Regina I. Edwards is the Owner and Managing Attorney of Edwards & Associates. Ms. Edwards has been practicing law in Georgia since 2001. She graduated magna cum laude from North Carolina Central University after three years of study in Political Science, Spanish and French. Ms. Edwards received departmental awards in Spanish, Pre-Law, English and Mathematics. Ms. Edwards attended Tulane University School of Law where she concentrated in family law courses. While in law school, Ms. Edwards clerked for several prestigious law firms in a variety of areas, including defense litigation, fair housing litigation, and public interest. Following her admission to the bar, Ms. Edwards expanded her experience to encompass many areas of civil litigation, to include divorces, custody, legitimation, public housing, Social Security, disability, domestic violence, education, consumer advocacy and unemployment. Ms. Edwards found her passion to be family law and domestic litigation cases, and began to focus her practice exclusively in those areas. Ms. Edwards has several years of complex family law litigation experience. She has tried contested matters involving issues such as domestic violence, child custody, child support, alimony, equitable division of marital property, and contempt actions before both judges and juries in Georgia's Superior and Juvenile courts.
Potential clients can be assured that Ms. Edwards possesses the necessary experience and dedication to family law, and will give each and every client the personal attention that their case requires. Ms. Edwards takes pride in handling each client and case personally, and will return all client phone calls the same day. The law firm is dedicated to using cutting-edge technology in order to process your case and file more efficiently and more cost-effectively for her clients. Ms. Edwards and her staff attend educational seminars and programs to ensure that the most current law and updates and available for use in your case. When Ms. Edwards is not passionately representing her clients, Ms. Edwards enjoys traveling to different countries. She has traveled to more than 30 countries and speaks four languages. She also enjoys reading, watching football, running, yoga, hiking and camping and spending time with family and friends.
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Community Involvement:
- Volunteer at Another Chance, a shelter for abused and neglected children
- Pro bono attorney volunteer for cases referred by Atlanta Volunteer Lawyer's Foundation
- Pro bono guardian ad litem for truant children for the Truancy Intervention Project
- Volunteer as mentor for educational neglect and early intervention cases for Kids in Need of Dreams, Inc.
- Volunteer - Hands on Atlanta
- Pro bono attorney volunteer for cases referred by Gwinnett Legal Aid Society
- Evaluator - Gwinnett High School Mock Trial Competition
Associations:
- Ms. Edwards is a member of the following organizations:
- Family Law Section State Bar of Georgia
- Family Law Section Gwinnett County Bar Association
- Family Law Section Cobb County Bar Association
- Family Law Section Atlanta Bar Association
- Family Law Section Dekalb Bar Association
- Family Law Section American Bar Association
Areas of Practice:
Divorce * Custody * Child Support * Paternity/Legitimation * Modification * Contempt * Collaborative Law
Certification/Specialties:
Collaborative Law, Collaborative Institute of Georgia, 2005
Georgia Trial Skills Clinic, Institute of Continuing Legal Education of Georgia, 2005
Bar Admissions:
State Bar of Georgia
U.S. District Court Northern District of Georgia
U.S. Court of Appeals 11th Circuit
Supreme Court of Georgia
Education:
Tulane Law School, New Orleans, Louisiana, 2001 - Juris Doctor
North Carolina Central University, Durham, North Carolina, May, 1998 - B.A. Political Science
Honors: Magna Cum Laude * Dean's List
Classes/Seminars Taught:
Nuts & Bolts of Family Law - Case Law Updates, State Bar of Georgia Family Law Section, August 22, 2008
Nuts & Bolts of Family Law - Case Law Updates, State Bar of Georgia Family Law Section, November 15, 2008
Honors and Awards:
Pro Bono Service Award, 2008 - Present
Pro Bono Service Award, 2007
Pro Bono Service Award, 2006
Past Employment Positions:
Georgia Legal Services, Attorney, 2001 - 2003
Stephen A. Friedman & Associates, Attorney, 2003 - 2004
Cordell & Cordell, Father's Rights Attorney, 2004 - 2005
Pro Bono Activities:
Pro bono attorney volunteer for cases referred by Gwinnett Legal Aid Society, 2005 - Present
Pro bono attorney volunteer for cases referred by Atlanta Volunteer Lawyer's Foundation, 2005 - Present
Connect with us! We are on Facebook and Twitter
Follow our blogs:
Georgia Fathers' Rights Blog
Gwinnett County Divorce Blog
FAQs about me
These are some answers to the many questions I often get during consultations or from my clients during their representation.
