Donors, friends of governors often get state supreme court nod

Best-qualified candidates may lose out to cronyism

By Rachel Baye, 6:00 am, May 1, 2014 Updated: 9:49 am, May 1, 2014

When Justice Champ Lyons retired from the Alabama Supreme Court, the election was still almost two years away, so it was up to then-Gov. Bob Riley to name a replacement. He didn’t look far.

Riley chose Jim Main, his close friend for 40 years, 25 of which Main served as Riley’s personal attorney. Riley’s wife, Patsy, was in Main’s wedding. Main served in Riley’s administration, first as senior counsel to the Republican governor and later as finance director.