David McGinnis Kay | Atlanta Circuit, Post 30

Candidate Statement

Public service has been a central tenet of my career from the beginning. After graduating from Emory Law in 2003, I prosecuted misdemeanors for Fulton and DeKalb counties before joining the State Board of Workers’ Compensation as a mediator, traveling around Georgia—from Dalton to Albany and Savannah—to help injured workers and insurance companies resolve claims without the cost or risk of litigation. After mediating several thousand disputes over six years, I was selected as the division director of the State Board’s Settlement Division, managing and leading the team responsible for reviewing all proposed settlements of workers’ compensation claims in Georgia for a decade. To advance my leadership skills and increase my effectiveness as a manager, I obtained a Certified Public Manager certification from the University of Georgia in 2018. In 2022, I was sworn in as an administrative law judge at the State Board, working in the Alternative Dispute Resolution Division in Atlanta. I am a regular speaker at workers’ compensation seminars around Georgia, and for the past two years I have volunteered as a judge for the E. Earle Zehmer Moot Court Competition.

I would like to expand my public service by volunteering on the Board of Governors. I hope to support the Bar as it addresses the increasing use of artificial intelligence, mental health challenges faced by attorneys and clients, and eroding public trust and confidence in the judicial system, among other issues. I bring two decades of experience as a judge, manager, mediator, former prosecutor and private practice attorney. I offer the patience and temperament to help people find consensus and reach agreement on issues they may have thought were intractable. I respectfully ask for your vote for the State Bar’s Board of Governors Atlanta Circuit, Post 30.

Education

• B.A., cum laude, Cinema/Television, University of Southern California, 2000
• J.D., Emory University School of Law, 2003
• Certified Public Manager, Carl Vinson Institute of Government, University of Georgia, 2018

Personal/Family

I was raised in Columbia, South Carolina, and enjoy living with my wife and our three cats in Decatur, Georgia.

Professional Background, Bar Activities, Civic Activities

• Administrative law judge, Alternative Dispute Resolution Division, State Board of Workers’ Compensation, 2022 to the present.
• Division director, Settlement Division, State Board of Workers’ Compensation, 2012 to 2022.
• Mediator, State Board of Workers’ Compensation, 2006 to 2012.
• Assistant solicitor, DeKalb County Solicitor’s Office, 2005 to 2006.
• Associate, Drew Eckl & Farnham, LLP, Atlanta, Georgia, 2005.
• Assistant solicitor, Fulton County Solicitor’s Office, 2003 to 2005.
• Volunteer judge, E. Earle Zehmer Moot Court Competition, 2023 and 2024.
• Frequent speaker at workers’ compensation seminars throughout Georgia.

Main Issues Facing the State Bar/Position

From the increasing use of artificial intelligence to the decreasing use of civility, there are many issues facing the Bar that require thoughtful study and coordinated action. If elected, I would consider my first duty to be listening to my fellow Bar members and to current Board members about the issues they consider to be the highest current priorities, and then to consider how I may best serve to address these issues.