Opposition Research • FEC Records • Court Documents

The Real Steve Marshall

He says he's a conservative fighter. The money tells a different story.

$130K+ Trial Lawyer Money
1–2 Supreme Court Record
15 Active Trial Lawyer Donors
$150K Taxpayer Money Wasted
Scroll to see the record
Chapter One

The Sheep's Clothing

Steve Marshall presents himself as a tough, conservative Attorney General — a law-and-order Republican who fights for Alabama families. He touts $730 million in opioid settlements. He claims to root out corruption. He wraps himself in the language of accountability.

That's the image. Here's the record.

Behind the campaign signs and press conferences, Marshall built a financial machine powered by the very people Republican voters distrust most: plaintiff trial lawyers, D.C. lobbyists, and Montgomery insiders. He negotiated secret settlements. He blocked transparency. He protected the people he was supposed to investigate.

And when courts tried to force accountability, he fought them — three times — and lost twice.

This site documents what the wool is designed to hide. Every dollar figure comes from FEC filings. Every court ruling is on the public record. Every conflict is documented.

Chapter Two

How He Got Here

Steve Marshall presents himself as a lifelong conservative Republican. The record tells a different story — one of political convenience, party-switching, and two appointments by two disgraced governors.

Marshall was a Democrat for over a decade. In 2001, Democratic Governor Don Siegelman — who was later convicted on federal bribery, conspiracy, and fraud charges and sentenced to prison — appointed Marshall as District Attorney of Marshall County. Marshall served as a Democrat DA for ten years, running unopposed three times under the Democratic banner.

In December 2011, as Alabama's political landscape shifted decisively Republican, Marshall switched parties. It wasn't a change of conviction — it was a change of calculation.

Then came the appointment that made his career.

In February 2017, Governor Robert Bentley appointed Marshall as Alabama's Attorney General to fill the vacancy left when Luther Strange was elevated to the U.S. Senate. Two months later, Bentley resigned in disgrace — pleading guilty to misdemeanor campaign finance violations amid a scandal involving misuse of state resources to conduct and cover up an extramarital affair. He was booked into the Montgomery County Jail on his way out.

Marshall has never won an open race for Attorney General. He was handed the office by a governor who became a criminal defendant, then ran twice as the incumbent — the most powerful advantage in Alabama politics.

10 Years
As a Democrat
Served as a Democratic DA from 2001 to 2011, appointed by Governor Don Siegelman. Ran three times under the Democratic Party label.
Party Switch: December 2011
2 Months
Before Bentley Resigned
Governor Bentley appointed Marshall as AG in February 2017. By April 2017, Bentley pleaded guilty to criminal charges and resigned in disgrace.
Appointed — Not Elected
0
Open Races Won for AG
Marshall has never won an open election for Attorney General. He was appointed by a disgraced governor, then ran as the incumbent in 2018 and 2022.
Incumbent Advantage Only

Appointed by a Democrat governor who went to federal prison. Appointed AG by a Republican governor who pleaded guilty and resigned. Steve Marshall didn't earn this office — he inherited it from two men who disgraced it.

— Based on public records and court documents

Now he wants a promotion to the United States Senate. Alabama voters should ask: when has Steve Marshall ever won anything on his own merits — without a disgraced governor handing it to him, without the power of incumbency protecting him, and without trial lawyers bankrolling him?

Chapter Three

Follow the Trial Lawyer Money

In a Republican primary, trial lawyers are political poison. They're associated with lawsuit abuse, Democratic politics, and profiting from litigation against Alabama businesses. Republican voters consistently rank tort reform among their top priorities.

Steve Marshall has taken $130,250 from Alabama's most powerful plaintiff trial lawyers — representing 11.4% of his entire individual fundraising base.

Every single one of these 15 donors is an active, practicing attorney. Not one is retired. These are current practitioners with cases before the courts and financial interests regulated by the Attorney General's office.

$220,250
Beasley Allen Law Firm
12 active attorneys from Alabama's most powerful plaintiff trial lawyer firm. Four partners maxed out at the legal limit.
Largest Donor Bloc
$40,250
Prince Glover & Hayes
3 active attorneys from Tuscaloosa. Two partners maxed out. Shows trial lawyer support extends statewide.
Tuscaloosa Network
$26,500
Ed Rogers / BGR Group
Washington D.C. lobbyist. Founding partner of a Beltway firm. Third-largest individual donor overall.
D.C. Swamp Money

For comparison: Barry Moore's trial lawyer money? $0. Jared Hudson's? $0. Marshall is the only major Republican candidate in this primary financially dependent on plaintiff attorneys.

Chapter Four

The Opioid Money Loop

This is the cycle Marshall doesn't want you to see. As Attorney General, he outsourced Alabama's opioid litigation to private trial lawyer firms on contingency — instead of handling it with his own staff. Those firms collected tens of millions in legal fees. Then they turned around and bankrolled his Senate campaign.

01

Marshall Hires Trial Lawyers

Instead of using his own AG office, Marshall retained Beasley Allen and Prince Glover & Hayes on contingency fee contracts to handle Alabama's opioid lawsuits.

02

Trial Lawyers Collect Millions

Alabama secured nearly $730 million in opioid settlements. In 2022 alone, outside counsel received $40 million in fees. The exact contingency percentages remain undisclosed.

03

Trial Lawyers Fund His Campaign

The same Beasley Allen attorneys who profited from the opioid contracts then maxed out their contributions to Marshall's Senate campaign. Multiple partners gave $10,500+ each.

04

Trial Lawyer Gets Finance Committee Seat

Gibson Vance of Beasley Allen was named to Marshall's official Statewide Finance Committee — formalizing the relationship from donor to campaign insider.

