Lizanne Thomas
Partner (retired)
Jones Day
GRA BOARD CHAIR
Lizanne Thomas is a nationally recognized corporate director, boardroom advisor and civic leader.
Ms. Thomas practiced law for over 40 years, leading acquisition transactions valued in the billions of dollars. Basing her practice in several offices from New York to Atlanta for the international law firm Jones Day, Ms. Thomas advised boards across the globe on matters ranging from shareholder activism to leadership transitions, as well as M&A.
At Jones Day, she established and led its global governance practice, attending over 100 board and committee meetings per year for dozens of publicly traded companies. She also served as the managing partner of several offices and regions of Jones Day, employing hundreds of lawyers.
Ms. Thomas is a director of Southern Company, one of the nation’s largest utilities, and RS&H, Inc., an aerospace architectural and engineering company. She previously was a member of the boards of directors of Krispy Kreme Doughnuts, Inc., Popeyes Louisiana Kitchen, Inc., Atlantic Capital Bancshares, Inc., and Logility Supply Chain Solutions, Inc. (f/k/a American Software, Inc.). Ms. Thomas has been recognized as one of the nation’s top 100 directors and one of the top ten women in M&A.
Ms. Thomas’ boardroom experience extends into the philanthropic world as well, where in addition to serving as Chair of the Georgia Research Alliance, she serves as a trustee of the multi-billion dollar Lettie Pate Evans Foundation (the first woman to do so after Mrs. Evans herself; Mrs. Evans was a successful business owner in the early part of the 20th century, becoming the first woman to serve on a the board of directors of a major company, The Coca-Cola Company). She has been a trustee of both of her alma maters and of the Woodruff Arts Center as well.
Ms. Thomas earned her Bachelor of Arts degree in economics, with honors, from Furman University in 1979. She received her Juris Doctor degree from the Washington & Lee University School of Law in 1982, where she served as Managing Editor of the Law Review and received an honorary membership in the Order of the Coif and ODK.
Ms. Thomas and her husband have two sons, and they all enjoy playing golf together whenever and wherever they can.
