2011 Super Lawyers Pro Bono Award
Attorney Profile

Melody Z. Richardson

Melody Richardson

Pachman Richardson, LLC
75 Fourteenth Street, Suite 2840
Atlanta, GA 30309

Atlanta

Georgia (GA)

T: 404-888-3730
F: 404-888-3731

Practice Areas

Family Law

Collaborative Law

Selected To

• Georgia Super Lawyers 2011
• Georgia Super Lawyers 2010
• Georgia Super Lawyers 2009
• Georgia Super Lawyers 2008
• Georgia Super Lawyers 2007
No Rising Stars publication in 2008

Profile

Melody Z. Richardson is a founding member of Atlanta's premier family law firm, Pachman Richardson, LLC. Melody brings almost 30 years of experience to bear on each new case and can provide effective legal representation for every type of family law need including divorce, property division, child custody and post-divorce modifications. Although she has had substantial litigation experience and success, Melody encourages clients to consider using collaborative law or mediation to resolve differences, whenever possible and appropriate.

Melody has been selected for inclusion as a Georgia Super Lawyer multiple times during her career and has received an AV Preeminent* peer-review rating. She is a sustaining member of the Atlanta Collaborative Divorce Alliance and a certified mediator. She regularly serves as a Guardian ad Litem in contested custody cases. Melody also contributes to improving the community by providing pro bono representation for the indigent and working poor, as well as community service projects.

*AV Preeminent and BV Distinguished are certification marks of Reed Elsevier Properties Inc., used in accordance with the Martindale-Hubbell certification procedures, standards and policies. Martindale-Hubbell is the facilitator of a peer review rating process. Ratings reflect the confidential opinions of members of the bar and the judiciary. Martindale-Hubbell ratings fall into two categories: legal ability and general ethical standards.

About Melody Richardson

Law School: University of Georgia School of Law

Admitted: 1985, Georgia

Professional Webpage: www.prfamilylaw.com/bio_mr.php

Honors and Awards:

  • Selected as one of the Top 50 Woman Attorneys in Georgia in 2009, 2010, 2011.
  • Named one of Georgia’s Legal Elite 2008, 2010
  • AV Rated (highest rating available)
  • Atlanta Bar Association Community Service Award, Receipient, 2009

Bar/Professional Activity:

  • Member, Atlanta Bar Association, Family Law Section, 2002 - 2005
  • Treasurer, Atlanta Bar Association, Family Law Section, 2005 - 2006
  • Secretary, Atlanta Bar Association, Family Law Section, 2006 - 2007
  • Vice Chair/Chair Elect, Atlanta Bar Association, Family Law Section, 2007 - 2008
  • Certified Guardian Ad Litem by Atlanta Volunteer Lawyers Foundation
  • Certified Mediator
  • Sigma Tau Delta
  • International Academy of Collaborative Professionals
  • Collaborative Law Institute of Georgia
  • Sustaining Member, Atlanta Collaborative Divorce Alliance
  • Barrister, Charles Longstreet Weltner Family Law American Inn of Court
  • Chair, Atlanta Bar Association, Family Law Section, 2008 - 2009
  • State Bar of Georgia, Family Law Section
  • Vice Justice, Phi Alpha Delta, 1985
  • U.S. District Court, Southern Districts of Georgia, 1985
  • U.S. District Court, Middle Districts of Georgia, 1985
  • U.S. District Court, Northern Districts of Georgia, 1985
  • U.S. Court of Appeals, Eleventh Circuit, 1985
  • Georgia Court of Appeals, 1985
  • Supreme Court of Georgia, 1985
  • Georgia, 1985
  • Chair, Law Day Committee, Atlanta Bar Association, Family Law Section, 2003
  • U.S. Supreme Court, 2003
  • Co-Chair of the Atlanta Bar Association Community Service and Pro Bono Committee, 2011

Pro bono/Community Service:

  • Melody was instrumental in raising over $40,000 to build a playground at Perkerson Elementary School in southwest Atlanta. The playground was built on April 18, 2009 and the students and families of Perkerson Elementary School will enjoy the playground for years to come., 2008
  • Master, Charles Longstreet Weltner Inns of Court, 2010

Scholarly Lectures and Writings:

  • Editor-in-Chief, Family Law Newsletter, 2001 - 2004
  • Member, Georgia Law Review, 1983 - 1984
  • Research Editor, University of Georgia Law Review 1984 - 1985
  • "Georgia Family Law Practice for Paralegals," October, 2000
  • Georgia Custody Issues," November, 2000
  • "For Love or Money: the Financial Aspects of Divorce," February 14, 2004
  • Prenuptial Agreements," Atlanta Woman Magazine, February (Vol. 6, Issue 2), 2007
  • "Winning at Mediation: Dance to the Music," New Developments in Family Law and Mediation, May 3, 2007
  • "Heart Flush: Best Interest of the Child Prevails" and "Collaborative Family Law: Catch the Wave," February 14, 2008
  • What Role Can a Lawyer Play for a Child in Family Court?" Atlanta Magazine, March, 2009

Other Outstanding Achievements:

  • Recepient, Atlanta Bar Association Community Service Award, 2009

Educational Background:

  • Emory College, B.A., 1981
Call me at 404-888-3730

To: Melody Z. Richardson

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