Dade Legal Aid's "Rock Your Heart Out" Fundraiser “Rock your Heart Out” on Sunday, March 10th from 5-9 pm to support Dade Legal Aid’s 2013 fundraising kick off while enjoying some of the legal community’s most talented musicians as they channel their inner rock stars. Presented by Sabadell United Bank, the Second Annual Battle of the Legal Bands will be hosted by PAX (Performing Arts EXchange), located at 337 SW 8 Street, a hip live music venue voted 2012 Best Venue for Local Acts by the Miami New Times. The bands from this American Idol- style competition will be judged by audience participation and a panel of judges, including three prominent members of the South Florida judiciary: Honorable Richard J. Suarez, Third District Court of Appeal of Florida, Honorable Stanford Blake and Honorable Carroll Kelly, both with the 11th Judicial Circuit of Florida. Judge Suarez is a talented musician, and also brings to the table a graduate degree in music, while those who’ve appeared in Judge Blake’s courtroom are all too familiar with his keen wit and comedic timing. A former talent scout and a music lover, Judge Kelly will use those skills to evaluate each band’s musical accomplishments. A sensational six-piece band specializing in classic rock, The Fit plays an eclectic mix of blues, R&B, country, oldies, and pop. Band leader Andy Waks, is a Board-Certified Admiralty and Maritime lawyer with Waks & Barnett. He is a modern-day troubadour and multi-instrumental musician. With gigs spanning South Florida, you will see Andy on the keyboard, guitar and vocals. For a sample of The Fit’s music, please go to www.myspace.com/thefitmiami. The Urge, a rock cover band, features well-known Corporate and Real Estate attorney Mark Meland, a founding partner of Meland, Russin, Budwick , on bass and vocals along with accomplished Product Liability defense attorney, Fred Fein, of Thornton, Davis & Fein. Fred serves as national, regional and local counsel for many clients and tries cases all over the country; that is, when The Urge isn’t giggin’. The Urge covers what they call “soon to be classic rock” artists such as The Foo Fighters, Stone Temple Pilots, Nickelback and more. With hundreds of hits in their repertoire, the Urge now focuses on the heavier and edgier rock prevalent in today’s music scene. Go to www.theurgeband.com. The newest addition to this year’s competition is The Motions, a classic rock band showcasing the musical talents of three top Miami litigators. Before attending the University of Miami School of Law, Tom Manos was a sound engineer and studio musician. Now Tom spends his days with the firm of Manos Alwine & Kubiliun, focused on complex commercial litigation and business disputes; by night, you’ll find him on guitar, keyboard and vocals for The Motions, as well as handling the engineering and production of the band’s recordings. Renowned bankruptcy attorney Chuck Throckmorton, a founding partner of Kozyak, Tropin & Throckmorton, P.A, demonstrates his musical aptitude on the guitar, keyboards, harmonica and vocals while none other than Jeff Lapin, a commercial litigator with the Coral Gables firm of Lapin & Leichtling, LLP, can be found playing bass and guitar, as well as singing with The Motions. According to Jeff, “we’re just musicians with really good day jobs.” Check out some “classic rock that moves you” on their website: www.themotionsband.com. Proceeds from the event will support Dade Legal Aid, the oldest provider of free civil legal services in Miami-Dade County. "The demand for legal services has never been greater due to the continuing economic challenges here in Miami-Dade County," said Sharon Langer, Executive Director for Dade Legal Aid, “and we greatly appreciate the efforts of the participating bands, and all of our sponsors for supporting us so that we can continue providing a safety net of legal services for families, victims of domestic violence and sexual assault, foster youth, the elderly, the disabled and other vulnerable groups in our community. Our first Battle of the Bands was wildly successful and you do not want to miss this year’s most happening event in the legal community.” Tickets for the Battle of the Bands are limited can be purchased online at www.dadelegalaid.org. Advance tickets are $20, and can also be purchased for $25 at the door. Please visit www.dadelegalaid.org, contact Wendy Wilson at (305) 579-5733 ext. 2264 or Jane Muir at Jane@gerstenmuir.com for “All Access Passes” and Sponsorship Opportunities. Back by popular demand, this year’s line-up includes: Blackstar, reigning champion, is a multi-faceted Miami-based cover band playing in South Florida since 1989. Members include attorney/drummer Phil Allen, a commercial litigator with Garbett, Stiphany, Allen & Roza, P.A., as well as a variety of professionals such as rock-star/dentist, Dr. Karl Ellins; harmonica master/Advertising Executive, Bruce Turkel; and a paralegal with Ferraro Law Firm. It features a 4-piece horn section, “The Schmokin’ Section.” Don Hyink, band leader on guitar and vocals, is Owner of Tropical Tower Service and Blackstar Studios, a full-service recording and practice facility. The Click features many prominent South Florida musicians including Joe Hernandez, a Partner with Weiss Serota Helfman Pastoriza Cole & Boniske, P.L. and formerly with several distinguished Miami-based firms such as Hogan Lovells and Greenberg Traurig. The Click, playing since the early 1980’s, performs a broad range of music styles from contemporary to classic rock. To learn more about this talented group, please visit www.theclickband.com 20