Melfa Lawyers

After a decade of serving the community through a career in law enforcement, I transitioned into the legal field with the hopes of helping the struggling families and individuals I saw in the courtroom. My sole focus is family law which includes custody, child support, divorce, protective orders, and more. I am certified as a guardian ad litem for juveniles and dedicated to making fair assessments for the benefit of the children I represent. I provide unique value to my clients in that I have seen many sides of the law and know when to defend, fight, and settle.

Mr. Stancliff handles a broad spectrum of disputes and transactions involving the maritime industry, and variety of commercial, maritime and admiralty civil litigation matters in federal and state courts in Virginia and North Carolina.

Michael Salasky built a successful personal injury practice over the course of 40 years representing countless people who were needlessly hurt through no fault of their own. It was and is his privilege to right these wrongs for his clients. His efforts resulted in many millions of dollars being awarded to his clients for their proven injuries. Born and raised in Norfolk, Virginia, Michael attended Norfolk Academy and graduated college from Tufts University in Boston where he received a B.A. in English. He received his law degree from the Marshall-Wythe School of Law at the College of William and Mary...

Dave Ventker is a Fellow of the Litigation Counsel of America, an invitation-only trial honorary society composed of less than one half percent of lawyers in the United States. Immediate past member of the Board of Directors of the Maritime Law Association of the United States, past Chairman of the Inland Waters and Towing Committee of the Maritime Law Association and a Proctor in Admiralty, Dave has been practicing law since 1982. He has been concentrating in maritime law and commercial litigation since 1989, when he entered private practice after serving on active duty for more than 7 years with...

Jana holds the distinction of being one of the very few, if only, practicing Virginia attorneys who has served as a university Title IX deputy coordinator. This insider’s view of the Title IX process and her work on university investigations gives Jana a leg up for her clients.

The consummate problem solver, Jana’s been solving people-problems in corporate human resources management for the last decade.

Jana has also been an advocate for families and young people who need assistance since her early days as a professional for the YMCA and later as a Guardian ad Litem (GAL).

Whether student or family or...

Mr. Bailey received a B.A. in Government from The College of William and Mary before enrolling at Regent University School of Law. While studying law, he served as Judicial Clerk for the Honorable Robert J. Humphreys in the Court of Appeals of Virginia and interned at the Office of the Attorney General of Virginia. After receiving his J.D. from Regent, Mr. Bailey served three years as Law Clerk for the Chief Staff Attorney at the Supreme Court of Virginia, and was granted a Legal Fellowship at Virginia Commonwealth University before joining a local Richmond law firm focusing on...

Mr. Bean is a litigator who focuses his practice in medical malpractice defense and professional liability.

Prior to joining LeClairRyan, Mr. Bean represented national auto insurance companies, hotels, product manufacturers, and local municipalities in a variety of civil litigation matters. He specialized in representing insurance companies accused of mishandling personal injury claims and accused of bad faith insurance practices. He also handled high-value product liability cases in federal and state courts.

Mr. Bean also has experience defending creditors and financial institutions in foreclosure, unfair debt practices, bankruptcy, and other banking and real estate related matters. Additionally, Greg provides pro bono...

Steve is an attorney at Financial Freedom Legal in Richmond, VA. His practice focuses on representing and protecting the rights of consumers in bankruptcy proceedings. Steve has extensive experience practicing bankruptcy law, having represented both debtors and creditors in bankruptcy proceedings. Since 2014, he has represented consumers exclusively, and he has helped thousands of clients file bankruptcy and navigate the bankruptcy process. Prior to that, he spent several years representing creditors in bankruptcy and foreclosure proceedings. Steve is a member of the National Association of Consumer Advocates, the Richmond Bar Association, and the Henrico County Bar Association. He has...

Kevin M. McGowan has been in practice since 1978. He received his J.D. in 1978 from the University of Virginia School of Law after graduating from Belmont Abbey College in 1975 (Magna Cum Laude). He is currently an Associate with Marks & Harrison, one of the largest personal injury firms in Virginia. He concentrates on workers’ compensation and personal injury.

I have practiced law for 42 yrs. I am now partially retired and limit my practice to wills and trusts, elder law matters, estates, guardianships and conservatorships. Before entering law practice, I served as a Police Officer, Police Chief, Director of Criminal Justice Planning and as an adjunct college instructor, teaching classes in law, police science and criminology. I have been married to my high school sweetheart for 52 years and we have four children, Cecilie, Jocelyn, Andrew & Fredericka. My daughter, Cecilie Hamilton, has practiced law for 21 years and is located next door to my office in Colonial...

