Taylor English Duma LLP is pleased to announce that Frank B. Strickland, Anne W. Lewis, and Bryan P. Tyson are joining as partners and Oscar N. Persons as senior counsel in the firm’s litigation practice group. In addition to their litigation work, Strickland and Tyson will also be members of Taylor English Decisions, the government relations and business consulting affiliate of Taylor English, where they will advise on political law.

“We are excited to welcome such a talented group of attorneys to our growing firm,” said Marc Taylor, a founding partner at Taylor English. “Together the team brings more than 130 years of combined legal experience. Throughout their expansive careers, Frank, Anne, Oscar, and Bryan have established outstanding reputations in the Atlanta community. We are thrilled to have them join our team.”

Frank B. Strickland has experience representing clients in a wide range of litigation matters including redistricting, voting rights, education, regulatory issues, and general business disputes. He serves as a court-appointed special master and receiver in commercial litigation and also as a certified mediator. Additionally, Strickland assists clients regarding legislative and public policy matters

With 40 years of experience in the higher-education space, Strickland has a strong background representing educational institutions and has acted as special counsel to several higher education institutions regarding student housing facility financing.

Representative of his work, Strickland was nominated by President George W. Bush as a member of the Board of Directors of the Legal Services Corporation (LSC) in Washington, DC. After Senate confirmation, he was elected chairman of the Board of LSC from 2003 to 2010 and currently serves on two LSC board committees. Additionally, Strickland is a former president of the Atlanta Bar Association and currently serves on the Executive Committee of the Board of Governors of the State Bar of Georgia. He was appointed by Governors Sonny Perdue and Nathan Deal to n the Judicial Nominating Commission which reviews candidates for judicial appointments throughout Georgia. Strickland is chairman of the Atlanta Lawyers Chapter of the Federalist Society and is involved in other public service organizations.

Strickland served in the United States Coast Guard and is a retired Commander, U.S. Coast Guard Reserve. He received his undergraduate degree at Vanderbilt University and his law degree at Emory University.

Anne W. Lewis’ practice focuses on election litigation, including redistricting, voting rights, election contests, and candidate challenges. She has experience representing candidates and elected officials before the Georgia Campaign Finance Commission and the State Election Board, and she has served as counsel to public utilities before the Georgia Public Service Commission.

Lewis has played a pivotal role in several election-related cases including: served as counsel to the Georgia General Assembly on redistricting matters; served as special attorney general on two voting rights cases; and served as a special assistant attorney general on litigation regarding Georgia’s photo ID law.

Lewis has held leadership positions in various professional and community associations including: Georgia Supreme Court’s Committee on Civil Justice; Georgia Resource Center; Republican National Lawyers Association Georgia chapter; Atlanta Lawyers Chapter of the Federalist Society; Republican National Lawyers Association; Georgia Association of Women Lawyers Judicial Review Committee; and the St. Thomas More Catholic School Parent Teacher Organization and its Board of Education.

Additionally, Lewis was appointed by Georgia Secretary of State Brian Kemp to the Elections Advisory Council where she helped review Georgia’s election laws and made recommendations for changes in the election process.

Lewis is a fellow of the Litigation Counsel of America and has received additional recognition for her work including: Georgia Super Lawyers; Atlanta Magazine’s Top Fifty Women Attorneys in Georgia and Top 100 Lawyers in Georgia; State Bar of Georgia Justice Robert Benham Award for Community Service; Law and Politics Ten Most Influential Georgia Republicans; Georgia Trend’s Legal Elite; and Atlanta Women’s 20 Legal Eagles in Georgia.

She earned her undergraduate degree at the University of Georgia and her law degree from Georgia State University College of Law, where she was Managing Editor of the Georgia State University Law Review.

Oscar N. Persons has focused his practice on business litigation for the past 52 years. He regularly handles business litigation consulting, arbitrations, and mediations. Persons’ experience encompasses breach of contract, securities fraud, fiduciary duty, negligent misrepresentation, restrictive covenants, trade secrets and tortious interference. In addition to business litigation in the trial courts, he has served as lead counsel in several high-profile federal appeals.

Persons has been selected as one of the Fulton County Daily Report’s Lifetime Achievement honorees. In addition, he has been recognized by Chambers USA Best Lawyers, The Best Lawyers in America, Corporate Counsel, Georgia Super Lawyers and Georgia Trend.

Persons served as an officer in United States Navy. He earned his undergraduate degree at the Georgia Institute of Technology and his law degree at Emory University School of Law.

Bryan P. Tyson focuses his practice on civil and appellate litigation in state and federal courts, election law and government. He also has experience with political and legal strategy representing candidates, independent committees, corporations, and nonprofits.

As the former executive director of the Georgia Public Defender Council, appointed by Governor Nathan Deal, Tyson oversaw more than 1000 employees, contract attorneys, staff, and investigators. During his tenure, he secured funding increases of more than $11 million, ended litigation against the agency and professionalized agency operations.

Tyson has worked in the Georgia General Assembly and served as a policy aide to former Third District Congressman Lynn Westmoreland in Washington, DC. He served as a Special Assistant Attorney General for the 2011 redistricting process in Georgia and continues to represent the state in a number of election-related cases.

Tyson serves as a member of the Indigent Defense Committee of the State Bar of Georgia and previously chaired the Appellate Practice Section. He also served on the Governors Appellate Jurisdiction Review Commission in 2015.

Representative of his work, Tyson was awarded the 2017 Indigent Defense Award from the Georgia Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers. He was also selected as a finalist for the Fulton County Daily Report’s Attorney of the Year award and was included on the Georgia Super Lawyers Rising Stars list for three years.

He earned his law degree from Oak Brook College of Law and is admitted to practice in Georgia and California.