After a competitive national search, The Florida Bar Foundation board of directors selected attorney Dominic “Donny” MacKenzie to be its new executive director.
MacKenzie, 54, will retire as Holland & Knight’s pro bono partner in Jacksonville to assume leadership of the statewide Bar’s nonprofit.
It was established more than 60 years ago to increase access to civil legal counsel for low-income residents and promote service to the public by members of The Florida Bar.
He will replace Bruce Blackwell, who has been executive director since 2014.
“I’ve been thinking about this for a long time. I’ve reached the point in my life that it’s the right time to do it,” MacKenzie said.
MacKenzie joined Holland & Knight in 1993. He served on the foundation’s board of directors for eight years, including as its president in 2015-16.
He has been a member of the organization’s Development, Grant, Legal Assistance for the Poor, Law Student Assistance and Interest on Trust Account Operations committees. Mac-Kenzie was chair of the Strategic Reset Committee, which developed a five-year plan in 2017 to change how the foundation can secure new funding sources and expand its role as the state’s leading facilitator of civil legal assistance for low- and moderate-income people and families.
“My passion has been the mission of The Florida Bar Foundation,” he said.
While he’ll leave Holland & Knight, MacKenzie won’t be putting his shingle in mothballs. An experienced litigator who specializes in medical and professional malpractice defense, health care issues, product liability and construction law, he said he will make his personal services available on a pro bono basis to the more than 30 civil legal services providers the foundation supports.
“I want to litigate cases around the state and co-counsel with legal aid organizations. I’ll lead by example and show other attorneys that you can take a case,” said MacKenzie.