Perspective today on J. David Parrish. Some today will remember him only as a passing name. They will have matriculated and participated here in a more modern age, after some legends slowed and even faded. But there was a time when Mr. Parrish was well known in this corner of the law, and a great many litigated with him over the years. More on him shortly, but some thoughts first.
One of the troubling challenges of aging is that a great many people in your orbit will reach their end. That is hard to imagine when you are young because those who die are primarily "those" old people. When you are distracted by the day-to-day, little things begin to sneak by. All too soon, you realize that you are one of "those," and you struggle to recall how that happened. Was there some fork in the road, some opportunity, some exit?
This blog is about the world of workers' compensation. A fair few of you out there remind me periodically that I have wandered afield at times. Nonetheless, most of you get the point. One element that is always on point is the people.
There have been some intriguing people in the world of Florida workers' compensation over the years. I documented the adjudicators in Floridiana and the Workers' Compensation Adjudicators and the state mediators in Unseen Influence: Unconscious Predisposition in Dispute Resolution. Both are also available on my website.
Those histories are focused: judges and mediators. However, a great many others have been in this space: doctors, adjusters, risk managers, vocational experts, nurses, and so many others. The Florida workers' compensation pond is both broad and deep. Creston Nelson-Morrill tried to address some of the pond in 1995 in the FWCI-sponsored Workers' Compensation in Florida 1935-1995 (recognizing a 60th year is uncommon in a round-number world that seemingly prefers examples like 25, 50, 100, etc.)
Nelson-Morrill focused on names like McConnaughhay, Fontaine, Frierson, and wrote about more, such as Adams, Dockery, Holliman, Lewis, Malca, Rissman, Roberts, Rosenthal, Sessums, Shebal, Sicking, Slepin, Stiles, Vocelle, and Waters. And, of course, J. David Parrish. For a period, he was a fixture, one of the founders of what became WCI (McConnaughhay, Rissman, Parrish, and Rosenthal).
Mr. Parrish earned his JD from Mercer University Law School, 1971. He literally thought the sun rose and set over that stately hall of learning.
He was involved early and persistently in representing Claimants. He practiced with Edward Hurt, who had served as a Deputy Commissioner in the late 1950s. The firm evolved from Hurt & Parrish to Parrish & Smejkal, and finally Parrish Law Group, which included his daughter, Deanna Parrish.
There is, of course, a long list of memberships, accolades, awards, and plaques. He was Board Certified, chair of this, and a member of that. He touched many lives in his communities, including central Florida and the workers' compensation practice. He was also a fellow of the College of Workers' Compensation Lawyers and an inductee of the Florida Workers' Compensation Institute Hall of Fame.
Take my word for it, he would likely have preferred that I leave all that out. My conversations with Mr. Parrish centered on his more recent work mentoring and teaching. He was striving to prepare the next generations for what they faced. He would want that mentioned. He was unabashedly proud of his family, and he would want that to be our focus. I commiserate with them, and am sorry for their loss. But I focus here on broader remembrance.
I have written a few memorials. See Legend Jack Langdon Passes (June 2019); Two Emails and Two Stories (September 2021), Judge Robert Dietz (January 2022); and Jon Wheeler (May 2023). I said in some of those, and repeat for clarity: I hate writing these memorial posts. They are difficult, they feel somewhat trite, and perhaps do not resonate with today's reader.
But back to my focus. I have often stressed reputation: Your Name is your Greatest Asset (February 2013), How Will You be Known (December 2015); Do you Care About Reputation (June 2023), Making History (January 2026). How will Mr. Parrish be remembered? I was privy to some reactions to his passing, and without attribution, I share them below. A life well lived, a profession well practiced—these recollections say more than I could:
"Someone to be admired and emulated. Confident, knowledgeable- fun.""A Southern Gentleman. And a damn good lawyer.""the consummate gentleman lawyer.""A gentle giant, courtly gentleman, and cunning lawyer.""A pillar in the workers’ compensation community and a great person to be around.""A great man and practitioner!""Good lawyer. Good man."
Can one aspire to higher accolades than family, community, contribution, leadership, and these remembrances? I think not. I did not know him as well as those commenting above, but I am glad I knew him at all. Farewell, Mr. Parrish, and Godspeed.
