Randy Evans

Randy Evans
Personal details
Born	September 24, 1958 (1958-09-24) Dublin, Georgia
Alma mater	West Georgia College, B.A. (1980), University of Georgia. J.D. (1983)
Occupation	Attorney

James Randolph "Randy" Evans (born Sep. 27, 1958) is an American lawyer and Republican from Georgia who specializes in government ethics. He worked as a longtime advisor to the Republican Party of Georgia. He has worked closely with former House Speaker Newt Gingrich at various times throughout his career. Evans is a partner at McKenna Long & Aldridge.

Early life and education

Randy Evans was born in Dublin, Georgia on September 24, 1958. Evans grew up in Warner Robins, Georgia, where he graduated from Northside High School in 1976 with highest honors. His debate team was the State Champion in its division and he was the top speaker for extemporaneous speaking.^{[citation needed]} He was awarded a debate scholarship to West Georgia College in Carrollton, Georgia. His team (Paul Weathington and Evans) won several national intercollegiate debate tournaments and placed 3rd at the National Debate Tournament in 1979.^{[citation needed]} Evans was elected in 1979 as President of West Georgia College Student Government Association. Evans majored in Political Science with a minor in Mathematics and Speech and graduated with a Bachelor of Arts degree, a Summa Cum Laude.

While a student at West Georgia College, in 1976, Evans met Newt Gingrich and volunteered on his campaign staff and then again in 1978 when Gingrich was first elected to the United States Congress. In 1979, Evans lived in the basement of Gingrich’s Virginia home while he interned for the freshman congressman.

Evans began his study of the law at the University of Georgia in 1980. While in law school, he was a member of the Editorial and Managing Boards of the Georgia Law Review.^{[citation needed]} In 1983, he was on the National Moot Court Team (a semi-finalist at the National Moot Court Competition). In 1983, Evans was awarded a Juris Doctor degree Magna Cum Laude along with citations of honor from the Order of the Coif and the Order of the Barristers.

Legal career

Evans began his legal career at Bondurant, Miller, Hishon & Stephenson, a law firm in Atlanta, Georgia. Evans joined Arnall, Golden and Gregory in 1983 in their litigation department.

In 2003, Evans moved to McKenna Long & Aldridge, where he serves as the Chairman of the Financial Institute Practice Group. Evans’ career started with a principal focus in the area of legal ethics and malpractice including counseling and representing lawyers and law firms. His practice evolved into national complex litigation practice involving the representation several Fortune 500 companies.

Evans has been admitted pro hac vice in over 35 jurisdictions and has been involved in litigation in all 50 states, the District of Columbia, and several foreign countries.^{[citation needed]}

In addition, Evans developed a niche for media related legal issues as he began representing high profile politicians. In recent years, he has negotiated television, book, and speech contracts for his clients (Newt Gingrich - Fox News; Zell Miller - Fox News; J.C. Watts - CNN; Bob Barr - CNN; Michael Steele - MSNBC). The list of books that Evans has negotiated include 11 New York Times bestsellers including Lessons Learned the Hard Way by Speaker Newt Gingrich, and The Democratic Party: A National Party No More by Senator Zell Miller.

Evans has authored four books – Practical Guide to Legal Malpractice Prevention, Practical Guide to Purchasing Legal Malpractice Insurance (co-authored with Anthony W. Morris), Georgia General Liability Insurance (co-authored with J. Stephen Berry) and Georgia Legal Malpractice Law (co-authored with Shari Klevens). In addition, he has lectured on attorney ethics in over 40 states, and published hundreds of papers and articles regarding professional ethics and malpractice. He is a contributor to the various publications including the Daily Report, a division of ALM, Inc. (the American Lawyer) and the Atlanta Business Chronicle.

Bar Associations

Evans is a member of the District of Columbia and Georgia bar. He served as the Chairman of the Tort & Insurance Practice Section from 1996-1997. He is a Georgia Bar Foundation Fellow. He is a member of the Federal Bar Association and the Republican National Lawyers Association (Board of Governors (2007–present)).^{[citation needed]}

Evans is admitted before the United States Supreme Court, Evans and the United States Court of Appeals for the First, Second, Fourth, Fifth, Sixth, Ninth and Eleventh Circuits, and the United States District Courts for the Northern District of Georgia, Eastern District of Michigan, and District of Columbia. He has been admitted pro hac vice in appellate courts in West Virginia, Alabama, Florida, Delaware, New Jersey and Kentucky; federal courts in West Virginia, Delaware, Idaho, Florida, New York, South Carolina, Alabama, Colorado, Texas, Pennsylvania, Maryland, North Dakota, Indiana, Tennessee, Arizona, North Carolina and Mississippi; and various state courts in 21 states.^{[citation needed]}

