MIDDLE GEORGIA JUSTICE - Key Persons
Albert P. Reichert, Jr. grew up in Macon, Georgia, attending Joseph Clisby Elementary School and Lanier High School. He was President of the Senior Class. He attended Emory University, where he was a member of Phi Beta Kappa and President of the Emory Glee Club. He received his law degree from Harvard Law School, where he was Vice President of the Harvard Journal on Legislation. Since his graduation in 1964, he has practiced law with Anderson, Walker and Reichert, LLP.
Mr. Reichert's practice is primarily in the fields of wills, trusts, estate planning, taxation, and corporate and business matters. He served as Chairman of the Fiduciary Law Section and of the Tax Section of the State Bar of Georgia and as Chair of the Commission on Continuing Lawyer Competency. He has served on three Code Revision Committees: Trust Law, Probate Law, and Guardianship. He is a member of the American College of Trust and Estate Counsel and of the American College of Tax Counsel. He also is a founding trustee of the Georgia Federal Tax Conference and is listed in the Best Lawyers in America.
Outside of his law practice, he has been active in the Boy Scouts, in church work, in Rotary International, and in the Community Foundation of Central Georgia.
Amy Griffith Dever is a long-time resident of Macon and the proud mom of Sara and Hayes. Her family moved here in 1970 when her father, Tom Griffith (a Mercer Law graduate) retired from the US Air Force to practice law in Macon. Her mother Tommy Griffith worked with a tenacious group of Macon women to establish Macon Outreach and staff a library at the Bibb County Jail to serve inmates. Amy's father was a constant pro bono advocate, long before it was a thing. Amy received a BFA from UGA and after a three-year stint as a potter in Reynolds, Georgia, she moved back to Macon to attend Mercer Law School and received a JD in 1982 and started her law career as a Public Defender in Fulton County, Atlanta. After four years with the PD's office, she practiced civil litigation in Atlanta. In 1998, she moved back to Macon. Over the past forty years Amy has worked in many areas of civil law including personal injury (for both plaintiffs and defense), construction litigation, complex class action cases, business litigation, probate matters, family law, served as guardian ad litem in custody disputes, and as a mediator and arbitrator. She has had the pleasure of working with many fine attorneys here in Middle Georgia and throughout the state. Serving as Executive Director with Middle Georgia Justice provides a full circle for Amy. It is been particularly meaningful given her start as a PD and her parents' legacy of helping the underserved in this community. Helping folks with limited means effectively access our justice system is critically important work that helps define and set the standard for what justice really should look like. Amy is thrilled and honored to serve as the Executive Director and looks forward to collaborating with the Justice Brigade of volunteer attorneys, our local courts, the board and staff of Middle Georgia Justice, and our community supporters to make sure Middle Georgia Justice continues to accomplish its profound and important mission.
Bonnie Carlson joined the Mercer Law School faculty from Georgetown University Law Center, where she was a Clinical Teaching Fellow in the Domestic Violence Clinic. In that position, she co-taught the clinic seminar and supervised clinic students in their representation of domestic violence victims in Civil Protection Order litigation. Prior to working at Georgetown, Bonnie was a Training and Technical Assistance Staff Attorney with the American Bar Association Commission on Domestic & Sexual Violence. (ABA CDSV) In that position, she wrote training curricula and publications for attorneys practicing domestic violence law around the country. Prior to this position at the ABA CDSV, she was a family law staff attorney for the Alexandria office of Legal Services of Northern Virginia (LSNV) for four years representing victims of domestic violence. Upon her graduation from The George Washington University Law School,
Bonnie was awarded the National Association of Women Lawyers Outstanding Law Graduate Award for her work with domestic violence victims as well as her academic success. In 2015, she was honored by the Alexandria Bar Association with the Don F. Mela Award for her service to the community. She previously taught Legal Research and Writing to first-year law students at the George Washington University Law School for three years. Bonnie grew up in Arlington, Virginia, and earned a Bachelor of Arts in American Studies and Women's Studies from the University of Virginia.
Brenda attended South Georgia Technical Institute, majoring in Business Education. Brenda provided amazing service and leadership for 22 years at the Bibb County Superior Court Clerk's Office. Brenda's service to the community included working at the front counter, providing exceptional customer service, and acting as a liaison between the civil, criminal, and real estate departments. She also worked in the real estate department for many years before being promoted to Chief Court Management Clerk, where she served her last 10 years.
