Skip to main content

Justice Tommy Bryan

Supreme Court of Alabama


Justice Tommy Elias Bryan was raised on a family farm in Crenshaw  County, Alabama, where his parents taught him the values of faith,  family, and hard work. He is the son of the late Margie Spivey Bryan and  the late Elias Daniel Bryan.  A 1974 graduate of Brantley High  School, Justice Bryan continued his education at Troy State University,  where he received Bachelor of Science and Master of Science degrees in  education. In 1983, he graduated from the Thomas Goode Jones School of  Law.  After graduating from law school, Justice Bryan served as a staff  attorney for the Alabama Court of Criminal Appeals.
In 1987,  Justice Bryan became an assistant attorney general for the State of  Alabama, serving as an associate general counsel for Alabama's  environmental department. In that position he gained valuable experience  in defending and interpreting highly technical and scientific  regulations and standards, as well as drafting administrative orders and  reviewing legislation pertaining to environmental issues.
In  2004, Justice Bryan ran for a seat on the Alabama Court of Civil Appeals  and, after winning every county in the state during the Republican  primary election, he went on to win the general election after  challenging an incumbent judge. He was sworn into office as a Judge on  the Court of Civil Appeals in January 2005. He was reelected in November  2010.  In 2012, during his tenure on the Court of Civil Appeals,  Justice Bryan was named "Judge of the Year" by the Family Law Section of  the Alabama State Bar.  Also in 2012, Justice Bryan was elected to the  Alabama Supreme Court and was sworn into office as an Associate Justice  in January 2013.  He was reelected to the Alabama Supreme Court in 2018  without opposition.
Justice Bryan is a member of the Alabama Bar  Association, where he served as a member of the Environmental Law and  Appellate Practice Sections and he served as vice chairman of the  Quality of Life Committee. Justice Bryan previously served on the  Supreme Court of Alabama's standing committees for the Alabama Rules of  Appellate Procedure and the Alabama Rules of Judicial Administration.   He also served as a member of the Supreme Court of Alabama's Dispute  Resolution Commission.  He is also a member of the Montgomery County Bar  Association. He has been admitted to practice before the United States  Supreme Court, the United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh  Circuit, and the District of Columbia.