How long have you been practicing family law?
I began practicing family law in 2001. I began practicing under the 3rd year Graduate Practice Act, which allows 3rd year law students to practice law under the supervision of an experienced attorney prior to receiving bar exam results. I hit the ground running, and by the time I had received my bar results, I had already represented 5 clients in court at hearings! This was a far cry from my friends at big law firms, some of whom have yet to see the inside of a courtroom.
Why did you choose family law?
This is usually asked with a very skeptical look and a curse word or two. I chose family law for one reason only. Because I care about families. No one desires divorce. I do not ever want a client to get divorce. Some of my happiest days as an attorney have been when my client announces a reconciliation with their spouse. My utmost concern is for children and families. If a client's objective regarding their children and their family is not in line with good judgment and common sense, I will not pursue that goal for them.
What was your proudest moment as a family law attorney?
I represented a father in a divorce. At the time, the law allowed a 14 year old to choose which parent they wanted to live with, as long as that parent was fit. In this case, the 16 year old boy chose to live with his father. Once that happened, the mother was so furious that she was poised to lose custody that she dropped a bombshell: The son was not the father's biological child. Despite the father's legal ability to walk away financially and emotionally from the child, he continued to fight for custody. In a landmark case, I won custody for the father, even though it was proven that the father was not the biological father.
Are you married?
No.
Doesn’t that make you ill-prepared to be a divorce attorney?
No. Would you rule out a doctor if he or she has not had your specific ailment? I often say it probably helps that I don’t have my own baggage that I am injecting into the clients’ situations. I probably would need a different perspective if I were a divorce counselor or psychologist trying to help you reconcile. If you are asking a divorce attorney questions about whether or not you should divorce your spouse, you are in the wrong place. Those questions are best left to mental health professionals. My only objective is to provide you with legal advice and counsel - AFTER you have already made the difficult decision to separate.
How would you describe your style of practice?
Meticulous, compassionate and aggressive.
I have made it a point to make my practice as technologically advanced in an effort to serve the clients and to allow our staff members more flexibility and ability to address our client's concerns instantaneously. I have access to your file 24 hours a day, as we have scanned every client's file onto a server. In addition, the client has 24 hour access to their file online. We are known for being professional and cooperative with opposing counsel, but aggressive litigators. We will never be underhanded with opposing counsel at any time, so do not ask us to be. I have never been sanctioned for any ethical violation, nor has anyone ever accused me of being unethical, and I will not ruin my good record for any client's unreasonable demands. A certain level of trust is imperative between opposing counsel and you never know when it will come in handy and you may need a favor from them.
What is your litigation style?
When it comes to litigation, we are ALWAYS over-prepared. All of our pleadings will be prepared well ahead of any court-mandated deadlines, they will be unique in their appearance and advocacy.
This may be subtle, but when you prepare unique-looking pleadings, judge’s eyes are drawn to them rather than the other side. We come to court with a list of issues we want the judge to rule on and how we want he or she to rule. It doesn’t guarantee that they will rule in our favor on every issue, but when presented with a reasonable list of requests, it makes it easy for the judge to rule in our favor, if we present evidence that is consistent with our requests.
We are always reasonable. If my client makes $500,000 per year and the opposing party makes $20,000 per year, we will not argue that he should only pay $500 per month in child support, even if that is what the child support worksheets state. That is not in the best interest of the child and makes the more successful person appear as if they are more concerned about money rather than their child, which is not the impression you want the judge hearing your case to get. This type of approach can lead to success in other areas of the case, such as increased parenting time.
How do you keep sane doing this type of work?
Yoga.