Job Titles:
- Founding Partner of Adams Law Firm
Brian Adams, the founding partner of Adams Law Firm, has a passionate commitment to both his clients and the practice of law. A third-generation Macon attorney, Brian's inherent legal savvy teamed with his drive to help others has paved a successful path to representing seriously injured individuals in a wide range of litigation matters. Brian strongly believes in the right to trial and has experience in both the trial and appellate courts throughout the state of Georgia.
A dedicated conservationist and outdoor enthusiast, Brian Adams is heavily involved in multiple community organizations concentrating on the protection of our environment. As President of the Ocmulgee National Park & Preserve Initiative, he is a driving force in bringing Georgia's first National Park to his community. Additionally, he has served on the Board of Directors for the Altamaha RiverKeeper, Keep Macon-Bibb Beautiful Commission, and the Ocmulgee Water Trail Partnership. His involvement in these influential organizations, among other environmental groups, further champions his efforts to hold powerful corporations accountable for various mistreatments to both individuals and communities.
Richardson is the retired Opinion Page Editor at The Macon Telegraph. He is a McClatchy Journalism Fellow at Duke University and a fellow at the Knight Center for Specialized Journalism at the University of Maryland. He has attended Harvard University workshops in narrative journalism and not-for-profit governance. His undergraduate work was at the University of the Pacific in Stockton, California.
Job Titles:
- Law Professor
- University Professor of Law
Daisy Hurst Floyd is University Professor of Law and Ethical Formation and served as Dean of the Law School from 2004 to 2010 and from 2014 to 2017. She came to Mercer in 2004 after serving on the faculties of the University of Georgia School of Law and Texas Tech University School of Law. Professor Floyd is admitted to the State Bars of Georgia and Texas and is an elected Fellow of the American Bar Foundation, the Lawyers Foundation of Georgia, and the Texas Bar Foundation.
Professor Floyd is the author of numerous law review articles and is a frequent speaker at academic and law conferences. Her teaching and research interests include Ethics, Legal Education, Civil Procedure, Evidence, and Remedies. She has a particular interest in the ways in which higher education shapes students' ethical development and in the possibilities for cross-disciplinary collaboration within higher education.
Recent research projects have focused on professional identity development of lawyers. She is the co-author of a 2019 book, The Formation of Professional Identity: The Path From Student to Lawyer, and is currently working on a book tentatively entitled, The Lawyers We Need: The Professional Identity of the American Lawyer, scheduled for publication by Carolina Academic Press in the Fall of 2022.
Professor Floyd was raised in Savannah, Georgia, received both the B.A. and M.A. in Political Science from Emory University and a J.D. from the University of Georgia School of Law. She is married to Professor Tim Floyd, her college and law school classmate. They have two children and three grandchildren.
Danielle Hynes hails from New York State, about 30 years ago, by way of Germany and New England. She is married, has two grown daughters and one granddaughter.
Danielle graduated from the Walter F. George School of Law in 1998 at the age of 45 years. When she was eight years old, her goal was to be a lawyer, and over the years her plans were put on hold. Since starting her own practice in Warner Robins 24 years ago, she has worked with Houston County's Solicitor's Office, and most recently with the Houston County Juvenile Court, while still working with private clients.
Danielle's "side" vocations include gardening and gourmet cooking. She loves her rescue dogs (2) and cats (3), and she has been an AirBnB host and Super Host since 2018.
Danielle Hysell was born and raised in Macon, Georgia and currently resides in Houston County with her husband Seth and two children Naomi and Preston. She graduated from Georgia College and State University in 2010 with an undergraduate degree in Criminal Justice. After college, Danielle started working as a Deputy Clerk for Macon-Bibb County's Juvenile Court. After a few years, she transitioned to the District Attorney's Office as their very first Victim's Advocate in Juvenile Court. She then moved to Superior Court about two years later and worked as a Victim's Advocate for major felony cases which involved child molestation, sex crimes, aggravated assaults, murders, and property crimes. Danielle enjoyed her time at the District Attorney's office because it allowed her to help so many people who needed assistance navigating the criminal justice system. She chose to pursue a career with Middle Georgia Justice because it is so fulfilling to be able to help people on a daily basis with issues they would otherwise not have the resources to access for themselves. Middle Georgia is flooded with people in need, and she is glad to be a part of such a critically important organization like Middle Georgia Justice.
Dean Sneddon joined the Mercer community in 2006. She graduated summa cum laude from Louisiana State University and Tulane Law School. Before becoming a faculty member at the School of Law, she was a Forrester Fellow at Tulane Law School. She has been a visiting professor of law at the William S. Boyd School of Law at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas and taught a short course in Comparative Succession at ELTE Law, Eötvös Loránd University in Budapest, Hungary.