Political career - National

Evans was elected chairman of the Douglas County Republican Party in 1985 and Chairman of the Sixth Congressional District in 1987 and 1989. In 1988, Evans assisted in the preparation of an ethics complaint against then Democratic Speaker James (“Jim”) Wright. On May 31, 1989, Speaker Wright resigned catapulting then Congressman Newt Gingrich into national prominence and leading to Gingrich’s election as the U.S. House leadership position of House Minority Whip.

In 1988, Gingrich called Evans “clearly the finest general talent in the Republican Party in Georgia today.” Evans chaired Gingrich’s campaign organization (the Friends of Newt Gingrich (FONG)) in Gingrich successful reelection contests in 1988 and 1990.

After the 1994 election in which Republicans captured control of the United States House of Representatives, eighty-four ethics charges were made against then Speaker Newt Gingrich and a special counsel was appointed to pursue the charges. Evans gained national exposure when former Speaker of the House of Representatives Newt Gingrich brought in Evans to lead Gingrich’s defense against the various ethics complaints before the Committee on Standards.

Evans was initially brought in to address ethics complaints centered around a letter prepared by Gingrich’s existing counsel. Subsequently, Evans assumed the lead for the defense against all of the ethics charges pending before the Committee on Standards.

In 1996, Evans negotiated an agreement with the Investigative Subcommittee and the Special Counsel that allowed Gingrich to remain as Speaker of the Congress. Under the agreement negotiated by Evans, Gingrich agreed that a letter provided by Gingrich’s prior counsel to the Committee on Standards was inaccurate and that he should have pursued the advice of counsel in connection with a college class that Gingrich taught. Evans insisted that Gingrich’s college classes violated no tax laws, a position which was validated in 1999 by the Internal Revenue Service when it cleared organizations connected with college classes.

At a nationally televised sanctions hearing, Evans argued that the Committee should accept the negotiated sanctions of a reprimand and a $300,000 cost assessment for costs associated with the inaccurate letter submitted by Gingrich’s prior counsel. By a seven to one vote, the Committee on Standards agreed. Subsequently, the United States House of Representatives accepted and agreed to the recommendations of the Committee. In January 1997, Gingrich was reelected as Speaker of the United States House of Representatives.^{[citation needed]}

After Gingrich decided to pay the cost assessment using his personal funds, Evans crafted the “Dole loan agreement” in 1997, whereby 1996 Republican Presidential nominee Bob Dole agreed to loan Gingrich the funds to satisfy the cost assessment. Evans later negotiated Gingrich’s book contract for the New York Times Bestseller “Lesson Learned the Hard Way.”^{[citation needed]}

After Gingrich stepped down as Speaker at the end of 1998, Evans negotiated a variety of business ventures for Gingrich, including a television contract with FOX News and book contracts for New York Times bestsellers. The books include nonfiction works “Winning the Future,” “Real Change,” “Rediscovering God in America,” “A Contract With the Earth,” and “Saving Lives Saving Money” and fiction works “Gettysburg,” “Grant Comes East,” “Never Call Surrender,” “Pearl Harbor,” “Days of Infamy” and “Valley Forge.”^{[citation needed]}

Evans chaired Gingrich’s companies from their inception in 1999 until Gingrich’s announcement that he was candidate for President.

Upon his election as Speaker of the House of Representatives in 1999, Speaker J. Dennis Hastert retained Evans as his outside general counsel to the Speaker. Evans represented Speaker Hastert throughout his tenure as the longest serving Republican Speaker of the House in history. Evans appeared on behalf of Hastert and others in various matters before the Committee on Standards in the investigations including two different matters of national interest - the Medicare Prescription Drug Bill investigation and the Mark Foley investigation.^{[citation needed]}

In 2002, Evans represented Governor Sonny Perdue (the first Republican governor in Georgia since Reconstruction). Evans nominated Harold Melton to the Georgia Supreme Court. Justice Melton was appointed as the first Republican African American Justice to Georgia’s Supreme Court.^{[citation needed]}

By 2004, Evans represented most of the leadership in the House of Representatives prompting the Committee on Standards to question the multirepresentation of different members by the same attorney.^{[citation needed]}

In 2003, Senator Zell Miller engaged Evans to negotiate the book contract for Miller’s New York Times Bestseller book “A National Party No More: The Conscience of a Conservative Democrat.” In addition, Evans negotiated Miller’s television contract with FOX News.^{[citation needed]}

Evans also represents former House GOP Conference Chairman J. C. Watts. Evans negotiated Watts’ television contract with CNN and his speech contract with the Washington Speaker’s Bureau.

