Daniel E. Nordby, partner with Shutts & Bowen

After a two-year stint as general counsel for former Gov. Rick Scott, Daniel Nordby has returned to Shutts & Bowen's Tallahassee office as partner.

During his two years in government, Nordby interviewed hundreds of nominees for statewide judgeships (Scott appointed over 100 during Nordby's term), and personally presented oral arguments to the Florida Supreme Court on behalf of Scott's administration.

Nordby said his time in the executive branch was invaluable, especially in light of his practice, which includes appellate law, administrative law and business litigation.

“A lot of the issues that get to the governor's office can be resolved in more than one way,” he said. “I have a greater perspective on the whole range of legal issues that state government intersects with, and a better idea of how the top-level decision-makers make judgment calls.”

Nordby has a long record in politics, having spent his entire legal career in Tallahassee. He was a partner at Shutts for nearly three years before he left to work in the Scott administration. Before that, he spent a few years as general counsel for the Florida House of Representatives and various state agencies.

“Working in government is an opportunity to practice law in a way that you can't in the private sector. To be in some ways more of a pure problem-solver,” he said.

Nordby said he looked at firms other than Shutts when he was planning his return to the private sector. Some potential firms were national, others regional like Shutts. But in the end, he decided that the firm offered the best of both worlds: a broad statewide focus without the hassle of working in a national satellite office.

Shutts & Bowen had a good 2018, posting nearly 11 percent growth in profits while adding 42 attorneys. Last year marked the fifth straight year of growth for the over 100-year-old firm, which now boasts 270 attorneys in eight offices.