Marshall hired trial lawyers. They collected millions in fees. They turned around and helped bankroll his Senate run. That's not a coincidence — that's a business arrangement.

— Based on FEC filings and Alabama TPAC records

The Donor Receipts

These aren't anonymous small-dollar contributors. These are named, active trial lawyers who maxed out their contributions to the Attorney General who regulates their profession. Every figure below comes directly from FEC Schedule A filings.

Donor Firm Total Given Status
Wilson Daniel Miles III Beasley Allen $40,250 MAX
Chris Glover Beasley Allen $26,500 MAX
Andy Birchfield Beasley Allen $24,500 Active
LaBarron Boone Beasley Allen $24,500 Active
J. Greg Allen Beasley Allen $17,500 Active
J. Cole Portis Beasley Allen $17,500 Active
Thomas Methvin Beasley Allen $17,500 Active
Jere L. Beasley Beasley Allen (Founder) $17,500 Active
Josh Hayes Prince Glover Hayes $17,500 Active
Matt Glover Prince Glover Hayes $12,250 Active
Benjamin Baker Beasley Allen $10,500 Active
P. Leigh O'Dell Beasley Allen $10,500 Active
Dena D. Prince Prince Glover Hayes $10,500 Active
Barry Wax Beasley Allen $10,000 Active
CG Vance Beasley Allen $3,500 Finance Committee
15
Active Trial Lawyers
0
Retired Donors
11.4%
Of All Individual Fundraising
Chapter Six

The Mabel Amos Cover-Up

In 1999, Mabel Amos died and left a charitable trust to fund scholarships for students in Conecuh County, Alabama. After oil was discovered on the trust property, the fund grew — and insiders began helping themselves.

Tom Albritton, Director of the Alabama Ethics Commission, steered $135,000 in scholarships to his own children between 2013 and 2019. When Lagniappe broke the story in 2021, the Amos family sued.

In March 2023, Steve Marshall intervened — accusing Albritton of "fraud." That looked like accountability. But what Marshall did next tells the real story.

For the past couple of years, Marshall's office has acted primarily as a blocker in this case. While other plaintiffs have sought to have the finances of the Amos Fund publicly accounted for, Marshall's office has fought tooth and nail to keep that information under wraps.

— Rob Holbert, Lagniappe, February 8, 2025

Marshall negotiated a secret settlement with Regions Bank behind closed doors — disclosing terms only "in camera," meaning other plaintiffs were excluded from the room. He fought to keep it hidden. He tried to remove the Amos family members and a 10th-grade scholarship hopeful from the case entirely.

An attorney for the other plaintiffs called it what it was:

Instead of making the trust whole, it is likely that the proposed settlement is a sweetheart deal.

— Byron Mathews, Attorney for Tyra Lindsey, December 2025

The Alabama Supreme Court rejected Marshall's tactics twice — in January 2025 and again on December 17, 2025 (5-3 vote). He's now 1-2 before the state's highest court on this single case.

Chapter Seven

The Web of Conflicts

The Mabel Amos case isn't just about a secret settlement. It's about a pattern of insider protection so tangled that even Marshall's own attorneys had to withdraw.

Tom Albritton

Ethics Commission Director

Accused of fraud by Marshall. His children received $135,000 from the Amos Fund. Marshall has not criminally prosecuted him.

Ben Albritton

Tom's Brother

Works as an Assistant Attorney General in Marshall's own office. Marshall is supposed to prosecute his employee's brother.

Allan Dodd

Marshall's Hired Attorney

Paid $150,000 of taxpayer money to handle the Amos case. Had to withdraw in April 2024 after his conflict was exposed.

David Dodd

Allan's Brother

Appointed to the Alabama Ethics Commission in November 2023 — the same body that could fire Tom Albritton. Partners in same law firm.

Regions Bank

Trust Administrator

Contributed to Marshall's campaigns. Marshall negotiated a secret settlement with them. Eventually removed as administrator by Judge Griffin.

Maynard Nexsen

Regions' Law Firm

Receives millions from Marshall's AG office annually while representing Regions in the secret settlement negotiations.

The attorney representing the AG in a case targeting the Ethics Commission Director has a brother on the Ethics Commission who could fire that director. The man Marshall accused of fraud has a brother on Marshall's own staff. The bank Marshall cut a secret deal with donated to his campaign.

That's not justice. That's a family business.

Chapter Eight

The Timeline

The documented record of Marshall's actions — from the discovery of the scandal through his repeated defeats in court.

1999
Mabel Amos dies, creates charitable trust for Conecuh County scholarships
2010
Oil discovered on trust property — fund value increases significantly
2013 – 2019
Albritton's children receive $135,000 in scholarships from the fund
June 2021
Lagniappe breaks the Mabel Amos story — public scrutiny begins
July 2022
Amos family files lawsuit
March 2023
Marshall intervenes, accuses Albritton of "fraud" — appears to pursue accountability
November 2023
David Dodd appointed to Ethics Commission while brother Allan represents Marshall
April 2024
Allan Dodd withdraws from case after Lagniappe exposes conflict — $150,000 of taxpayer money wasted
June 2024
Supreme Court sides with Marshall, blocks special master WIN
January 2025
Supreme Court allows special fiduciary to proceed LOSS #1
February 2025
Judge Griffin orders secret settlement disclosure — removes Regions Bank as administrator
December 17, 2025
Supreme Court rejects Marshall 5-3 — denies effort to remove private plaintiffs LOSS #2
May 19, 2026
Republican Primary for U.S. Senate

Alabama Deserves Better

Steve Marshall wants to go from Attorney General to U.S. Senator while his cover-up is being exposed in real time. The courts aren't buying it. Alabama voters shouldn't either.

All data sourced from FEC Schedule A filings (Committee C00906545), Alabama Supreme Court records, and Lagniappe investigative reporting.