In conjunction with Susan Hirschman (former Chief of Staff for Majority Leader Tom Delay), and Bill Paxon (former National Republican Campaign Committee Chairman), Mr. Evans designed and formed the first political organization after the effective date of the Bipartisan Campaign Finance Reform Act in order to receive nonfederal money. After challenges by Common Cause, the Federal Election Commission found that the entity - as structured - could accept nonfederal money.

In 2005-2006, Evans also represented Hastert in connection with public controversies involving Hastert’s real estate investments and the FBI’s raid of Congressman William Jefferson’s Congressional office. Evans appeared on behalf of Speaker Hastert in the United States Supreme Court litigation involving the McCain-Feingold campaign finance legislation known as the Bipartisan Campaign Finance Reform Act. Evans negotiated the book contract for Hastert’s book entitled “Speaker - Lessons From Forty Years in Coaching and Politics.” After Hastert left the Congress in 2007, Evans negotiated various business ventures for Hastert.^{[citation needed]}

In 2008, Evans was appointed and served as the Republican National Committeeman from Georgia for the 2008 Republican National Convention. In 2008, Evans served as an Elector for the State of Georgia in the Presidential election.^{[citation needed]}

In 2008, Evans worked with Tony Snow, the former White House Press Secretary to create the Tony Snow Family Trust for the benefit of Snow’s children (as the grantor of the Trust). After Snow’s death on July 12, 2008, Evans helped raise hundreds of thousands for the Tony Snow Family Trust.^{[citation needed]}

In 2009, then Alaska Governor Sarah Palin retained Evans to create a legal expense fund entitled “The Alaska Fund Trust” to help defray the expenses of Governor Palin and her staff.^{[citation needed]}

In addition to national political figures, Evans has represented and does represent various current and former elected officials in Georgia and elsewhere. He has represented former Georgia Governor Sonny Perdue, Governor Nathan Deal and others.^{[citation needed]}

Political career - Georgia

Evans served as General Counsel to the Georgia Republican Party for eight years, beginning with his appointment by then GOP Chairman Ralph Reed in 2001. He was reappointed by Georgia GOP Chairman Alec Poitevint in 2003 and 2005, and reappointed by Georgia GOP Chairman Sue Everhart in 2007 and 2009. From 2003-2011, Evans has served as the chairman of the Georgia Republican Convention.^{[citation needed]}

In 2001, the Executive Committee of the Georgia State Election Board appointed Evans to the Georgia State Election Board.^{[citation needed]} In 2005, Georgia Governor Sonny Perdue appointed (and the Georgia State Senate confirmed) Mr. Evans to the Georgia State Election Board.^{[citation needed]} Then Presiding Justice Norman Fletcher of the Georgia Supreme Court appointed Mr. Evans as a Special Master of the Court. Most recently, Evans served as Finance Chair to the Georgia Republican Party. In 2011, Georgia Governor Nathan Deal appointed Evans to Co-chair the Georgia Judicial Nominating Commission (“JNC”). The JNC recommended candidates for appointment to fill open judgeships in Georgia.

Personal life

Evans is married to Linda, and has one son, Jake.

Awards

Evans has been the recipient of several awards including the Ronald Reagan Freedom Fighter Award (2011); Outstanding Georgia Citizen (2011); U.G.A. Distinguished Advocate Award (2010); Georgia Trend’s 2010 Legal Elite (2010); Pioneer Award (2009); the State University of West Georgia, a Lifetime Achievement Award (2008) and the Republican National Lawyer of the Year (2011).^{[citation needed]}

Publications

J. Evans, Practical Guide To Legal Malpractice Prevention (Seventh Ed. 1999); Evans & Morris, Guidelines for Purchasing Legal Malpractice Insurance (Third Ed. 1999) Evans & Berry; Georgia General Liability Insurance (First Ed. 2010): Evans & Klevens, Georgia Legal Malpractice Law (2011)

External links

• McKenna Long & Aldridge LLP Profile