Patrick T. O'Connor joined Oliver Maner LLP as a partner on January 1, 1990. His practice concentrates on business litigation, the defense of civil rights claims and the defense of legal malpractice and other professional negligence claims. Mr. O’Connor also represents plaintiffs in select personal injury and wrongful death cases. Mr. O'Connor is licensed to practice in all Georgia courts and numerous federal courts including the Georgia Supreme Court, the U. S. Supreme Court, the Courts of Appeals for the Sixth, Eleventh and Federal Circuits, and the United States Court of Federal Claims.
Mr. O’Connor is a Fellow of the American College of Trial Lawyers and has been listed in The Best Lawyers in America (in the categories of commercial litigation, legal malpractice law and alternative dispute resolution) for more than 10 years. He has been named one of the Top 100 Georgia Super Lawyers by Atlanta Magazine, has been listed in the Super Lawyers’ Corporate Counsel Edition, and has received a "AV" rating Martindale-Hubbell for many years. Mr. O’Connor has also been recognized as a member of the Georgia Legal Elite by Georgia Trend Magazine.
Mr. O’Connor is also a mediator and arbitrator, registered with the Georgia Office of Dispute Resolution, and has served as a mediator or arbitrator in more than 800 cases, primarily involving personal injury, professional malpractice claims and commercial disputes. Mr. O’Connor is registered as an American Arbitration Association panel arbitrator. He is a founding member of the Georgia Academy of Mediators and Arbitrators.
From 1985 to 1995, Mr. O’Connor served as a Judge Pro Tempore for the Savannah-Chatham County Recorder's Court. From 1985 to 1989, he served as an Assistant City Attorney for the City of Savannah and continues to represent the City of Savannah. He has handled the defense of several hundred cases for municipalities, counties and their employees throughout Georgia. He presently represents numerous municipalities and counties on behalf of the Georgia Interlocal Risk Management Agency (GIRMA) and the Association of County Commissioners of Georgia Interlocal Risk Management Agency (ACC-IRMA).
Mr. O’Connor has obtained favorable results for his clients in numerous reported appeals. Notable decisions include: Pollman v. Swan, 289 Ga. 767 (2011); We, The Taxpayers v. Board of Tax Assessors of Effingham County, 292 Ga. 31 (2012); King v. Toler, 296 Ga. App. 577 (2009); Mayor and Aldermen of the City of Savannah v. Stevens, 278 Ga. 166 (2004); CSX Transportation, Inc. v. City of Garden City, 277 Ga. 248 (2003); Cameron v. Lang, 274 Ga. 122 (2001); City of Tybee Island v. Godinho, 270 Ga. 567 (1999); Hunter, Maclean, Exley & Dunn, P.C. v. Frame, 269 Ga. 844 (1998); Mayor & Aldermen of Savannah v. Radford, 261 Ga. 129 (1991); Banks v. Patton, 202 Ga. App. 168 (1991); Cyr v. Mayor and Aldermen of Savannah, 188 Ga. App. 261 (1988); Shuman v. Mayor and Aldermen of Savannah, 180 Ga. App. 427 (1986); and Sammor v. Mayor and Aldermen of Savannah, 176 Ga. App. 176 (1985).
Mr. O'Connor served as the 1995-96 President of the Savannah Bar Association and has served as President of the Young Lawyers Section of the Savannah Bar Association. He is a member of the American Bar Association, the State Bar of Georgia and the American Board of Trial Advocates. Mr. O'Connor is currently a member of the Board of Governors of the State Bar of Georgia and the Executive Committee of the State Bar of Georgia. He has served as a member of the Georgia ICLE Board of Trustees and is a Fellow of the American Bar Foundation. Mr. O’Connor has served as the Chairman of the Southern District of Georgia Advisory Committee, is currently a member of the 11th Circuit Lawyer Qualifications Committee and is a member of the State Bar of Georgia Commission on Continuing Lawyer Competency. He has also been appointed by the Georgia Supreme Court to serve as a Mentor in The State Bar of Georgia’s Transition Into Law Practice Program.
Mr. O’Connor currently serves on the Board of Directors of First Citizens Bank (a community bank based in Glennville, Georgia with branches in Reidsville and Hinesville) and its holding company, First Citizens BancShares, Inc.
After graduating from Statesboro High School in 1973, Mr. O'Connor received his B.A. degree from Auburn University in 1978. A journalism major, Mr. O'Connor wrote for several newspapers, including the Columbus Enquirer, The Birmingham News, The Auburn Plainsman and The Auburn Bulletin. He attended the University of Georgia Law School where he participated on the Georgia Intrastate Moot Court Team, served as Vice-Chairman of the Georgia Moot Court Board and coached Georgia's National Moot Court Team to the quarter-final round of the national competition in New York, New York. Mr. O'Connor received his J.D. degree from Georgia in 1981.
Mr. O’Connor currently serves as a member of the Georgia Southern University Foundation Board of Trustees and the Auburn University Dean’s Advisory Council for the School of Liberal Arts. He is also a member of the Board of Trustees of the Savannah County Day School. He has served as President of the Savannah Civitan Club, as Captain of the Savannah Quarterback Club and as Chairman of Deacons for the Ardsley Park Baptist Church. He currently serves as President of the Coastal Empire Council of the Boy Scouts of America and has received the Boy Scouts’ Silver Beaver Award. He is a graduate of the Leadership Savannah Program and is a member of Savannah’s St. Patrick's Day Parade Committee. Mr. O'Connor is a past National President of Theta Chi Fraternity, which has more than 130 chapters nationwide, and now serves as President of the Norwich Housing Corporation, The Fraternity’s housing board. He now serves as litigation counsel for the Fraternity. He is also a member of the Gridiron Society.
Mr. O'Connor is married to the former Carol Darby of Statesboro, and they have three children, Daniel Tyler (Maggie), Thomas Patrick (Kelly), and John Tate. They have one grandchild, Liam Patrick.
