Bradley Partner Bruce Ely Recognized for Long Time Tenure with PARCA Board

Bradley is pleased to announce that Bruce P. Ely, a partner in the firm’s Birmingham office, has been formally recognized by the Public Affairs Research Council of Alabama (PARCA) for his almost 26-year tenure as a board member and his service to PARCA in various roles.

Mr. Ely, who recently retired from the PARCA board after serving since 1993, was replaced by Judd A. Harwood, a partner in Bradley’s Birmingham office and Healthcare Practice Group, who joined the board in January of this year.

“We congratulate Bruce on his commitment and many years of service to the Public Affairs Research Counsel of Alabama,” said Bradley Birmingham Office Managing Partner Dawn Helms Sharff. “We also are excited about the insights that Judd is bringing to this vital organization as a recent board appointee.”

Ryan C. Hankins, executive director of PARCA, said, “Bruce’s contribution to PARCA is impossible to quantify. He has been a faithful board member, a trusted advisor, and a friend to me. His leadership shaped our mission and vision and his insight has kept us true to those ideas. We are grateful for his service to PARCA and to Alabama.”

Mr. Ely added, “It has been a tremendous honor and privilege to serve PARCA in various roles over the past 26 years and to watch the organization evolve into the state’s preeminent nonpartisan good-government think tank.” 

Mr. Ely is among the board’s two longest-serving members. He formerly served as the board’s vice chair in charge of the audit and financial reporting committee and also served as tax counsel to PARCA.

A member of Bradley’s Tax Practice Group and former and founding chair of the firm’s State and Local Tax (SALT) Practice Team, Mr. Ely has more than 35 years of experience as an attorney. He served on the recruiting teams that successfully induced both Mercedes-Benz and Hyundai to locate their first U.S. manufacturing plants in Alabama, and representing taxpayers before the Internal Revenue Service, the Alabama Department of Revenue, the Alabama and Federal Courts, and local taxing authorities. His practice focuses on representing taxpayers in federal, state and local administrative and judicial forums; advising companies on choosing the proper form of entity through which to conduct business in the southeast and potential tax incentives; and advising companies and various trade and professional organizations regarding state and local tax legislative matters. He has served as counsel to multistate taxpayers in cases before the U.S. Supreme Court, as well as before the Alabama appellate courts, circuit courts, and the Alabama Tax Tribunal. As part of his governmental affairs practice, he has co-authored over the years a number of landmark pieces of tax and business entity legislation in Alabama and numerous statute-specific tax bills.

Mr. Ely recently co-chaired the New York University Institute on State & Local Taxation and was selected by State Tax Notes/Tax Analysts as one of its “Top Ten Tax Lawyers in the U.S.” As a longstanding Fellow of the American College of Tax Counsel and member of the Alabama Law Institute, he is the only Alabama member included in the International Who’s Who of Corporate Tax Lawyers.

Founded in 1988, PARCA is Alabama’s first and only independent research center. A non-partisan, nonprofit group, PARCA promotes best practices and evidence-based decision making in Alabama’s governments, schools, and nonprofits. PARCA provides objective research and evaluation, policy education and recommendations, and technical assistance in the areas of government efficiency, education and workforce development, and quality of life.