Hires signal a more aggressive legal strategy as the organization expands its fight against government union overreach
Dallas, TX — The Freedom Foundation today announced the addition of two prominent legal figures to its senior team: Jason Miyares, who served as the 48th attorney general of Virginia, joins as senior advisor, and Anthony J. “A.J.” Ferate, a veteran Oklahoma attorney and former chairman of the Oklahoma Republican Party, joins as chief litigation counsel.
The hires mark a deliberate shift toward a more aggressive legal posture for the organization, which has spent more than three decades defending public employees’ rights to opt out of union membership and dues in the wake of the U.S. Supreme Court’s landmark 2018 Janus v. AFSCME decision.
“For years, government unions have counted on outlasting anyone who challenges them in court,” said Aaron Withe, Freedom Foundation CEO. “With Jason and A.J. on our team, we’re accelerating the fight — in courtrooms, in front of labor boards and in every state where union bosses think they can trample on workers’ rights without consequence.”
Miyares brings a record of aggressive enforcement from his time as Virginia’s top law enforcement officer, where he took on the Biden administration over vaccine and mask mandates, investigated abuses at the state Parole Board and secured more than $1.2 billion in opioid settlements for the Commonwealth.
“Worker freedom is American freedom, and for too long government union bosses have been stripping public employees of their freedom to speak, think, and choose for themselves,” Miyares said. “I’m proud to join the Freedom Foundation’s fight for worker freedom and give public servants back the ability to say no, because no American, especially our teachers, should be forced to fund an organization as a condition of holding a job.”
Ferate brings decades of legal and regulatory experience, including defense of the oil and gas industry against environmentalists, time as Chairman of the Oklahoma GOP, state and federal regulatory work, and a record of success in appellate litigation. Ferate also served in the U.S. Navy as an intelligence analyst.
He also served as general counsel to Miyares’s 2021 campaign for attorney general and helped lead his transition into office.
“Government unions have relied on complexity and delay, wearing down challengers.” Ferate said. “Under our strategy, we will move faster, litigate smarter and outlast public union leaders.”
The additions come as the Freedom Foundation continues to expand its legal docket nationwide, including active litigation and unfair labor practice filings in states such as Oregon and California, and legislative fights across the country in states including New York, Arizona and Florida.
