Spotlight On: Sara Holladay, Office Managing Partner, McGuireWoods LLP – Jacksonville
Key points:
- • McGuireWoods is expanding its Jacksonville team and sector capabilities.
- • AI is improving legal efficiency while requiring careful human oversight.
- • Energy, financial services, and healthcare are driving growth opportunities.
September 2026 — Invest: sat down with Sara Holladay, Jacksonville office managing partner of McGuireWoods LLP, to discuss the firm’s expansion in Jacksonville, the growing influence of energy and financial services, and how technology is transforming legal services. “At the end of the day, a human is still responsible for the work product, the advice, and anything filed with a court,” Holladay said.
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How has the Jacksonville office for McGuireWoods changed over the past 12 months, and what key milestones have been achieved by your team?
We have certainly expanded over the past year, adding several new attorneys. While our practices are still largely focused on litigation and compliance, we continue to grow and broaden our reach across other business sectors, including regulatory compliance counseling, energy, and healthcare.
We continue to hire key talent, adding a U.S. Supreme Court law clerk, assistant U.S. attorney, and others to our ranks in Jacksonville. These hires, along with our existing talented lawyers, have strengthened the depth of our team and overall capabilities of the office.
From a market perspective, energy has become an increasingly prominent sector in Jacksonville. With global dynamics influencing supply chains, particularly around natural gas and LNG, there is a growing focus on how energy is transported and distributed. Jacksonville is well positioned in this space, making it an area to watch in the coming years.
AI has also had a significant impact on the legal industry, as it has across most sectors, and it will continue to shape how we operate going forward.
What types of projects or areas of work are currently shaping your activity in the Jacksonville market?
While I cannot go into specific details due to confidentiality, we are seeing activity across several key sectors. Energy-related matters are increasingly important, particularly around supply issues and infrastructure.
Transportation continues to be a major area of focus, given Jacksonville’s role as a logistics and distribution hub. And financial services continue to remain active, with ever-evolving issues in the regulatory and overall legal landscapes.
Despite earlier projections of a downturn, the economy has remained resilient, and these sectors have continued to perform strongly.
How have client expectations around legal spend and value changed, and how are you responding?
Clients remain very focused on managing legal spend and expect their attorneys to be efficient.
Where we have seen the biggest shift is in the adoption of new technologies, particularly AI. AI has the capacity to summarize in minutes thousands of documents that would have taken an attorney or a paralegal hours or weeks. If utilized properly, these technologies translate into cost savings and more efficient and effective service to clients.
We have implemented many of these technologies across the firm to improve efficiency and deliver more timely and effective service.
How are you preparing your workforce to adapt to AI and other emerging technologies?
We have made a significant investment in training across the firm. This includes onboarding for new attorneys as well as ongoing training for more experienced attorneys who may not have fully embraced these tools.
It is important not only to understand how to use AI, but also to understand its limits. A core part of our training focuses on responsible use. At the end of the day, a human is still responsible for the work product, the advice, and anything filed with a court.
It is becoming increasingly common to see instances where court filings were prepared with an over-reliance on AI without proper verification, resulting in incorrect or nonexistent information. Courts are keenly focused on these issues and any misuse. Avoiding those situations is critical, and our focus is on ensuring that these tools are used in an ethical and effective way that serves the client’s best interests.
As Jacksonville continues to grow as a technology and financial hub, how are you adapting your services to meet more complex client needs?
One of our strengths is that we are part of a much larger firm with a broad range of experience. We are able to draw on specialists across the firm to support clients in very specific areas.
That allows us to be nimble and bring the right knowledge into the Jacksonville market when needed. Whether that involves collaboration with other offices or providing targeted support locally, we can leverage the full resources of the firm to meet evolving demands.
What regulatory trends are shaping the legal sector, and what challenges do clients face in navigating them?
Regulatory environments have shifted significantly in recent years, with some areas becoming more decentralized. It will be interesting to see whether that trend continues or shifts back.
One of the biggest challenges for clients is keeping up with that constant change and understanding what they need to prepare for today versus what may happen in the future. Some industries that have seen deregulation could move back toward increased oversight.
We have a dedicated regulatory team that works across industries, including energy, healthcare, and financial services. Many of our professionals have government experience, which provides valuable perspective in helping clients navigate these changes.
How has the firm’s community engagement and pro bono work grown over the years?
Pro bono work remains a priority for us, and I am proud to say that our Jacksonville office has achieved 100% participation among attorneys. That is always our goal because it is important to give back to the community.
We continue to co-host our annual veterans clinic, where we provide wills and estate planning services for active-duty and retired service members. It is a well-attended event and makes a meaningful impact by providing access to legal services for those who may not otherwise have the means or opportunity.
We also partner with our clients and local nonprofits to provide support on various matters from compliance support to real estate and development. Our team has been particularly involved in projects for local homeless shelters, and we continue to look for other opportunities to contribute in similar ways.
Looking ahead three to five years, what opportunities do you see for growth in Jacksonville and for your firm?
We see continued opportunities to grow our presence in key industries such as energy, financial services, healthcare, and real estate. As Jacksonville continues to expand, there will be increasing demand across all of these sectors that we believe we are uniquely positioned to address given both our local and broader firm talent and resources.
For Jacksonville specifically, one area I would particularly like to see develop further is downtown Jacksonville. There continues to be ongoing discussion about revitalization, and there are already positive signs, including the Jacksonville University College of Law moving downtown and the presence of key businesses moving into the area. However, we still have a long way to go.
A stronger downtown would benefit the broader community as well as our firm. We are committed to supporting that growth and continuing to serve our clients as the region evolves.
Want more? Read the Invest: Jacksonville report.
