Jimmy L. Morales is a lawyer and politician from Miami Beach, Florida

Miami Beach, Florida

Miami Beach is a coastal resort city in Miami-Dade County, Florida, United States, incorporated on March 26, 1915. The municipality is located on a barrier island between the Atlantic Ocean and Biscayne Bay, the latter which separates the Beach from Miami city proper...

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Morales graduated from Miami Beach Senior High School. In 1984 he graduated Magna Cum Laude from Harvard University

Harvard University

Harvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country...

 and was inducted a member of Phi Beta Kappa. He went on to graduate Magna Cum Laude from Harvard Law School

Harvard Law School

Harvard Law School is one of the professional graduate schools of Harvard University. Located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, it is the oldest continually-operating law school in the United States and is home to the largest academic law library in the world. The school is routinely ranked by the U.S...

 in 1987. Morales is a member of the Dade County Bar Association, the Cuban American Bar Association, the National Hispanic Bar Association, and the Inter-American Bar Association.

Morales was born and raised in Miami Beach, and currently resides in Coral Gables

Coral Gables, Florida

Coral Gables is a city in Miami-Dade County, Florida, southwest of Downtown Miami, in the United States. The city is home to the University of Miami....

. He is married to Dori Foster. He has two children: a daughter, Nora Leigh, who has Asperger syndrome

Asperger syndrome

Asperger's syndrome that is characterized by significant difficulties in social interaction, alongside restricted and repetitive patterns of behavior and interests. It differs from other autism spectrum disorders by its relative preservation of linguistic and cognitive development...

, and a son, Peter Jay. Currently Morales is City Attorney to the City of Doral, Florida

Doral, Florida

Doral is a city located in north-central Miami-Dade County, Florida, United States. A suburb of Miami, it lies north-west of Miami International Airport. It takes its name from the famous golf and spa resort located within its municipal boundaries. The Doral Golf Resort & Spa was originally built...

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Career

He was first elected to the Miami-Dade Board of County Commissioners in October 1996 to represent District 7, and was reelected to serve a second term on September 5, 2000. His Commission district included South Miami, Key Biscayne

Key Biscayne

Key Biscayne is an island located in Miami-Dade County, Florida, United States, between the Atlantic Ocean and Biscayne Bay. It is the southernmost of the barrier islands along the Atlantic coast of Florida, and lies south of Miami Beach and southeast of Miami...

, portions of Miami, Coral Gables

Coral Gables, Florida

Coral Gables is a city in Miami-Dade County, Florida, southwest of Downtown Miami, in the United States. The city is home to the University of Miami....

 and Pinecrest

Pinecrest, Florida

Pinecrest is a suburban village in Miami-Dade County, Florida, United States of America. The population was 19,055 as of the census of 2000. Pinecrest is governed by a five-member Village Council and operates under the Council-Manager form of government....

. He ran for Mayor in 2004 for Miami-Dade County, but lost to Carlos Alvarez

Carlos Alvarez (mayor)

Carlos Alvarez is a Cuban American politician, and the former mayor of Miami-Dade County. He was first elected mayor in 2004, and re-elected in 2008. His mayoralty ended in March 2011 after a recall election...

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Morales serves as the Chairperson of the Mayor's Task Force on Efficiency and Competition and also as Chairman of the Commission's Budget and Finance Committee. He was recently appointed to the NACo Deferred Compensation Advisory Committee and the National PTA Hispanic Advisory Board. He also serves as the County's representative to the Downtown Development Authority, the Dade League of Cities and the Florida Association of Counties.

Morales has a long history of service to the community. He has served on numerous not-for-profit boards, including the Dade Community Foundation, the American Red Cross

American Red Cross

The American Red Cross , also known as the American National Red Cross, is a volunteer-led, humanitarian organization that provides emergency assistance, disaster relief and education inside the United States. It is the designated U.S...

, Crimestoppers of Dade County, the East Little Havana Community Development Corporation, Aspira of Florida, and the Girl Scout Council of Tropical Florida. Morales is a graduate of both the Leadership Miami and Leadership Florida Programs. In 2000, he was the recipient of the Bill Colson Leadership Award for the Leadership Miami program of the Greater Miami Chamber of Commerce.

Morales is a shareholder with the Miami law firm of Stearns Weaver Miller Weissler Alhadeff & Sitterson, P.A. Mr. Morales also sits on the firm's Board of Directors. His practice focuses on land use and eminent domain, municipal and county law, and governmental affairs.

Experience

• Serves as the City Attorney for the City of Doral
• Serves on the City Attorney team for the City of Marathon
• Serves as Special Master for the City of Miami Gardens
• Served as Special Master for the City of Sunny Isles Beach
• Served as Chief Special Master for the City of Miami Beach
• Served on the Board of Miami-Dade County Commissioners, District 7 1996-2004
• Served as Chairman of the Code Enforcement Board for the City of Miami

Professional and community involvement

• American Red Cross, former Board Member
• Aspira of Florida, former Board Member
• Autism Speaks, Walk Co-Chairman 2006 and 2007
• Miami-Dade County’s liaison to the Miami Downtown Development Authority and the Miami-Dade League of Cities 1997-2004
• Crime Stoppers of Miami-Dade County, former Board Member
• Dade Foundation, past Chairman, current Board Member
• East Little Havana CDC, former Board Member
• Florida Association of Counties, past Member
• The Florida Bar, Eminent Domain Committee and the Annual Meeting Committee, current Board Member
• Girl Scout Council of Tropical Florida, former Board Member
• Leadership Florida, Graduate
• Leadership Miami, Graduate
• Livability Task Force of the Miami-Dade Alliance for Human Services, Chairman
• National PTA Hispanic Advisory Board, former Member
• Neighborhood Lending Partners of South Florida, Board Member
• University of Miami Center for Autism and Related Disorders, Advisory Board Member
• WLRN Community Advisory Board, Member
• 5,000 Role Models of Excellence Project, Mentor

Recognition

• The Greater Miami Chamber of Commerce Bill Colson Leadership Award for Outstanding Leadership and Superior Ability
• The First Annual McClaskey Leadership Award from the Guardianship Program of Dade County
• The Ambassador of the Arts medal from the Dade Cultural Alliance
• The “Civic Trailblazer” Award from the Miami-Dade Alumni Chapter of Bethune-Cookman College
• Inducted into the Miami-Beach Senior High School Alumni Association Hall of Fame
• South Florida Legal Guide - "Top Lawyers in South Florida," selected for inclusion, 2008–2009
• Florida Super Lawyers, selected for inclusion, 2006–2009