William W. Large, President
William W. Large is a passionate advocate for legal reform and an experienced attorney who led Gov. Jeb Bush’s fight to reform medical malpractice rules to cap damage awards. As president of the Florida Justice Reform Institute (FJRI), Mr. Large is responsible for the daily operations of FJRI, which is a lobbying organization in Tallahassee, FL. Mr. Large brings extensive legal and political expertise to our advocacy group and has worked in the highest levels of Florida government to bring about civil justice and tort reform.
Prior to serving as president, Mr. Large served as Governor Bush’s deputy chief of staff and was responsible for coordinating and advancing Governor Bush’s vision from the governor’s executive office to several state agencies, including: the Agency for Health Care Administration; the Agency for Persons with Disabilities; the Department of Health; the Department of Children and Families; the Department of Elder Affairs; the Department of Veteran Affairs; and the Department of Business and Professional Regulation.
Before becoming deputy chief of staff, Mr. Large served as the general counsel for the Florida Department of Health from March 2000 until June 2004. In that capacity, Mr. Large oversaw more than 70 attorneys and managed litigation files for the third largest executive branch agency.
As DOH general counsel, Mr. Large became one of Governor Bush’s chief counselors as lawmakers negotiated reforms of the state’s medical malpractice laws, affecting legal liability. During his tenure as general counsel at DOH, Mr. Large served as director of the Governor’s Task Force on Professional Liability Insurance, playing a vital role in ensuring the governor’s medical malpractice reform initiatives were approved by the Florida Legislature. Mr. Large lobbied lawmakers and helped author the governor’s medical malpractice legislative proposals—including a cap on non-economic damages—in order to provide much-needed malpractice premium relief for physicians.
Prior to working for the state, Mr. Large was a partner in the Orlando law firm of Hill, Adams, Hall, and Schieffelin, P.A., where he practiced in the areas of professional malpractice defense litigation primarily representing hospitals. Mr. Large is a member of The Florida Bar, as well as the Administrative Law Section; Health Law Section; and the Trial Law Section. He is admitted to practice before all Florida courts, the U.S. Supreme Court, the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals, and the U.S. District Courts for the Northern District, Middle District and Southern District of Florida. Mr. Large is an “AV” rated attorney by Martindale-Hubbell, the highest Peer Review Rating awarded. He is a member in good standing of the Federalist Society, the Florida Defense Lawyers Association, and the Defense Research Institute.
In 2011, Mr. Large was also appointed by United States Senators Marco Rubio and Bill Nelson to serve a two-year term on the Federal Judicial Nominating Commission for the Northern District of Florida. He was reappointed in 2013 and 2015.
Mr. Large received both his Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration (B.S.B.A. 1989) and his Juris Doctor (J.D. 1993) from the University of Florida, and holds three master’s degrees from Florida State University: (1) Political Science (M.S. 2002); (2) Business Administration (M.B.A. 2009); and (3) Risk Management and Insurance (MS-RMI 2009).