Dougherty County Estate Planning Lawyers

When it comes to divorce and family law matters, The Ward Law Firm, PA, knows that everyone has different priorities. If you have children, it’s family first. If you have your own business or professional practice, that will feature prominently on your list of priorities. The Ward Law Firm, P.A., helps people in Lawrenceville and across Gwinnett County address every aspect of their divorce so they don’t have to put one before the other. We have been providing exemplary family law assistance to our clients for years. We treat every case like it is the most important case we have...

Alfred “Al” Edward Fargione, III
Al Fargione is an experienced civil and criminal litigator, having represented clients in high stakes civil and criminal litigation in State, Superior, and Federal Courts across Georgia. Mr. Fargione’s experience includes successfully proving an Uber driver’s innocence after the said driver was accused of sexually assaulting one of his fares and recovering insurance policy limits for those injured in automobile accidents.

Mr. Fargione received his Bachelor’s Degree from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in Troy, NY; his J.D. from New England Law | Boston, where he was the Symposium Editor on the New England Law Review; and his LL.M....

Michael H. Smith grew up in Florence, South Carolina and graduated from Erskine College in 1993 with a BA in history. He then attended the University of Georgia School of Law, and graduated in 1996 with a law degree.

He spent the 1st year of his legal career in Augusta, Georgia and then, enticed by the thought of spending time at the beach, moved to Savannah in 1997. After practicing with different firms over the years, Mike founded Smith Barid, LLC with his partner, Richard Barid, in November 2006 to focus on estate planning, elder law and special needs planning....

Leslee Hungerford was raised in Columbus, Georgia and earned her Bachelor Degree in Psychology from Auburn University. Leslee attended Cumberland School of Law at Samford University where she graduated cum laude and in the top 8% of her class. While in law school, she served as Articles Editor for the American Journal of Trial Advocacy, President of the Georgia Student Bar Association, and was honored as an Abraham Caruthers Legal Writing Teaching Fellow. Leslee has focused her practice in the areas of civil litigation, domestic relations, and wills and estates. Leslee is additionally a trained Guardian Ad Litem and...

Brad has been helping clients resolve their toughest problems and make their most important planning decisions for over a decade. Brad has extensive litigation experience (including fiercely contested divorces and custody modifications) and works his hardest to ensure his clients get the best outcome possible.

As an attorney in private practice in Atlanta, Charles Pyke provides a wide range of estate planning services to his clients, with a primary focus on helping them provide for the security of their loved ones, reduce the estate taxes and avoid or at least minimize the costs and delays of probate, all with a well-crafted estate plan. Mr. Pyke defines the mission statement for Pyke & Associates, P.C. as “Helping people be good stewards of all that has been entrusted to them.” Mr. Pyke, an active member of his community, is well aware of the growing importance of estate...

Tanner Pittman has practiced law serving both individuals and large organizational clients. Presently, his practice concentrates on estate services, civil litigation, and legal transactions. His varied background, ranging from retail banking to international business, to the legal field, helps Tanner bring a rich array of experience to bear upon his clients' legal issues. Education and background Tanner graduated with honors from the University of Georgia School of Law, a top-tier institution, recently ranked 12th in the nation among public law schools by U.S. News and World Report. His coursework concentrated on business law and included such subjects as corporations, corporate...

Sherley Joseph-Roper obtained her law degree from St. John's University School of law in 2003. She earned a B.A. in Sociology from Barnard College at Columbia University with a degree in Sociology, and a Master of Social Work from Clark Atlanta University.  Very early in her career, she developed a passion for improving the lives of families and children, strengthening communities, and promoting public safety. Her unique background is informed by a rich professional career involving family counseling, social services and government benefits, criminal prosecution, regulatory compliance in financial and real estate matters, commercial liability and personal injury litigation.  She...

Attorney Mike Bascom devotes his practice to estate planning. He helps individuals and families achieve peace of mind by leaving their wealth to whomever they want, whenever they want, in the way they want, all with the least amount of governmental interference and taxation. His clients include retirees, young families with children, older families with aging parents, and entrepreneurs with business considerations. His philosophy of estate planning is based upon a unique forward-thinking approach that focuses on integrating each client’s goals and values with their planning needs. He enjoys providing caring strategic solutions. Mike is licensed to practice law in Georgia...

Chadwick D. Plumley is a native of Paulding County, Georgia. He graduated from the University of Florida in 1993 with a B.A. in History and received his law degree from Mercer University in Macon, Georgia. Chad graduated from law school cum laude in 1997, and served on the Mercer Law review for two years. He is a member of both the Tennessee bar and the Georgia bar. Chad served as an Associate Magistrate Judge for Paulding County from 2003-2010, and has served as the Municipal Court Judge for the City of Hiram since 2011. He...

