BALTIMORE – Governor-Elect Martin O’Malley announced today that Baltimore City Solicitor Ralph S. Tyler has been named Chief Legal Counsel for the O’Malley-Brown Administration. Tyler has served as Baltimore City Solicitor since 2004 and currently serves as the Executive Director of the O’Malley-Brown Transition Committee.
“Ralph Tyler has been a tireless advocate for the people of Baltimore and the State of Maryland,” said Governor-Elect Martin O’Malley. “He will play a key role in providing counsel, and assisting in policy and personnel decisions as we move our state forward and improve the quality of life for Maryland families.”
As Baltimore’s City Solicitor, Tyler successfully led the lawsuit against the Maryland Public Service Commission and a pending 72 percent utility rate increase this past summer. The lawsuit is credited with allowing the Maryland General Assembly to pass legislation to keep utility rates affordable and give utility companies more flexibility in purchasing electricity.
Under the direction of Mayor O’Malley, Tyler has led the City of Baltimore’s efforts to join with Massachusetts and 11 other states in a lawsuit to force the Environmental Protection Agency to regulate greenhouse gas air pollution that contributes to global warming. The United States Supreme Court heard arguments in that case last week.
“It has been my honor and privilege to serve the Citizens of Baltimore under the direction of Mayor O’Malley,” stated Tyler. “I look forward to continuing to serve under Governor O’Malley to protect the interests of the people of our State.”
Tyler, 59, is an attorney with over 30 years of experience as a lawyer including more than 20 years of high-level experience practicing law in Baltimore City and Maryland. He served as Deputy Attorney General from 1991 to 1996, before becoming a partner at the Baltimore office of Hogan & Hartson. During his 14 years at the Attorney General’s Office, Tyler also served as the chief of litigation during which time he handled the landmark Fifth Amendment case of Baltimore City Department of Social Services v. Bouknight. Tyler is a longtime Baltimore City resident and served on the Baltimore City Board of School Commissioners.
Tyler’s initial assignment as an Assistant Attorney General was representing Maryland’s Department of Human Resources. In 1984, he transferred to the Office’s Civil Division where he was engaged in a wide variety of complex litigation in the areas of civil rights, environmental law, and cases arising from Maryland’s 1985 savings and loan collapse. In 1986, Mr. Tyler was appointed Chief of Litigation. During the five years that he was Chief of Litigation, Mr. Tyler represented the State of Maryland before state trial and appellate courts, the United States District Court for the District of Maryland, and the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit.
As Deputy Attorney General, Tyler counseled the Attorney General and senior governmental officials on major legal issues, including both civil and criminal matters. He represented the Office in a wide range of matters before courts, administrative agencies, and the General Assembly. Notably, while Deputy Attorney General, he successfully litigated Ellen Sauerbrey’s lawsuit challenging the outcome of the State’s 1994 gubernatorial election.
While at Hogan & Hartson, Tyler devoted a substantial amount of his time to handling pro bono cases. He represented Mr. Bernard Webster in obtaining compensation from the state in 2003 after he was released from prison where he had been incarcerated for 20 years for a crime it was proven he did not commit. Tyler also brought the 1998 case that resulted in the release of over 50 men who were unlawfully re-incarcerated following the State's recalculation of their criminal sentences.
Mr. Tyler received his B.A. from the University of Illinois in 1969, his J.D. from Case Western Reserve in 1972, and an LL.M. from Harvard University in 1977. He is a member of the Maryland and District of Columbia Bars, the American, Maryland, and Baltimore City Bar Associations, and he is a permanent member of the Judicial Conference of the Fourth Circuit. In addition, he is a past member of the rules committee of the Court of Appeals of Maryland.
Source: O'Malley Transition Team