FordHarrison LLP, one of the country’s largest management-side labor and employment law firms, is pleased to announce that Allen J. McKenna has been elected managing partner of FordHarrison, effective January 1, 2018. Al takes over the role of managing partner from C. Lash Harrison, founding partner of the firm.
Lash said, “It is bittersweet to move on from this role. I hope I’ve laid the foundation in our firm and our community to build upon in the years ahead. Al has shown he is more than capable of leading the firm and I know he is a great fit to fill the managing partner role. He values the firm’s commitment to our clients as well as our attorneys and staff.”
Al joined FordHarrison in 2000 and has been a member of the firm’s executive committee for the past three years. Prior to that he served as Orlando’s office managing partner and as a member of the firm’s marketing committee. He currently leads FordHarrison’s healthcare practice group that focuses on the many labor and employment issues unique to hospitals, long-term care and assisted living providers, physician practice groups and healthcare-related companies of all types. Al is Board Certified as a Specialist in Labor and Employment Law by the Florida Bar and has represented management in all aspects of employment and labor law. He is a traditional labor lawyer with extensive experience advising clients on the legal issues related to union campaigns, collective bargaining, arbitrations, and hearings and trials before the National Labor Relations Board. He is also an experienced trial lawyer, having tried employment related cases in state and federal courts. Al represents a broad array of employers in a variety of industries all across America, but focuses his practice on the healthcare industry and government contractors. He is a regular speaker at conferences and seminars on labor and employment law subjects. Al earned his J.D. from the Ohio Northern University School of Law, with honors, in 1983.
In addition to being listed as a “Florida’s Legal Elite” by Florida Trend Magazine and “Best of the Bar” by the Orlando Business Journal, he is routinely listed in Chambers USA, Florida Super Lawyers, and The Best Lawyers in America. He was recognized as Orlando’s “Lawyer of the Year” in both 2016 and 2018 for Labor Law – Management by The Best Lawyers in America.
“I am humbled and privileged to have been selected by my partners to take over this role. Our firm has been so fortunate to have had Lash as our Managing Partner for so long. His vision and steady leadership has guided the firm through periods of incredible growth as well as through the Great Recession. His focus on the future has always delivered success. I look forward to continuing the focus on leading the firm forward and I am excited to see what the future holds. I am confident that if we focus on delivering value to our clients we will be successful,” said Al.