Dean Sneddon is actively engaged in research and scholarship. Her most recent law review article is Dead Men (and Women) Should Tell Tales: Narrative, Intent, and Construction Proceedings, 46 ACTEC Law J. 301 (2021). In 2021, she received the 2020 Teresa G. Phelps Scholarship Award for Legal Communication for Clause A to Clause Z: Narrative Transportation and the Transactional Reader, 71 S.C. L. Rev. 247 (2019) (with Professor Susan M. Chesler, co-author and co-recipient of the award). In addition to authoring law review articles and essays, Dean Sneddon co-authored Moot Court Workbook with Mercer Law Professor Sue Painter-Thorne and co-authored Experiencing Trusts & Estates. She has also contributed a rewritten judgment to Feminist Judgments: Rewritten Trusts and Estates Opinions. Since 2008, Dean Sneddon has co-authored with Mercer Law Professor David Hricik the regular column "Writing Matters" for the Georgia Bar Journal.
Job Titles:
- Assistant
- Chief
- Chief Assistant District Attorney at the Houston County District Attorney 's Office & Houston Bar Executive Committee
Eric Z. Edwards is the Chief Assistant District Attorney for the Houston Judicial Circuit, charged with prosecuting primarily felony offenses committed against children in Houston County. Over the past decade, Eric has worked as a lawyer in every office within the Houston County Superior Court complex, serving briefly as a judicial staff attorney and as a public defender in addition to his prosecution experience.
Eric has spent several years serving on the executive board of the Houston County Bar Association and in various capacities with the Georgia Bar's Young Lawyers Division. He is also the chairman of the Planning Commission for the City of Perry, a role which he sometimes enjoys even more than lawyering.
A graduate of Georgia Southern University and then the Georgia State University College of Law, Eric and his wife, Ashleigh, reside in Perry with their two young daughters and two old dogs.
Grace Greiner is a born and raised Maconite. Though she is from Macon, she has lived in other cities including Milledgeville, GA where she obtained not one but two degrees from Georgia College and State University. After receiving her Master of Arts in English Education, Grace went on to be an educator in the middle Georgia area where she developed her love of helping others find success. She is very excited to join the team at Middle Georgia Justice as a paralegal and continue this journey in assisting others through the sometimes overwhelming legal world. Grace has an upbeat, positive personality and she never meets a stranger. She enjoys traveling and trying new restaurants with her husband Shawn as well as reading a good book snuggled with her ginger tabby Gin.
Matthew ("Matt") Shoemaker joined Jones Cork, LLP in September of 2017 after practicing for five years in Atlanta with Swift, Currie, McGhee & Hiers, LLP. Mr. Shoemaker focuses his practice on general civil litigation, and has experience representing both individuals and businesses in a broad range of disputes. His experience spans state and federal practice, as well as appellate work.
Bill Adams Judge Bill Adams joined Adams Law Firm in July 2017 following nearly 19 successful years serving as Judge of the State Court of Bibb County. Judge Adams' love for both the legal field and the Macon community has spanned his adult life, and his leadership in both has spanned almost as long.The eldest son of Middle Georgia "legal legend" Charles Adams, Judge Bill Adams grew up with a plan to practice law. He joined his father's law firm in 1977 upon graduating cum laude from Mercer University's Walter F. George School of Law. In 1978, he went on to serve as an Assistant United States Attorney in the United States Attorney's Office for the Middle District of Georgia. There, he prosecuted a wide array of federal crimes and served on the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force. In 1986, he rejoined Adams, Hemingway and Hemingway as partner, engaging in a varied practice of civil and criminal litigation in state and federal courts.
In 1998, Judge Bill Adams ran unopposed for an open seat on the State Court bench after the retirement of Judge Taylor Phillips. Adams was re-elected (unopposed) four more times. While serving on the bench, he gained expert legal knowledge in all aspects of civil trials from a perspective that few attain and even fewer take back to private practice.
As Adams Law Firm's "Of Counsel" attorney, Judge Adams applies his decades of legal knowledge to fight for justice for our personal injury and wrongful death clients, considering the nuances involved in each individual case. Judge Adams is also a registered mediator and arbitrator. He is a member of the panel of neutrals at Adams ADR Services. Judge Adams is President of Middle Georgia Justice, a local non-profit dedicated to closing the justice gap in Middle Georgia.
A dedicated family man, community member, and baseball lover, Judge Bill Adams has served in many volunteer roles at Vineville United Methodist Church, Vine Ingle Little League, and the Kiwanis Club of Macon. He enjoys spending time with his wife, children, and grandchildren, especially at the lake.
