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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
February 9, 2017
Governor Mary Fallin Names Patrick Wyrick to Fill Vacancy on Oklahoma Supreme Court
OKLAHOMA CITY - Governor Mary Fallin
today named Patrick Wyrick to serve as a justice on the Oklahoma Supreme Court.
Wyrick, 35, succeeds Steven Taylor,
who retired from the bench last year.
Wyrick has served as solicitor
general in the Oklahoma attorney general’s office since 2011. As solicitor
general, Wyrick represented the state of Oklahoma before the U.S. and Oklahoma
supreme courts, and other federal and state courts. He also authored attorney
general opinions and served as a key legal adviser to a variety of state
officials.
“Patrick Wyrick is well positioned
to tackle the difficult constitutional questions the Oklahoma Supreme Court
must confront,” said Fallin. “He has litigated several significant constitutional
law cases involving almost every frequently litigated provision in our state
constitution. I have confidence he will perform his new duties with integrity and
professionalism.”
The Supreme Court appointment is Fallin’s
first on the nine-member court.
Supreme Court justices serve on the
court as long as they are able and must appear on the ballot and be retained by
voters every six years, according to state statute.
Fallin selected Wyrick from three applicants
submitted to her by the Oklahoma Judicial Nominating Commission. The governor
must choose from those three.
Applicants had to be 30 or older and
a practicing attorney or judge for at least five years.
Wyrick, a fourth-generation Atoka
native, has deep ties in the 2nd Judicial District, and has remained
involved in the family business, Wyrick Lumber Co., which has locations in
Atoka and Hugo.
“It is the honor of a lifetime to
represent my hometown district as a member of the Oklahoma Supreme Court,”
Wyrick said. “I will continue to work
hard and do my best to serve the people of this great state. I have committed
myself to public service, and my years as Oklahoma solicitor general have
offered me the opportunity to routinely litigate cases before the Supreme
Court. I am uniquely familiar with the high court’s jurisprudence.”
Wyrick earned his bachelor’s degree
in sociology/criminology from the University of Oklahoma and his juris
doctorate from OU’s college of law.
Before joining the attorney
general’s office, Wyrick worked as an associate attorney at the law firm of GableGotwals
and as a law clerk to Judge James Payne in the U.S. District Court of Eastern
Oklahoma in Muskogee.
Wyrick and his wife, Jamie, have
three children, twins Cole and Carter, and Claire.
 Patrick Wyrick
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