Mr. Lyles was born at Columbia on August 18, 1885, the son of William Haynsworth Lyles and Miriam Sloan. He obtained an A.B. from South Carolina College and an LL.B., Cum Laude, from Harvard University in 1908. He was elected to the Harvard Law Review. After being admitted to the Bar, he practiced law with his father until the latter’s death and then alone until his retirement in 1960.
During World War I, he served as an Ensign in the United States Navy. In 1917, he married Miss Evelyn Robertson and their only child, Dr. William S. Lyles, is a surgeon in Winnsboro.
He was noted for his careful skill in pleading and draftsmanship, for his excellence as a trial and appellate lawyer, and for his thoroughness in all matters. A “lawyer’s lawyer”, he handled many important and controversial cases expertly and with great courage. He combined the highest professional ability with the highest professional ethics.