Andalusia attorney Corey Bryan has announced he is seeking the office of circuit judge for the Twenty-Second Judicial Circuit. Presiding Circuit Judge Ashley McKathan, who currently holds the office, is eligible for retirement and does not plan to seek reelection.

Bryan is a native of Covington County and is a 1996 graduate of Andalusia High School. He received his bachelor of science degree in commerce and business administration from the University of Alabama. During his full tenure at the Capstone, he played football for the Crimson Tide, was a member of the 1999 Southeastern Conference Championship Team and graduated as a football letterman of the A-Club. Bryan received All-SEC Academic Honors in 1999 and 2000.

In 2004, Bryan earned a juris doctorate from the University of St. Thomas School of Law in Minneapolis, Minn. where he received a scholarship.

Bryan has been practicing law for nearly 11 years. He has served as special appointed probate judge, district judge and circuit judge. He is currently the vice-president of the Covington County Bar Association, member of the American Bar Association, member of the Alabama State Bar Association, member of the National Trial Lawyers Association, member of the Alabama Association for Justice and licensed in both the U.S. Federal District Court for the Southern District and Middle District.

Since 2004, Bryan has served as a volunteer lawyer with the Alabama State Bar Association’s Volunteer Lawyer Program providing pro bono legal services to low-income clients in need of civil legal assistance. He is also the attorney for the Town of Red Level, a prosecutor for the Town of Castleberry and former regional attorney for the Police Benevolent Association.

Bryan currently serves as chairman of the board of directors of Sav-a-Life, Inc., on the board of directors for Meredith’s Miracles, and the board of directors for the Andalusia Youth Football League. He is a member of the Lion’s Club of Andalusia. He is a deacon and Sunday School Teacher at Southside Baptist Church in Andalusia, and is a founding member of the Ironworks Old School Men’s Ministry.

Bryan is married to the former Amy Kelley, who is a math teacher at Andalusia Junior High School and a native of Pleasant Home. He and Amy have three children, Amos, Abram and Aida.

He is the son of Donald and Janet Bryan of Gantt.

“I feel I am being called to serve the good people of Covington County as their next circuit judge. I want to give back to the community that I call home and that my family has called home since the 1800s,” Bryan stated. “I was born and raised here; my roots and heart are here. We are losing a great man in Judge Ashley McKathan, and I hope to carry on the legacy that he has left behind. I want to stand on the same truths that have guided his decisions.”

Bryan directly addressed his primary mission as circuit judge.

“I promise to always seek justice and to do so with fairness, honesty and integrity,” Bryan said. “That’s the basic premise of my campaign. It seems simple. But, these basic values are crucial, in my opinion, in the role of our circuit judge.

“I am ready for this responsibility and would cherish this position,” Bryan said. “I would be humbled and honored to serve you as your next circuit judge.”

Bryan will be subject to the Republican primary on Tues., March 1, 2016.