The 14th Judicial Circuit celebrates National Law Week with an award ceremony

PANAMA CITY, Fla. ( WMBB ) — The 14th Judicial Circuit celebrated National Law Day today by awarding one local lawyer with the Larry G. Smith Professionalism Award.

Since 2016, the 14th Judicial Circuit has held this ceremony during Law Week.

The award is named after the Honorable Larry G. Smith who served the area as a private attorney, assistant state attorney, circuit judge, and appellate judge.

The award recognizes lawyers who show professionalism in their law practice.

This year the award was given to Jay Manuel.

Manuel said he was shocked and surprised when he found out he would be the one to receive the prestigious award.

He says it’s a privilege to be an attorney.

“In law, we disagree with our opponents but try to figure out a way to disagree with our opponents and yet not be disagreeable,” Manuel said. “There are two sides to every argument and so if you’re unable to reach an agreement, we have a system in which there is a judge or jury that can decide that issue. So there’s no reason to quarrel with one another.”

If you’d like to watch the Larry G. Smith Professionalism Award ceremony, click here .

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to mypanhandle.com.