BUSINESS LAW

Our business law and corporate entity practice involves a wide range of legal services for owners, employers, and organizations throughout Southside Virginia. We are experienced in providing legal counsel at multiple phases during the life of a business, including its formation, administration, and dissolution. These services often involve our transactional expertise in the drafting and negotiation of contracts, creation of bylaws and operating agreements, development of management operations, and guidance with purchases, transfers and succession plans. Our attorneys serve as registered agents and outside counsel for several companies, always ready to help ensure compliance with regulations and supply representation at administrative appeals or in litigation. Whether a corporation, limited liability company, partnership, church or non-profit, the needs of your entity will be served with excellence by lawyers with personal business experience.

CIVIL LITIGATION

Our civil litigation and personal injury practice is focused on guiding clients in the resolution of business and personal disputes whether the matter is litigated in court or resolved in a pre-trial settlement.  We work closely with the client to determine the best strategies to protect their interests, taking into consideration the effects of protracted litigation and associated costs.  Our goal is to work effectively and efficiently to meet the needs of the client and achieve the best result.  We provide representation in a variety of civil litigation matters including creditor/debtor cases, contract disputes, commercial disputes, construction disputes, guardianship and conservatorship proceedings, insurance coverage disputes, personal injury, product liability, employment disputes, real estate disputes, contesting a will, and trust and estate administration disputes.  Contact our office to learn how one of our experienced attorneys can help.

ESTATE PLANNING

Our estate planning and wealth management practice helps individuals and families prepare for the preservation and distribution of assets in accordance with their goals. We help craft plans for our clients that seamlessly carry out their wishes by working closely with financial planners, insurance agents, accountants, and other professionals in developing comprehensive and personalized legal strategies. Based on the unique situation of each client, we employ our transactional expertise in drafting documents establishing power of attorney, advance medical directives, guardianships, conservatorships, wills and trusts. Beyond the complexities inherent in elder law matters, we also help clients accomplish their objectives respecting charitable donations, special needs trusts, family farms, and other family planning arrangements. We also offer representation in the administration of a decedent’s estate, assisting executors and administrators in the filing of accountings of a decedent’s estate.  When preparing for the future and those you care about, your aims can be secured with lawyers you can trust.

FAMILY LAW

Our family law and domestic relations practice is comprehensive and capable in leading clients through the most challenging circumstances involving their family relationships. We are experienced in divorce cases, both contested and uncontested, including the drafting and negotiating of property settlement agreements. We also represent parents in child custody and child support matters in both mediation and courtroom settings, as well as cases petitioning for adoption. With many years of experience in service to children as Guardians ad litem, we have a clear understanding of what constitutes the governing standard of a child’s best interest and special expertise in matters involving foster care, including those which call for the termination of parental rights. Whether your situation is amicable or fraught with contention, we will provide caring representation in pursuit of superior outcomes.

LOCAL GOVERNMENT

Our local government and administrative law practice draws upon remarkable experience from service in municipal and state settings, unmatched in Southside Virginia. We have unique expertise in the development and implementation of town policy and have managed a process of recodification of local ordinances. We have advised on matters specific to government contracts and procurements, negotiations of lease agreements, procedures under the Virginia Freedom of Information Act, and police powers of local law enforcement. We also have a wide range of experience with state administrative agencies, litigated over the Administrative Process Act, and represented a local department, as well as small business owners, in matters before the Virginia Employment Commission. Whether in service to an entity of local government, or an individual seeking administrative relief, we possess the experience to help you succeed.

REAL ESTATE

Our real estate and property law practice is longstanding and dynamic, meeting the many needs of buyers and sellers in both residential and commercial transactions. We also advise clients on numerous facets in this field, including easement and boundary concerns, land use and zoning restrictions, and tax consequences and economic opportunities in parcel acquisitions. Our years of expertise ensure that clients experience efficient and professional closings in the cases we handle, whether to effectuate a mortgage on a new home or a refinance, contracts and leases, business settlement, deed to a farm or family gift. We are prepared to seek enforcement of an instrument’s terms in court or litigate landlord/tenant matters such as an eviction in an action for unlawful detainer. When decisions are made respecting real property, your resources can be protected by knowledgeable lawyers focused on your interests.