Karen Sneddon became interim dean of Mercer University School of Law on October 1, 2021. She previously served as associate dean for faculty research and development and professor of law.
Kathy McArthur has over 40 years' experience representing clients who have been severely injured or killed as the result of the negligence of others. She focuses her practice on serious personal injury and wrongful death cases caused by car wrecks or medical malpractice. Kathy is AV-rated by Martindale-Hubbell, Board Certified by NBOTA, and is a Past President of the Georgia Chapter of ABOTA and the William A. Bootle American Inn of Court. She has served as lead and co-counsel on numerous cases resulting in verdicts and recoveries for her clients in excess of $1 million. Kathy received the Professionalism Award in 2013 and the Traditions in Excellence Award in 2022, and has been designated by her peers as one of the Top 10 attorneys in the State of Georgia across all fields of law in 2018 - 2021. She graduated Phi Beta Kappa from the University of North Carolina in 1976 and received her J.D. from UNC in 1979. She has spoken extensively at seminars and was quoted in The New York Times and appeared on the Joy Behar Show on the topic of the dangers of cell phone use and driving.
Kathy is married to Waldo E. Floyd III, M.D., hand surgeon with OrthoGeorgia in Macon. She has two daughters-Lindsey Macon (32), who joined McArthur Law Firm-Atlanta as an attorney in 2019, and Holly Stephens (28) a public defender in the Brunswick Judicial Circuit.
Job Titles:
- Local Attorney and Counselor
Kevin B. Hicks is a local attorney and counselor licensed to practice law in North Carolina, the North District and Georgia. He is the owner and founder of The Law Offices of Kevin B. Hicks & Associates, LLC. and currently manages the firm. Mr. Hicks is licensed to practice in all state and local courts, as well as the Georgia State Court of Appeals. Mr. Hicks is also licensed to practice in the Middle District of Georgia Federal Court.
Kimberly Mimbs has been a Staff Attorney for Middle Georgia Justice since August 2022. Kimberly's focus is on probate, wills and estates, and heirs' property issues. Kimberly is excited to be at Middle Georgia Justice as her goal in law school was to help low-income individuals with their legal issues. Navigating the courts and the legal system can be very overwhelming, and Kimberly wants to help however she can. She graduated from Mercer University, School of Law in 2021 and received the Distinguished Service Award for her service to the law school. In 2017, Kimberly received her M.A. in International Affairs from The New School, located in New York City, where she focused Governance and Human Rights. In 2014, Kimberly received her B.A. in English from Kennesaw State University. Kimberly grew up in Lawrenceville, Georgia and has lived in Macon for four years. Kimberly enjoys trivia, traveling, kayaking, and trying new restaurants with her wife, Lauren.
Lisa Berrian was born and raised in Eastman, Ga, and has lived in Macon, Georgia for over 30 years. She graduated from the University of Georgia in 1988 with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Journalism and a minor in Business and Communicative Arts. Lisa has received several awards and recognition throughout the years, such as 2011 United Way Loaned Executive (doubled the giving at The Ledger-Enquirer, 2010 Reach Contest First Place winner (revenue performance) in Tier Group with McClatchy, 2008 Top 3 rd paper in revenue performance for McClatchy, 2007 Ledger's Best - People Development, 2006 Ledger's Best and Brightest, 2005 Presstime's "20 under 40", 2005 Knight Ridder Excellence Nominee for Operational Excellence.
Through the different roles Lisa has held, she brings a combination of 30+ years of management, sales and fundraising experience to the Middle Georgia Justice team. Lisa is married to Robert Berrian and has 4 children and 6 grandchildren.
, a native of Douglas, Georgia, began her practice with Westmoreland, Patterson, Moseley & Hinson, LLP in September 2011. She specializes in all aspects of Social Security and disability law, which include SSI and Disability Insurance for adults, children, widows and widowers, as well as claims for Veteran's Disability Benefits before the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA). She works with clients through all stages of the adjudicative process from the administrative to the appellate levels, including Federal District Court appeals. Although Mrs. White Park has lived in Macon since 2002, she maintains ties to Douglas representing clients across South Georgia and also throughout the state.