David L. McGuffey is in private practice with the Elder Law Practice of David L. McGuffey, LLC located in Dalton, Georgia. David limits his practice to Elder Law. This means he helps individuals who are elders or who have special needs, as well as their caregivers. Much of David's practice is devoted to helping individuals with chronic health conditions find, get and pay for good long-term care. David is certified as an Elder Law Attorney by the National Elder Law Foundation and as an Elder Law Specialist by the Tennessee Commission on Continuing Legal Education and Specialization. David is AV...

Charles Herman grew up in Sylvania, Ohio and joined the military after graduating from Sylvania Southview High School in 1993. After serving four (4) years he was honorably discharged in 1998. Mr. Herman then attended undergraduate college at Virginia Tech and graduated in 2002 with a Bachelor’s of Science degree in Environmental Policy and Planning. In 2002 he moved back home to Toledo, Ohio and started law school at the University of Toledo, College of Law where he graduated from in 2005, graduating with a Certificate of Environmental Law. Immediately thereafter, he joined a classmate of his in Troy, Ohio...

Mr. Grice's law firm's particular areas of expertise are the probate of Wills and the administration of estates, and the preparation of Wills, Trust Agreements, Powers of Attorney, and Health Care Directives, Mr. Grice has been practicing law for forty-three years. Previously he was a Vice President, Trust Officer, and Branch Manager with SunTrust Bank (now Truist Bank), responsible for the administration of estates and trusts.

State Bar of Georgia, 1980 Member: State Bar of Georgia (Family Law, Fiduciary Law sections) Gwinnett County Bar Association (Family Law and Elder Law sections) Education: University of Georgia School of Law (J.D., 1980) University of Georgia (B.A., magna cum laude, 1976); Phi Beta Kappa Publications: Domestic Relations, Annual Survey of Georgia Law, 1979-1980, 32 Mercer Law Review 51 (1980). Domestic Relations, Annual Survey of Georgia Law, 1980-1981, 33 Mercer Law Review 109 (1981).

Robert S. Meyring, Attorney helps all people and families with wills, trusts, probate, estate litigation with his dedicated Trusts & Estates Law Firm. provides clients with comprehensive Trusts and Estates legal services including trust-based estate planning, probate of estates, will contests, guardianship and conservatorships.

Cara Bass Schlosser graduated from University of South Carolina School of Law in May of 2019. Cara received her undergraduate degree from the University of Georgia in Business Management in May of 2015. Before law school, Cara worked as a Victim Witness Coordinator at the Gwinnett County Solicitor's Office serving victims of misdemeanor crimes, including victims of family violence. Cara also worked at a regional accounting firm as a University Recruiter meeting with college students around the Southeast. While Cara was in law school, she clerked for a local law firm in Duluth, Georgia where she gained experience in real estate...

David C. Smith is an estate planning and elder law attorney in Rome, Georgia. David began practicing law in 1998 after receiving his law degree from the University of Georgia.

SHERRY V. NEAL is the managing member of Neal & Wright LLC. Experienced in both the private and non-profit legal sectors, Sherry specializes in assisting families who want to grow through adoption. Sherry's practice includes all types of adoption, including finalization of agency placements, relative adoptions, stepparent adoptions, second parent adoptions, "readoption" or domestication of foreign-granted adoptions, and other domestic or international adoption matters. She is a frequent speaker on issues related to adoption and Title IV-E adoption assistance benefits. Sherry also provides legal services in the area of estate planning, focusing on middle income...

Ronald E. Dobelstein, Esq. is a dedicated Attorney, Arbitrator and Mediator, providing superior legal representation in the areas of Divorce Law, Family Law, Wills and Trusts and Construction Law. Ron has practiced law since 1976. His goal is to utilize his experience, skill and dedication to efficiently obtain the best results for each of his clients.

The Nuriddin Law Company is a full service law firm with a focus on Business Law, Consulting, Criminal Law, Estate Planning, Family Law and Personal Injury Law. We represent companies and individuals concerning various business and personal legal matters. Founded by Bukhari R. Nuriddin, at The Nuriddin Law Company, we recognize that our clients have important legal needs requiring customized legal solutions. Quite often, our clients also have related non-legal needs that they want fulfilled, such as guidance and compassion. Understandably, clients are also concerned about fees. We were established as a community-based practice that serves the...

