Anita Wallace Thomas is a partner of Nelson Mullins Riley & Scarborough LLP in Atlanta where she practices in litigation involving general commercial litigation, franchise litigation, drug and medical device litigation, product liability, employment litigation and toxic tort. Ms. Thomas has a vast amount of experience in all aspects of product liability litigation. Ms. Thomas has served as trial counsel and MDL counsel in pharmaceutical and toxic tort cases across the country.  

She also has successfully defended clients against charges of employment discrimination, harassment and wrongful discharge, and represents employers in all aspects of hiring, employing and firing employees.

A member of the State Bar of Georgia and its Women and Minorities in the Profession Committee, Ms. Thomas is admitted to practice before the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals and the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Georgia. In addition to arguing cases before the Georgia Court of Appeals, Ms. Thomas has served as lead counsel in more than 50 jury trials held in the superior and state courts of Georgia, and has tried employment cases in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Georgia.

Ms. Thomas is a member of the American Bar Association (Labor and Employment Section), the Atlanta Bar Association, and the Gate City Bar Association. Ms. Thomas is a member of the Georgia Association of Black Women Attorneys and its executive board, having served as association president in 2000. She also serves on the board of the National Association of Women Lawyers (2007-09). Additionally, Ms. Thomas is a member of the National Bar Association and the Board of Trustees of the Leadership Institute for Women of Color in Law and Business. Ms. Thomas also served as the chair of the Judicial Nominating Committee of the Atlanta Bar Association. She was named a General Litigation Super Lawyer, as published in Georgia Super Lawyers magazine (2007-08). In 2009, Ms. Thomas was selected to serve as the chair of the Firm’s Diversity Committee.  In 2010, Ms. Thomas was appointed to the Board of Governors of the State Bar of Georgia.  Ms. Thomas was also accepted into the Leadership Atlanta, 2011 Class.

Active in civic affairs, Ms. Thomas is a member of the board of directors of the Southwest Atlanta YMCA and the Board of Trustees of the Atlanta Youth Academy, and is one of the founders of a non profit organization, Granting Atlanta’s Wishes. Additionally, she serves on the Advisory Board of the Atlanta Legal Aid Society. Prior to joining Nelson Mullins, Ms. Thomas was affiliated with another leading Atlanta firm. From 1990-95, Ms. Thomas served as an Assistant District Attorney, prosecuting felonies for the Fulton County District Attorney’s Office.

As a result of her commitment to the legal profession as well as civic affairs, Ms. Thomas has received numerous awards, including: The Bensonetta Tipton Lane Award for Commitment to the Family, the Georgia Association of Black Women Attorneys’ “Spirit of GABWA Award,” the National Bar Association's President's Award, the Seaborn Lee Elementary School “Living Legend Award,”  the 2010 Outstanding Woman in the Profession Achievement Award from the Atlanta Bar Association Women in the Profession Section; and the State Bar of Georgia's, "Thomas R. Burnside Jr. Excellence in Bar Leadership Award."

Ms. Thomas is a frequent lecturer on a number of legal topics. Ms. Thomas’ selected presentations include: “Developments in E-Discovery”, DRI Product Liability Seminar, 2007; “Daubert Challenges and Expert Witnesses”, National Bar Association Mid-Year Conference, 2002; “How to Give an Effective Closing Argument”, Gate City Bar Association, 2008; “Sexual Harassment”, Lorman Seminars, 2007;  “Worker Misclassification”, Stafford Publications, 2008; and "Hot Topics", DRI Drug and Medical Device Seminar, 2010.

In 1989, Ms. Thomas earned a Juris Doctor from the Walter F. George School of Law at Mercer University. In 1986, she earned a Bachelor of Arts in English from Spelman College.