Furthermore, she represents clients throughout the Southeastern Region of the United States. Mrs. White Park began specializing in Social Security law when she worked for the Social Security Administration in the Macon Office of Disability Adjudication and Review with Administrative Law Judges as an attorney decision writer. Additionally, Mrs. White Park spent five years practicing insurance litigation. She remains active in the Macon Bar Association as well as in the Young Lawyers Division of the State Bar of Georgia as a member of the Board of Directors for the past two years
Stuart is an Assistant U.S. Attorney in the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Middle District of Georgia. He is in the office's appellate division and principally represents the interests of the United States in appeals to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit from criminal prosecutions throughout the 70 counties that comprise the Middle District.
He graduated magna cum laude with a B.A. in political science from the University of Georgia and magna cum laude with a J.D. from the Mercer University School of Law.
He has served as president of the Macon Bar Association, the William Augustus Bootle Inn of Court, and the Kiwanis Club of Macon. In addition, Stuart is an adjunct instructor at Mercer Law School, where he currently teaches Georgia Civil Practice & Procedure. Stuart is a trustee of the Georgia Legal History Foundation Inc. and is the former editor in chief of the Foundation's Journal of Southern Legal History. He is a graduate of the Leadership Macon Class of 2013.
Sylvia Williams McGee, a native of Macon, is a community engagement volunteer who seeks to serve in helping to make the Macon-Bibb County Community a better place to live. She currently serves as Secretary of the Macon - Bibb County Land Bank Authority; Immediate Past President of The Macon (GA) Chapter of the Links, Incorporated; Chair of the Ruth Hartley Mosley Memorial Women's Center and President of the Advisory Board of Directors for Leadership Macon and Chair of the Grants Committee for the Community Foundation of Central GA.
Sylvia received a Bachelor of Arts from Tift College (1974) and a Masters of Social Work from the University of Georgia (1976).
She also studied at the University of Virginia Darden School of Business and Harvard School of Business.
Sylvia has received several awards and recognition such as Georgia School Social Worker of the Year (1998); Robert Hatcher Leadership Award (1996) and Outstanding Leadership Award for Jack and Jill of America, Inc. (2000). Most recently the Teacher of Excellence Award given at the Golden Eagles Ceremony has been named in her honor (2020)
In 2011, after 35 years of service, she retired from the Bibb County School District. There she served as School Social Worker, Director of Student Support Services and Deputy Superintendent. She also served one year as Interim Superintendent (2010 -11)
Sylvia served as Project Manager with READ UNITED with United Way of Central Georgia (2016 - 2020). In the program, which was funded by AARP Foundation and the Peyton Anderson Foundation, volunteers are recruited and trained to tutor students in Kindergarten - through third grade with the goal of having students reading proficiently by the end of third grade.
She is married to Terry D. McGee, a retired accountant and she is the mother of two adult children, Terese L. McGee and T. Dwight McGee, Ph.D. She is the grandmother of triplets . She is a third generation member of New Hope Missionary Baptist Church.
Job Titles:
- Vice President
- Tommy Malone Distinguished Chair
Timothy W. Floyd is the Tommy Malone Distinguished Chair in Trial Advocacy and Director of Experiential Education at Mercer University School of Law. In addition to supervising clinical and externship programs, he has taught courses in legal ethics, criminal law, civil procedure, legal skills, law and religion, and human rights. He has published three books and is the author of numerous articles in the area of legal ethics, law and religion, criminal law, and the death penalty.
His most recent book is The Formation of Professional Identity: The Path from Student to Lawyer (with Pat Longan and Daisy Floyd). While teaching at several law schools in his career, he has represented persons facing the death penalty and worked to insure access to justice for all in civil cases. He received a B.A and an M.A. from Emory University and his J.D from the University of Georgia, where he served as Editor-in-Chief of the Georgia Law Review.
Bill Gifford is a native of Atlanta. He attended Mercer University School of Law. He was engaged in the private practice of law in Macon for many years and also served as a federal prosecutor and Senior Litigation Counsel with the United States Department of Justice. During his career, Gifford was president of the Macon Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers and an arbitrator/mediator for the United States District Court Middle District of Georgia. He has been a member of the Macon Bar Association and the William Augustus Bootle Inn of Court. In 2008 Gifford was named by the Macon Bar Association as its Lawyer of the Year.
Gifford has also served for many years on the board of the Vine Ingle Little League where he was also a coach. He has been president and vice president of the Central Georgia Council of the Boy Scouts of America, chairman and vice chairman of the Macon Salvation Army, chairman of the board for the Boys and Girls Club of Central Georgia, and chairman of the Citizens Review Panel for Bibb County Juvenile Court. He also served as chairman for the Middle Georgia Center for Racial Understanding.
Gifford is married to Bonnie and has three sons, two of which are attorneys in Atlanta.