Debra Scott earned a Juris Doctor in Law from Syracuse University College of Law, a Master of Public Health from Emory University Rollins School of Public Health and a Bachelor's degree from the University of California, Riverside in Political Science. Debra currently is a member of the Atlanta Bar Association, Estate Planning Section. She studied accounting at Clayton State University, in Atlanta, Georgia and was conferred membership into the Golden Key Honor Society

UGA LAW SCHOOL, JURIS DOCTORATE 1997 Admitted to Practice in Georgia and South Carolina Senior Partner, Frails & Wilson LLC Focus on Real Estate Transaction & Serious Personal Injury Cases with a focus on Burn Injuries

The Law Offices of Christopher L. Moore, LLC’s founder, Christopher L. Moore, is dedicated to achieving the best possible results for his litigation clients and providing sound and practical advice to his transactional and estate planning clients. Mr. Moore has been practicing law in Georgia since 2004.

After receiving his undergraduate degree from the University of Georgia in 1999, Mr. Moore obtained his Juris Doctorate from Georgia State University in 2003 and subsequently obtained a masters in law (LL.M.) in taxation from Southern Methodist University in 2004.

Mr. Moore is a member of the State Bar of Georgia (Taxation, Business, Family, and...

Matthew Momtahan founded the Momtahan Law Firm in 2015 with a mission to serve the people of west Georgia with the same high level of service that could be found at larger Metro Atlanta law firms, but with the personal touch and relationships that could only be found at home here in west Georgia. Matthew brings his years of litigation experience in service to his clients primarily in the areas of Business & Real Estate Litigation, Personal Injury, Wills & Probate Law, and Family Law. Matthew is the only attorney in Villa Rica to be selected as a Super Lawyer...

Maggie Heim represents clients in complex litigation matters in both the Federal and State court systems. She has earned a reputation as a skilled advocate who is unwilling to accept less than the best result for her clients. Maggie has been recognized for excellence in the practice of law by numerous independent attorney rating services, including Super Lawyers, the Daily Report, Martindale-Hubbell, Legal Elite, and Avvo.

In 2011, Jim McKenzie was honored by Martindale Hubbell/Lawyers.com for having maintained an “AV” rating for highest or “pre-eminent” legal skills and ethical standards for thirty consecutive years (1980-2010). He continues to achieve that consistent “AV” rating. The significance of the “AV” Rating by Martindale.com and Lawyers.com is described as follows: “The AV preeminent [rating] is a significant rating accomplishment- a testament to the fact that a lawyer’s peers rank him or her at the highest level of professional excellence.” www.martindale.com/products-services-peer-review-rating. (Martindale-Hubbell and Lawyers.com are the national legal locator and ranking service). Atlanta native and a Gwinnett...

Julianna Burrall, Attorney at Law, is a Georgia estate planning and tax attorney with over 25 years of legal experience serving clients in Cobb County and the Metro Atlanta area. Julianna’s private law practice specializes in customized tax and estate planning; probate and estate administration; elder law, including guardianships and conservatorships; family business succession planning; small business formations; and personal and business taxation matters.

In addition to practicing law since 1980, and having a perfect 10 excellent ranking on AVVO, Glen Ashman has been a municipal judge since 1988. The combination of judicial and legal experience has trained Glen well to help his clients. Glen has since 2002 been teaching Georgia judges at seminars and by writing the annual Municipal Court Benchbook, used by Judges across Georgia. Glen offers compassionate experienced help at very reasonable fees and personal service you do not get in big firms. Glen is an honors graduate of Mercer Law School.

As a founder and member of Smith Barid, LLC, Richard Barid, along with partner Michael Smith, runs a practice devoted to providing clients with the best estate planning, elder law, and special needs planning.

Richard devotes substantial time and resources to staying up to date on the latest laws, trends and techniques in planning. He speaks to public and private groups regularly, in addition to teaching continuing education courses to professionals. he is a member of Wealth Counsel, Elder Counsel, Savannah Estate Planning Council, Savannah Bar Association, State Bar of Georgia, Academy of VA Pension Planners, Greater Savannah Coalition on...

Logan Butler is a founding partner of the firm Patterson Moore Butler, LLC. Mr. Butler’s practice focuses primarily on criminal defense, employment law and a highly specialized local government practice assisting Sheriffs and other law enforcement agencies with their legal needs. He has extensive experience defending all major felonies, drug crimes, DUI, sex crimes, family violence, juvenile offenses and all other misdemeanor and felony offenses. Mr. Butler has previously served as an Assistant District Attorney in the Piedmont Judicial Circuit (Barrow, Jackson and Banks counties) and the Bell-Forsyth Judicial Circuit (Forsyth County). As a prosecutor, Mr. Butler...