John Newby is the Managing Partner for the Chesterfield law office. John began working as a personal injury lawyer in 2001 after graduating from the Washington and Lee University School of Law. He has dedicated his career to helping injured people and their families and has handled thousands of cases. He is experienced in auto accidents, wrongful deaths, premises liability, and other types of personal injury cases.

Attorney Scott Maxwell is an experienced attorney licensed to practice in Virginia, California, New York, and Connecticut (ret.). Attorney Maxwell's practice is focused on estate planning, probate administration, trust administration, residential real estate, and healthcare law.

Core Values
Compassionate representation of clients
Personalized attention
Prompt, open, and honest communication
Financially efficient representation
Meticulous attention to detail
Superb legal research

Admissions
Virginia
New York
California
Connecticut (retired)
Various Federal Courts

Education
St. John’s University School of Law, Queens, New York, Juris Doctor
Miami University, Oxford, Ohio, B.A., Philosophy

Areas of Practice
Estate Planning (Forming Wills, Trusts, Powers of Attorney, etc.)
Probate Administration
Trust Administration
Residential Real Estate
Healthcare Law

Awards and Honors
New York State Bar Association Professor William R. Ginsberg Memorial Essay...

Alexander was born and raised in the Richmond, VA area. He is an Eagle Scout and Member of the Order of the Arrow. Alexander attended the Virginia Military Institute on a lacrosse scholarship. After his Rat Year, Alexander transferred to Hampden Sydney College, where he graduated in 2002. Alexander worked as a law clerk for 3 years at Ayers & Stolte before attending Appalachian School of Law. He served as a law clerk for the Honorable John Alderman of Hanover Circuit Court in the Summer of 2007. Alexander graduated ASL with 112 hours of training in the theory, ethics and...

Jennifer G. Capocelli serves as the resident workers’ compensation authority at Allen & Allen, working out of the Richmond office. With more than 25 years of experience representing employers and their insurance companies in workers’ compensation cases, Jennifer provides valuable insight into how insurance companies handle and evaluate claims. Jennifer now eagerly puts that insight to work helping people who have been injured on the job.

Before joining the Allen Law Firm, Jennifer served as a Senior Trial Attorney at Hanover Insurance Group where she handled and litigated complex workers’ compensation cases involving permanent and total disability cases, brain injury...

For 30 years Standish Alexander has been a trial attorney. He is a graduate of the University of Virginia as well as a TC Williams school of Law. Mr. Alexander has handled literally thousands of DUI's, speeding tickets and criminal cases. Mr. Alexander has a rating of superb 10/10 on AVVO.com and an A+ rating with the Better Business Bureau, and is listed by listed by The National Trial Lawyers as a top 100 trial lawyer and a top 25 lawyer for motor vehicle law.

Jim Garrett is a Principal of Carrell Blanton Ferris & Associates, PLC. and has practiced law for over twenty years. Before narrowing his practice to estate planning, his practice areas included real estate, business law and consumer protection. Today Jim uses his knowledge and experience in real estate and business in the estate planning context, especially in the areas of business succession planning, charitable giving and asset protection strategies.

Jim believes that estate planning is not just for the benefit of the client, but also for the client’s surviving loved ones, valued charities and later generations of the client’s family. That...

Mark S. Lindensmith is a native of Missouri, and he is a 1976 honors graduate of Missouri Western State College. He received his law degree from the University of Nebraska in 1979 and was admitted to the Nebraska State Bar in 1979. He has been a member of the Virginia State Bar since 1981, and he is a member of the American Association for Justice and the Virginia Trial Lawyers Association.

Kyle graduated from Radford University in 2006 where he double majored in History and Political Science. He made the decision to continue expanding his education and went on to graduate cum laude from the University of Richmond, TC Williams School of Law in 2011.

While in law school Kyle served as Symposium Editor on the Journal of Law in the Public Interest, today known as the Public Interest Law Review. It was during this time that Kyle participated in several activities that continued to build upon his wealth of experiences’. He served as an active member of the Trial Advocacy Board...

Theodore Briscoe is no stranger to court appearances, having represented more than 2,000 clients across the state of Virginia. With over 6 years of experience in criminal trials, he prides himself in his ability to advocate on the behalf of others.

Originally from Baltimore, Theodore is now living in the hustle and bustle of of downtown Richmond. During his time at Ithaca College, Theodore studied abroad in China, Morocco, and Spain whilst obtaining his Bachelor’s in Business Administration with concentrations in Finance and International Business.

He made the decision to attend William and Mary Law School, where he was one...

Former 14 year Police Officer 19 year member of the Chesapeake School Board

I, Von L. Piersall, III, founded my law practice in 2001, which has since grown into a well-recognized firm handling personal injury, criminal law, and family law cases. I hold a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology from East Carolina University, a Master of Science in Counseling from Longwood College, and a Juris Doctor from the University of Richmond. Before practicing law, I dedicated my efforts to assisting young individuals involved with the Virginia Department of Juvenile Justice and worked at the Pines Treatment Center as well as a group home in Norfolk. Throughout my career, I have successfully had matters heard across...

