Andrew C. Skinner grew up in Charles Town, West Virginia. He graduated from Jefferson High School in 1988 and then attended the College of William and Mary in Williamsburg, Virginia, from which he received a bachelor’s degree in economics in 1992. Andrew participated in the ROTC program at William and Mary and was commissioned as an officer in the United States Army. Andrew was on active duty in the Army for four years, serving as a tanker and then a logistician in the 4th Infantry Division.
After coming off of active duty, Andrew studied at the University of Texas School of Law in Austin, one of the top-ranked law schools in the nation. Andrew graduated with honors from the University of Texas and moved to Chicago, where he took up practice with Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom, one of the largest law firms in the country. His primary practice involved product liability lawsuits.
Andrew returned home to West Virginia in 2003 and joined his father’s practice at Nichols & Skinner, which has since been renamed Skinner Accident & Injury Lawyers. Andrew focuses on personal injury law. Exceedingly important to Andrew are cases that seek to protect the public. For instance, Andrew believes that one of the most effective approaches to stopping drunk driving and protecting our community members is to bring lawsuits against drunk drivers and the bars that over serve them. These so-called “dram shop” cases ensure that bars and patrons act responsibly by forcing them to compensate victims who are injured in drunk-driving crashes.
Being deeply involved in the community is very important to all the Skinners, including Andrew. He has served on the Board of the Jefferson County Chamber of Commerce, including as president, where he worked to improve the local business community by providing opportunities for businesspeople to network, by providing educational opportunities, and by showing off what wonderful business opportunities exist in the Eastern Panhandle. In the same vein, Andrew is also a former member of the Board of Directors of the Jefferson County Development Authority.
Andrew continued his military career after coming off of active duty by serving both in the National Guard and the Reserves, including two more years mobilized on active duty. He has served in Croatia, Hungary, Italy, Germany, and South Korea, along with posts throughout the United States. Andrew served for a total of thirty years, retiring as a Lieutenant Colonel. As an Army Reserve Soldier, one of his favorite jobs was as an instructor of a graduate-level course for Army officers seeking to become battalion commanders and high-level staff members. He enjoyed teaching doctrine, history, and leadership.
Learning how to be a leader has long been part of Andrew’s life. It started with Andrew being the student government president in high school, continued with ROTC in college, and intensified during his thirty years of military service. Wanting to share the leadership skills and lessons he has learned throughout his life, Andrew founded Leadership Jefferson, a program of the Jefferson County Chamber of Commerce. Andrew spends innumerable hours every year guiding approximately 20 current or future leaders through a ten-month-long course. Leadership Jefferson covers how Jefferson County operates and helps build leadership skills. Creating and running Leadership Jefferson has provided him with insight into the workings and character of this community.
Andrew is married to Kathy Skinner, who was elected in 2014 and re-elected in 2018 and 2022 to the Jefferson County Board of Education. Kathy has also a Board member of Charles Town Now, an organization dedicated to improving economic opportunities and conditions in the historic downtown of Charles Town. Additionally, she is a board member of both the Jefferson County Development Authority as well as the James Rumsey Technical Institute.
In addition to his Jefferson County-based leadership roles, Andrew is a member of the American Association for Justice and the West Virginia Association for Justice, for which he serves as a board member.