Mr. Machell C. Williams is the principal attorney of the Law Office of Machell C. Williams and Of Counsel at Garcia Legal Group, P.C. Machell was admitted to the State Bar of Texas in 2013. Machell’s primary areas of legal practice are personal injury, criminal defense, and family law.
Machell attended the University of Texas at Arlington where he graduated with a degree in Criminal Justice. Machell obtained his law degree from Texas Southern University’s Thurgood Marshall School of Law. While in law school, Machell volunteered with the Innocence Project at the school’s Earl Carl Institute for Legal and Social Policy. He assisted with the process of overturning the sentences of wrongfully convicted individuals. After seeing firsthand how the criminal justice system can be unfair to minorities and the underprivileged, he became committed to providing the best legal counsel to the oppressed class.
His background and upbringing bring a unique perspective to the practice of law at Garcia Legal Group. Machell strives to understand the issues his clients face and to use his legal expertise to help clients solve their legal issues in the most efficient manner. Machell enjoys volunteering with the Dallas Volunteer Attorney Program and is part of numerous professional associations.
Thomas G. Sampson, II, ("Woody"), is a partner with Thomas Kennedy Sampson and Tompkins, Georgia's oldest minority-owned law firm. A trial lawyer, Woody regularly represents Fortune 500 companies, individuals and governmental entities in various types of complex legal matters. He has a wide variety of experience, having been involved in trying more than 100 cases in the civil and criminal arena.
Woody has worked as a plaintiff's attorney, trying multi-million dollar personal injury cases, as well as a defense attorney, defending major corporations against multi-million dollar lawsuits. He has fifteen (15) years of experience in medical malpractice, personal injury and wrongful death, premises liability, consumer warranty, and other general civil litigation matters. Woody has tried cases for the Fulton-DeKalb Hospital Authority, the Housing Authority of the City of Atlanta, the Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority ("MARTA"), Ford Motor Company, State Farm Insurance, as well as others.
In addition to his trial experience, Woody has served as General Counsel to the Fulton County Board of Ethics for the past ten (10) years. As Counsel to the Board of Ethics, Woody has advised the Board on numerous complaints that have come before them concerning ethical violations of Fulton County elected officials and employees of Fulton County. He has authored all of the requests for advisory opinions for the past eight (8) years from individuals who sought to determine whether their prospective conduct constituted an ethical violation. In addition, Woody has represented and advised City of Atlanta elected officials on issues concerning election law violations and other ethical issues concerning elections.
EDUCATION
University of Georgia, J.D., 1994
Morehouse College, B.A., 1991
PROFESSIONAL RECOGNITION
Charter Fellow, Litigation Counsel of America
Barrister, Logan E. Bleckley American Inn of Courts
Member, American Trial Lawyers Association
Included in "The Power Book" as one of the top 50 leaders in the legal profession, Atlanta
Business Chronicle
Super Lawyers, 2009, 2010
ACTIVITIES & AFFILIATIONS
President, Gate City Bar Association, 2008
Vice President, Gate City Bar Association, 2007
Member-At-Large, Gate City Bar Association, 2006
Board Member, Southwest Christian Academy
Board Member, Child Advocate Board of Fulton County
Board Member, A Crystal Stair
Board Member, Habitat for Humanity of South Fulton
Board member, Planned Parenthood of Georgia, Inc, 2007
Board Chairman, Southwest Coalition of Concerned Citizens, 2005
Examiner, State Bar of Georgia, 1999 - 2002
Member, Omega Psi Phi Fraternity, Inc.
Member, Sigma Pi Phi Fraternity, Inc.
Sheree Wright, Esq., is a founding member of IBF Law Group. She graduated from DePaul University in 2013 with a Bachelor of Science degree in Political Science.
During Attorney Wright’s undergrad career, she worked as an investigator with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) in downtown Chicago. Her main focus there was to investigate cases that involved employment discrimination on the basis of age, race, sex, gender, or disabilities in Fortune 500 companies.
During Attorney Wright’s law school career, she co-founded a nonprofit organization called The Wright Way Foundation. The foundation seeks to reduce poverty and homelessness while generating and providing educational resources necessary to support youths, families, groups, and educators in Jamaica.
Through its charitable projects, the foundation seeks to sustain interest in the financial development of underserved youths with practical resources and hands-on experience that will enable them to pursue their own future interests. The foundation makes a valuable contribution to civil society in Jamaica, particularly with regard to social and educational outreach projects with local orphanages and educational institutions.
Attorney Wright also became a volunteering member of Mi Familia Vota—a national civic engagement organization that unites Latinos, immigrants, and allied communities to promote social and economic justice through citizenship workshops, voter registration, and voter participation.
Attorney Wright served as a board member and treasurer of the Black Law Student Association (BLSA). She was recognized as an outstanding member during her time there. She was also a member of the Sports Lawyers Association (SLA), and is currently a member of the American Bar Association Young Lawyers Division.
Attorney Wright’s passion for immigration law, family law, and sports law is a result of her early life experiences. Her mission has always been “Keeping Families Together.” Prior to IBF Law Group, she successfully founded an immigration law firm and has litigated numerous high-level and complicated cases from the Immigration Court all the way to the Board of Immigration Appeals and the 9thCircuit.
Experience makes the best teacher, and with her experience in successfully bringing families together, Attorney Wright’s work in the community speaks for itself.
At the age of 12, I went through the criminal justice system as a victim. It was such a terrible experience that it motivated me to become an attorney. I realized that if I had an attorney who took the time to educate me about the legal process, I would have been more confident and better prepared. I grew more and more committed to becoming an attorney who genuinely cares about their clients.
I started my career as an Insurance Adjuster. Shortly after, I went to law school and practiced corporate law. In 1995, I came to Atlanta to open my own personal injury law firm from just $250.00. Since then, the Law Office of Sheryl Burke has evolved immensely, but our mission and values remain the same. We are committed to justice and ensuring that people are treated fairly.
In addition, I am a member of The State Bar of Georgia, The American Bar Association, Association of Trial Lawyers, Georgia Trial Lawyers Association and The State Bar of California. I am also an Introduction Leader for Landmark Education and a very active tennis player.