Estate Planning is a combination of your hopes, dreams, goals, fears, expectations, concerns, and thoughts for your loved ones and most importantly – for YOU. We provide a personalized plan that encompasses all that into comprehensive legal documents that spell out your wishes in a written legacy. Our world is quickly changing and we know you work hard caring for the people in your life. You may have experienced Dementia, Sickness, Special Needs or just plain Silliness in your loved ones and our documents provide solutions to prevent those experiences from pulling apart the Legacy you have built and want to...

If you are searching for a Norfolk criminal defense attorney, you should look no further than Curcione Law. Attorney Matt Curcione has a thorough understanding of criminal law, and he is prepared to assist you today. He received his Juris Doctorate from Regent University, after earning his Bachelor’s Degree from Niagara University. While he was in law school, he worked at the Virginia Beach Police Department. He filled the following different positions at the police department: on the oceanfront’s community policing squad, as a precinct patrol officer, and as a warrant and fugitive officer. These various positions gave him invaluable...

You're never too young or too old to start thinking about the legacy you will leave behind. Estate planning is necessary for the very young and the very old. It's necessary for those with many assets, and those with few. It's necessary for single people and married couples, with kids and without. Too many people think estate planning is for "someone else." But the reality is that estate planning is for everyone. It's not about your death, it's about the lives of those you love. We use a unique life-stage approach to estate planning; we consider your needs...

A former Coast Guard judge advocate, John B. Gately has successfully represented clients in hundreds of courts-martial, medical boards, and administrative proceedings.

John B. Gately focuses his practice on military disability and veterans’ rights issues, concentrating on representing active duty service members, Reservists, and Guardsmen before the Physical Evaluation Boards of the various armed and uniformed services.

This includes representing clients before the various Boards of Correction for Military and Naval Records on both disability and nonmedical issues.

He also represents veterans on levels of claims before the Department of Veterans Affairs nationwide. John B. Gately has been awarded the coveted AV rating...

Anna focuses her practice on individual consumer and business bankruptcies, tax compliance and controversy, corporate and business law, and estate planning and administration. Prior to joining Harry Jernigan CPA Attorney, P.C., Mrs. Dunkum was Staff Attorney for the Chapter 13 Trustee for the Middle District of North Carolina- Greensboro Division. Mrs. Dunkum is admitted to practice in the United States Bankruptcy Courts for the Eastern, Middle and Western Districts of North Carolina and the Eastern District of Virginia as well as all courts in the State of North Carolina and the Commonwealth of Virginia and U.S. Tax Court. ...

Barry Rowell is a partner at Klein Rowell & Shall PLLC (KRS Law). Prior to forming this new partnership, Barry was a partner at Valverde & Rowell, PC, from 2006 to 2019. From 1995 to 2006, Barry was employed with a Fortune 50 Company, working in the human resources and legal department. Barry has successfully responded to and mediated hundreds of charges of employment discrimination filed with the United States Equal Employment Opportunity Commission and Fair Employment Practice Agencies in more than 40 states. Barry has a wide range of experience advising corporate clients on complex employment issues including...

I practice in military jurisdictions only, not civilians courts. I am a retired Lieutenant Colonel and I served as both a line officer and a JAG. I began my military career as a platoon leader in the 16th Military Police Brigade (Airborne) and 82nd Airborne Division at Fort Bragg, North Carolina. In 1998, I became a Judge Advocate and since then I have focused on court-martial law. As a result of this experience, I know the military and I know the court-martial process. I have spent well over a decade perfecting the courtroom skills and legal knowledge required to win tough...

Grover H. Baxley is the founding attorney of JAG Defense. While on active duty as a member of the U.S. Air Force Judge Advocate General’s Corps, Mr. Baxley served as a Chief of Military Justice and a Chief of Adverse Actions. Based upon his performance and top-rated record as a prosecutor, Mr. Baxley was competitively selected to become an Area Defense Counsel. During his time as a defense counsel, Mr. Baxley litigated more courts-martial than any other military defense counsel at bases throughout the United States and Europe. During his final year on active duty, Mr. Baxley was recognized as...

Adrienne Sakyi is an Associate Attorney with the law firm of Schempf & Ware, PLLC in Yorktown, Virginia. Her practice focuses on civil litigation, business disputes, and estate litigation. Schempf & Ware, PLLC represents both individuals and businesses in many forms of litigation ranging from business needs to personal injury to criminal matters, and we would be happy to assist you with any needs you may have.