Portsmouth native Mrs. Lavonda Graham-Williams, Esq. is currently the City Attorney for the City of Portsmouth. Her job includes but is not limited to providing legal services to the City Council, the City Manager, and many other City Officials. Mrs. Graham-Williams is a graduate of George Washington University in Washington, D.C., and received her Juris Doctor from William & Mary’s Marshall-Wythe School of Law.
Mrs. Graham-Williams began her law career as a litigation associate with Huff, Poole, and Mahoney, PC. in Virginia Beach, Virginia. Her practice involved criminal and civil defense in the State and Federal court systems. Upon her return to the Washington, D.C. Metropolitan area, Mrs. Graham-Williams served as a Hearing Officer for the District of Columbia Department of Motor Vehicles. She would later leverage this broad experience as a defense attorney for many more years while serving as a managing partner and owner of her own law firm. She also served as a deputy prosecutor in the Commonwealth of Virginia.
Mrs. Graham-Williams serves on the board of many civic advocacy and philanthropic organizations, such as the American Civil Liberties Union, Virginia Affiliate, Go Grow & Be for Families of Special Needs Children, the Portsmouth General Hospital Foundation Board, and the Portsmouth Law Library Board. She enjoys networking, mentoring the youth with special needs, and giving back to communities statewide. Mrs. Graham-Williams’ professionalism, drive, hunger for knowledge, and kind spirit have allowed her to become a pioneer of change.