Ruth Brightwell McFarland was born and raised in Montgomery, Alabama. Mrs. McFarland graduated cum laude from Vanderbilt University in 1994, with a degree in Comparative English Literature.

Mrs. McFarland graduated from the University of Alabama School of Law in 1997. She was a member of the Farrah Law Society, the Trial Advocacy Association, the Environmental Law Society, and the International Law Society.

Mrs. McFarland was admitted to the Alabama State Bar in 1997, and was admitted to practice before the United States District Court, Northern District of Alabama in 2008. Mrs. McFarland began her legal career with the Tuscaloosa County Office of Public Defender. During her ten years with that Office, Mrs. McFarland practiced extensively in the Circuit, District, and Municipal Courts in Tuscaloosa County, garnering invaluable courtroom experience. Mrs. McFarland is currently a member of the Alabama State Bar Association, the Tuscaloosa County Bar Association, the Alabama Criminal Defense Lawyers Association, and is a graduate of the National Criminal Defense College in Macon, Georgia. Mrs. McFarland joined Lewis, Smyth & Winter in January 2008, and she practices in the areas of civil and criminal litigation.

As a member of the Tuscaloosa Community, Mrs. McFarland is a member of the Junior League of Tuscaloosa, the Board of Directors for Family Counseling Services, and the Women’s Chamber of Commerce. She is married to Ward Weston McFarland, of Tuscaloosa, Alabama, and they have a son named Wells. The McFarlands are active members of First United Methodist Church of Tuscaloosa.