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The 2017 LSU Hall of Distinction Class (from left): William Shelby McKenzie, Mary Landrieu, Brandon P. Landry, Maj. Gen. Glenn H. Curtis and Jake L. Netterville. (Not pictured Dr. Charles M. Smith) (Photo courtesy of LSU)

Former Taylor Porter Co-Managing Partner and Of Counsel Shelby McKenzie was inducted into the LSU Alumni Association Hall of Distinction in a special ceremony held at the Lod Cook Alumni Center on April 7. Joining McKenzie in this year's class included: Maj. Gen. Glenn H. Curtis, Louisiana adjutant general; Brandon P. Landry, founder, co-owner and CEO of Walk-On’s Bistreaux & Bar; former U.S. Senator Mary Landrieu, policy adviser with Van Ness Feldman, Washington, D.C.; Jake L. Netterville, chairman of the board emeritus of Postlethwaite & Netterville, Baton Rouge; and Dr. Charles M. Smith, retired family medicine practitioner, Sulphur, La.

"The LSU Alumni Association annually recognizes alumni who have distinguished themselves and the university through their careers, their personal and civic accomplishments, their volunteer activities and their loyalty to their alma mater,” LSU Alumni Association President/CEO Cliff Vannoy said. “These individuals have excelled in all of these areas and exemplify the essence of a true Tiger.”

The first LSU Alumnus of the Year award was conferred in 1966; the Young Alumnus of the Year Award was established in 1999 to recognize alumni under the age of 40 who have attained professional prominence early in their careers. Including the 2017 inductees, the LSU Alumni Association has recognized 291 individuals representing a cross-section of LSU graduates.

McKenzie worked at Taylor Porter for more than 50 years, for many years as co-managing partner. He was an adjunct professor of law for more than 30 years, and through Taylor Porter served as unofficial general counsel to LSU. After retiring from active practice, he served as interim general counsel to the LSU Board of Supervisors, President Emeritus William Jenkins and President F. King Alexander. For his leadership and numerous contributions to LSU and to his profession, he was named a Law School Distinguished Alumnus in 2005, and was recognized as the 2011 Distinguished Louisiana Attorney by the Louisiana Bar Foundation. A graduate of University High School, McKenzie earned an undergraduate degree from Princeton and received a juris doctor degree from LSU Law School in 1964.

During his career, McKenzie practiced in insurance law, university law and litigation, litigating hundreds of suits involving many issues such as insurance coverage, torts, product liability, contracts, mineral rights and discrimination. McKenzie is a fellow of the American College of Trial Lawyers and former President of the Louisiana Association of Defense Counsel, Baton Rouge Bar Association, and the LSU Paul M. Hebert Law Center Alumni Board of Trustees. He was selected for inclusion in Best Lawyers in America and Louisiana Super Lawyers, and was formerly named the Best Lawyers’ Baton Rouge "Insurance Lawyer of the Year."