A charter member of the World Saxophone Congress, Liley has long been involved with the North American Saxophone Alliance and is a member of the Executive Board as Director of Scholarly Publications. Articles and reviews by and about Liley have appeared in The Saxophone Symposium, The Saxophone Journal, The Instrumentalist, Clarinet and Saxophone Society of Great Britain, Bandworld, and various state music educators' magazines. He is co-author of the highly acclaimed book The Cambridge Companion to the Saxophone, published by Cambridge University Press of Great Britain, and author of A Brief History of the World Saxophone Congress. Liley's students have achieved national recognition and he has received certification by the Music Teachers National Association (MTNA).

As a member of the United States Navy Band in Washington, D.C., Liley toured the country and performed for dignitaries at the White House. He was awarded the degree of Doctor of Music in Saxophone Literature and Performance with Distinction by Indiana University, where he studied with the internationally renowned virtuoso Eugene Rousseau. Liley has been Professor of Saxophone at the University of Florida and at the University of Kansas and Guest Professor of Saxophone at Indiana University and the University of Minnesota. Currently a Professor of Music at Joliet Junior College and a faculty member at the Shell Lake Arts Center in northern Wisconsin, Liley has been a Yamaha Performing Artist since 1982.