Bill Dobbins, Dobbins Blaya

Bill Dobbins
Dobbins Blaya
P.O. Box 380063
Jacksonville, FL 32205
(305) 301-6358
[email protected]
DobbinsBlaya.com

 

  1. What brought you to Jacksonville?
    1. I moved here when I was 14 with my family from Philadelphia.
  2. Why did you choose to go into law?
    1. I think I just fell into it, effectively. I was working at a bank here in town, and I had goals to pursue my MBA, but I decided to get my JD first and fell in love with it. Joined a firm and went from there.
  3. What is your specific field of law?
    1. We do mostly insurance work, insurance related services, insurance coverage, but do some PI work as well. We also do some employment litigation and general corporate counsel for a number of banks. My partner comes from a more real estate background so our office in South FL is more focused on that. We both cut our teeth on sizeable defense firms.
  4. How long have you been practicing?
    1. A little over a decade.
  5. How do most people hear about your firm?
    1. Either word of mouth or our online presence.
  6. How do you set yourself apart from other firms in the area?
    1. Our business structure is certainly unique. We’re from a fundamental dual office firm (Miami and Jacksonville offices). We bring a more generalized business approach. Poised to be more nimble to react to a legal market that will most likely change in the next 4-5 years.
  7. What do you see as the greatest challenges in your practice?
    1. From our standpoint, the struggle we face is that there’s firms around us with big capital, so we have to position ourselves accordingly. That capital will become more available as the client base is changing.
  8. What do you consider to be your greatest accomplishment as an attorney?
    1. I think there’s a sense of general community involvement at a core level. First worked at Marks Gray and they valued travel, family, and service, and that always stuck with me. I’ve stuck with being involved with local organizations and community groups.
  9. How do you stay connected to the Jacksonville community? Are you involved in any local organizations?
    1. I have a 4 year old so I wish I was in more. I’m very involved in Avondale, and my cell number is online so I get phone calls just about every day.
  10. Does your firm sponsor any special events throughout the year?
    1. Not yet, we’re still pretty new as a firm. Paying the dues right now, but we intend to once we’re more established.
  11. What advice would you give someone considering going to law school?
    1. Keep an open mind and approach it for what you think it will pragmatically provide you personally.
  12. Finish the sentence: “In 5 years I will…”
    1. Still be around Avondale having fun with my kid.