Richard Hays is the Managing Partner of Alston & Bird and serves on the firm's Management Committee. Before his election as the Managing Partner, Richard served on the Committee as the firm's Financial Partner and also chaired the Litigation & Trial Practice Group, leading the firm's practice in its offices throughout the country. Richard has been selected by his peers for inclusion in Super Lawyers and The Best Lawyers in America.

Mr. Hays received his A.B. from Harvard University in 1982, his M.Sc. in law from Edinburgh University in 1984 as a Rotary Scholar, and his J.D. in 1986 from Vanderbilt School of Law, where he was an editor of the Vanderbilt Law Review. He is a graduate of Leadership Atlanta, on the board of The Shakespeare Festival, the Vanderbilt Law School Alumni Council, and the Harvard Club. Mr. Hays also serves on the boards of the Chamber of Commerce (Executive Committee), Leadership Atlanta, the Commerce Club (Executive Committee), Midtown Alliance (Executive Committee), and is active in United Way, where he is a member of the Alexis de Tocqueville Society.