Scott Makar

Scott Douglas Makar (born October 15, 1959) is an American lawyer, college professor and Judge on Florida's Fifth District Court of Appeal, recommissioned from the First District Court of Appeal on January 1, 2023, by Governor Ron DeSantis. Previously he was the Florida Solicitor General serving from 2007 until 2012 and in that position, argued five cases before the United States Supreme Court.

Early years Scott Makar was born on October 15, 1959, and his family moved to Holmes Beach, Florida in 1969. He graduated from Manatee High School in 1977.

Education Mr. Makar graduated from Mercer University in 1980 with a Bachelor of Science double majoring in mathematics & economics, magna cum laude. At the University of Florida, he received a Master of Business Administration in finance and Master of Arts in economics during 1982, then a Juris Doctor with honors in 1987 and finally, a Doctor of Philosophy in economics during 1993. Mr. Makar was founder and Editor-in-Chief of the University of Florida Journal of Law and Public Policy. He was also a member of the university of Florida Law Review and received the Gertrude Brick Award. Makar clerked for Judge Thomas Alonzo Clark on the Eleventh Circuit of the United States courts of appeals, and at the Antitrust Division for the United States Department of Justice, among others.

Teaching His love for academics prompted Makar to begin teaching undergraduate courses when he was in law school. He has taught law courses at the University of Florida, Florida Coastal School of Law, University of North Florida and Jacksonville University. Part of his position as Florida Solicitor General includes teaching at Florida State University. He joined Holland & Knight, LLP in 1989 and became a Capital Partner prior to his departure in 2001. He was hired as chief of the appellate division in the Office of General Counsel for the City of Jacksonville. He remained with the city for seven years.

Makar has also written law reviews and law journal articles on a broad range of topics, many of which have been cited by commentators and courts, with several garnering legal writing awards. He was appointed to the Florida Supreme Court's Standard Jury Instructions Committee (Civil) and currently serves as its chair emeritus. He served on the first Executive Council of the Florida Bar's Appellate Practice and Advocacy Section as a founding member. He also chaired the Appellate Practice Section of the Jacksonville Bar Association from 2001 to 2002. On February 23, 2012, Makar revealed that he would leave the Attorney General's office on March 23, 2012, to occupy the bench as a judge in the Florida First District Court of Appeal in Tallahassee. Other First DCA judges teach at various law schools, so Makar confirmed that he will probably do so, too.

Makar's official investiture as a member of the First District Court of Appeal was held on April 23, 2012. He was recommissioned to Florida's Fifth District Court of Appeal on January 1, 2023, by Governor Ron DeSantis. His wife and son were able to attend several of his oral arguments at the US Supreme Court.