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Tom Mars, the Arkansas and Georgia trial lawyer that UNC Football general manager Michael Lombardi retained as counsel while the school investigates him, is known for his work challenging transfer-eligibility rules in college sports and for victories in several other notable cases.
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But the founder of Mars Law Firm also has a notable body of work outside of college athletics before his recent dive into the complex battles surrounding the NCAA.
After working as an attorney for former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee, Mars spent multiple years as the director of Arkansas State Police, starting in 1998. He also became Walmart’s Senior Vice President and General Counsel, not too long after, to handle their legal matters
Mars’ first high-profile college sports case was in 2017, when he secured a settlement and apology from Ole Miss on behalf of former coach Houston Nutt. The lawsuit alleged a breach of a 2011 separation agreement and defamation of character, claiming that coach Hugh Freeze and other school officials placed false blame on Nutt for an NCAA investigation.
More recently, Mars represented Ole Miss’ Trinidad Chambliss — who threw for 3,937 yards and 22 touchdowns last season — when the quarterback sought an additional season of eligibility. Chambliss was granted the sixth year when he received an injunction in February from a Mississippi state court.
The decision, which Judge Robert Whitwell read in an over 90-minute period, was made in Chambliss’ favor because the “NCAA ignored medical documentation from his second season at Ferris State,” ESPN wrote.
“Thomas Mars is a fearless top shelf trial lawyer,” Arkansas Democrat-Gazette columnist Wally Hall wrote, according to Mars’ firm’s website. “Mars is to lawyering what Tom Brady is to quarterbacking.”
In the late 2010s, Mars represented quarterback Justin Fields when he received immediate eligibility after transferring from Georgia to Ohio State; receiver Van Jefferson when he received a waiver to play after transferring from Ole Miss to Florida; and Shea Patterson when he was able to play immediately after transferring from Ole Miss to Michigan.
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“A one-man wrecking crew — Mars has been referred to as a transfer ‘magician,’ ‘savant,’ and ‘super attorney,’” Toledo Blade’s Kyle Rowland wrote, according to the firm’s page.
Mars released a statement on Friday, saying Lombardi has not been told any details of the UNC investigation following his placement on administrative leave, and plans to “clear his name.”
“(Lombardi) is fully cooperating with UNC and expects the investigation to be swift, thorough and fair,” Mars said in the statement. “Michael would ask that people have the decency to let the process run its course before jumping to any conclusions or whether there’s any merit to whatever has been alleged.”
A UNC spokesman said the university had “nothing to add” in regard to Mars’ statement late Friday night.
On July 27, Mars recommended a clip on X of The Athletic reporter Bruce Feldman “incinerating” Lombardi “without mercy.” After WRAL’s Brian Murphy noticed the post, Mars responded that he had “no reservations” about representing Lombardi following hours of conversations with the embattled general manager.
“Standing alone, with nothing more,” Mars wrote, “the opinions of commentators or a person’s social media approval rating isn’t a factor in deciding who I’ll represent.”
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