by Carole Hawkins
Performing Arts
Litigator Jennifer Tomsen first learned how to win over an audience on the ballet stageStraight out of high school, Jennifer Tomsen took to the stage with one of the nation’s oldest regional ballet companies: Ohio’s Dayton Ballet. For five years she toured and performed in Dayton, including roles in Swan Lake and other full-length productions. Tomsen was 4 years old when she started ballet classes. From the beginning, she was hooked. “I had long legs, strong feet and a long neck, so I had the look of a ballerina,” she says. “And I loved the discipline of it. I loved …
The Hard Sell
Stuart Singer fought a 17-year battle to guarantee health care for Florida’s poorest childrenStuart Singer spent 17 years of his life making sure Florida’s neediest kids have access to health care. “It shouldn’t have been a hard sell to provide children with adequate medical and dental care,” Singer says. But it wasn’t exactly an easy sell, either. Back in 2005, Florida’s Medicaid program paid so little to doctors and dentists that it created a shortage of medical providers willing to serve the 2 million Florida children who depend on the program. That’s when Singer came …
‘You Can Either Be Bitter or Be Better’
Ashley Pack’s devotion to her son informs her legal practice, and vice-versaTo be a lawyer is to advocate. But for Ashley Pack, her son’s struggle with a rare genetic disorder has brought personal insight into what that means. Alex was born with a chromosomal abnormality identified in only a handful of people in the world. The neurological damage left him with motor difficulties; he will need 24-hour care for the rest of his life. “If you met him, you’d only understand maybe 30% to 40% of what he’s saying. But he still has needs and wants and desires like all …
Doing Her Part
Childhood struggles directed Sylvia Cardona toward the law—as well as public serviceGetting a class action notice in the mail is not usually a frightening thing—unless you’re new to the country or speak little English. Sylvia Cardona’s father, a Mexican immigrant, received such a letter when she was in middle school. Nobody knew what it meant, and Cardona remembers the anxiety that crossed her father’s face. He had her call the 800 number to make sure everything was OK. The representative at the other end said her father didn’t need to do anything if he didn’t want …
Who Is Responsible in Premises Liability Claims?
If you or a loved one has suffered an injury on another person's property due to unsafe conditions, you may be able to bring a premises liability lawsuit. Premises liability is the legal idea that property owners, property managers, business owners, or residents should take reasonable steps to ensure a safe environment on their property so visitors aren't injured. If your accident is the result of a property owner's negligence, you can get compensation for medical expenses, lost wages, and pain …
The Company of Musicians
How a stint at a record label led Lorri Lomnitzer to intellectual property lawLorri Lomnitzer has spent much of her legal career making sure musicians are treated fairly. As for herself? “I don’t sing. I don’t create music,” she says. “[I’m] pretty much tone-deaf.” But she does enjoy the company of musicians—and playing a role in their success. “Sometimes I hear raw notes from the studio and I get to see that evolve all the way into a Top 40 hit,” Lomnitzer says. “It’s like watching the growth of a baby.” Born in Montreal and raised in L.A. …
When Can Police Search My Car?
It can be confusing when an officer asks to search your car, especially during what seems like a routine traffic stop. Many people don't understand their rights in this situation or whether they should cooperate with the officer's request. The police may need a search warrant to enter your house, but there are exceptions for automobiles that give the police more access. For legal advice, talk to a criminal defense lawyer about your Fourth Amendment rights. Responding to Law Enforcement Officers …
A Comforting Face
Elaine Tso makes it her business to care for Northeast Ohio’s Asian populationAs a child, Elaine Tso often sat in doctors’ waiting rooms while her mother acted as a volunteer interpreter between pregnant Asian women and their obstetricians, who were neither female nor Asian. Tso remembers sometimes seeing the women cry. “When you grow up,” her mother told her, “you need to become a doctor so there is a comforting face that represents this community.” Tso may have taken a different career path, but she took her mother’s words to heart. A law professor …
Finding Her Voice
Sonakshi Kapoor was told a girl couldn’t join the family business—so she became a lawyer insteadAs a young girl, Sonakshi Kapoor loved hanging around her father’s agricultural-sales company, watching traders haggle over the local sugar cane crop. “It was fascinating to me. I didn’t understand the exact details, but I saw the transactions,” she says. “There was all this energy. It was a world where everybody would be so passionate about sugar or another agricultural commodity.” She assumed that she, too, would someday join the company. But when she mentioned this to her …
First Things First
Carol LoCicero fights for her media clients’ constitutional rightsImagine a world in which Nixon didn’t have to release the Watergate tapes, the federal government was able to block the Pentagon Papers from being published, and The Boston Globe couldn’t unseal court records revealing decades of child molestation by priests. That world will never exist—at least, not if Carol LoCicero has anything to say about it. The Tampa media and intellectual property attorney focuses on First Amendment litigation at Thomas & LoCicero, which she co-founded in …
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