Shea Moser is a partner at Moseley, Prichard, Parrish, Knight & Jones and chair of the Jacksonville Bar Association Commercial Litigation Committee.
Who or what inspired you to become a lawyer? A close friend of my family was my first exposure to the practice of law. He got me thinking from a young age that law might be a good career for me.
One person other than my spouse who inspires me: Entrepreneurs inspire me. It is inspiring to watch someone create a business from nothing and then watch that business grow into something that supports a family and creates jobs for others.
How do you relate your undergraduate degree to your practice of law? I majored in economics at the University of Florida. It taught me critical thinking skills and allows me to feel comfortable working with businesses and numbers.
How did you decide your practice area? And why have you chosen that? My practice areas chose me. Moseley, Prichard, Parrish, Knight and Jones has represented companies in the transportation industry since its inception in 1906, so it was almost a certainty that I would practice transportation law when I joined the firm. And, since the partner who hired me practices in the areas of business law and probate, I also began practicing in those areas. I enjoyed practicing in those areas of the law from the start and still enjoy my practice today.
What has been the biggest change in your practice area since you passed the Bar? The impact of social media on discovery.
What do you think will be the next biggest change in your area of law? From what I read, the role that artificial intelligence will play in legal research may be one of the biggest changes I will see in the next 20 years.
If I could change anything in the legal system ... I would take a hard look at the jurisdictional limits for small claims courts. A lot of small businesses forgo pursuing litigation for amounts between $10,000 and $20,000 because the costs outweigh the benefits. That amount of money is a big deal for small businesses. I think it is worth considering whether claims more than $5,000 should be litigated in the small claims division using the small claims court rules.
What community service have you pursued and why that? I’ve had the pleasure of being a part of a team of lawyers and judges led by Circuit Judge Adrian Soud that teach a civics lesson once a quarter at local high schools. I have always been interested in teaching, so when given the opportunity to participate in this program, I thought it would be a great way to serve the community and to see if I could withstand the scrutiny of a room full of high schoolers.
What’s your advice for new lawyers? Always be available to your firm for a new project or opportunity.