Zainab Brown is a member of the Georgia Bar Association, American Bar Association, Georgia Association of Black Woman Attorneys, and Georgia Association of Woman Lawyers. She is an accredited Veterans Claims Attorney, JD Juris Doctor, MS Cybersecurity, BA Criminology, PMI certified Project Manager, Georgia Arbitrator, Neutral/Mediator, Information Technology Professional, Georgia real estate salesperson, and a retired U.S. Navy Legalman Chief Petty Officer. Probate Estates: Attorney Zainab Major Brown assists families with property ownership when someone dies. Major Brown Law provides legal representation while navigating the probate processes for a variety of situations. These issues include: A) Wills...

For over 15 years Craig Thrift has represented clients in business transactions, mergers and acquisitions, franchising, real estate, leasing, corporate, limited liability company, partnership, securities, financing, and general business matters. He serves as a trusted advisor to businesses and their owners in evaluating potential deals and developing strategies for success. Mr. Thrift brings a deep understanding of the legal, tax and business aspects of transactions to complex deals including mergers, acquisitions and sales of businesses, private offerings, financings and loan transactions, and structuring and restructuring of corporations, limited liability companies, joint ventures and partnerships. He advises clients regarding loans, non-competition covenants,...

Prior to moving to Blairsville, Daniel was a partner in one of the largest law firms in the State of Florida, with over 400 attorneys. Through his work, Daniel was awarded the AV Peer Review Rating from Martindale-Hubbell, its highest ranking for ethics and legal ability.

Daniel earned his Bachelor of Arts from Emory University where he had the honor of interning with a U.S. Representative. Mr. Duello received his Juris Doctor from the Georgia State University School of Law.

Daniel and his wife Katherine moved to Blairsville to raise their children in a supportive, moral, and beautiful environment. Daniel...

I represent individuals and businesses in various civil litigation matters, including select domestic relations and personal injury cases, as well as do a general practice. I also have been active in Henry County in public service activities and have served on multiple Boards including the General Practice and Trial Section of the State Bar of Georgia, Haven House (Henry County's domestic violence shelter), Leadership Henry, the Henry County Chamber of Commerce and am currently the President of Hands of Hope, which provides indigent medical services to residents of Henry County.

John Q. Vaughan, Sr. attended the University of Southern Mississippi, where he graduated with honors. Early in his career, John was a highly successful businessman, being internally promoted within the corporate world to an executive position at a young age. Although John had this early success, he longed to pursue his lifelong goal of becoming an attorney. He picked up his family, moved to Georgia, and a few short years later, he graduated from John Marshall Law School with his Juris Doctorate. As a result of his business acumen and relationships with clients, he was offered a partnership with a...

I began practicing law in the summer of 2001. First in Illinois and then obtained my license in Missouri in February 2002. I first worked two years for a large insurance defense firm devoting 100% of my time to litigation. I defended everything from car accident cases, dog bites to asbestos litigation. In late 2003, I joined a boutique law firm with a stellar reputation as plaintiff's attorneys and business attorneys, Goldenberg, Heller and Antognoli, PC. I worked on many high level cases, one in particular against many large oil producers that netted the residents of a small town the...

Shane Smith calls Georgia his home. Shane attended high school in Fayette County, graduated Magna Cum Laude Georgia State University undergraduate, and later graduated Cum Laude from Georgia State's College of Law in 2000. After being admitted to the Georgia Bar, Shane then entered the United State's Army Judge Advocate General's Corps. He has served at Fort Campbell and Fort Benning, attending and graduating from the Army's Air Assault School. While in the Army, he practiced criminal defense throughout the Southeast, acting as the lead attorney on the only military homicide in his multistate state district...

Congratulations to Robert W. Chambers, who just received an AVVO.com rating which places him within the Top 1% of Local Lawyers! Rob Chambers is a founding partner of the law firm of Coleman and Chambers, LLP and is a well-respected lawyer in Gainesville, Hall County and throughout the State of Georgia. Over the course of Rob's distinguished legal career, he has had the honor of serving the people of Hall County as a State Court Judge, Flowery Branch, Georgia as their City Attorney, his fellow attorneys of Hall and...

Associate Attorney Diamond Alexander received her undergraduate education from The University of Mississippi in 2017 where she double-majored in Criminal Justice & History. She then took a one year sabbatical to get married, travel, move to Atlanta, and apply to law school. Following that, she attended Emory University School of Law where she was also a family law teaching assistant from 2019 to 2021. She graduated law school in 2021 and became a member of the Georgia Bar in 2022. During her educational career, Diamond received a number of recognitions and was involved in several impressive groups including: • Horatio Alger National...