Chamber Insider Blog

Thank you to Michele Burton, Founding Partner at Clark Nelson & Burton, PLLC, for answering our questions!

Where were you born and raised and, if it was someplace else, when and why did you come to Loudoun?

I was born and raised in Portsmouth, Virginia, an Official Coast Guard City located in Hampton Roads.

After graduating from law school, I returned to prosecute cases with the Portsmouth Commonwealth Attorney’s Office where I met my law partner, Shaniqua Clark Nelson. Together, we moved our families to Loudoun County to work in the prosecutor’s office here. In 2024, we decided to hang a shingle and open the first black women-owned law firm in Loudoun County.

Tell us about Clark Nelson & Burton, PLLC, and how long you’ve been in your profession.

I graduated from the College of William & Mary Marshall-Wythe School of Law in 2012 and have been practicing law ever since. Early on in opening Clark Nelson & Burton, PLLC in January 2024, I found that I enjoyed civil and family law as much as criminal law. Litigation is my passion and I love to be in the courtroom whether it is fighting for the victims of crime or for someone who was wrongfully accused of one.

While my commitment to the Loudoun County community remains the same, it is certainly a blessing to have more autonomy and an ownership interest.

How did you get into this line of work?  Have you had any special mentors or inspirations that guided your career?

These two questions overlap with one another. When I was a child, my father and I would watch Matlock all of the time. Along with Perry Mason, it was one of his all-time favorite shows. Soon, I became a fan of Law & Order and idolized Jack McCoy, a New York City District Attorney. It was then that my focus on law narrowed to prosecution. While pretty cliche, the thought of prosecuting homicides and helping victims through their trauma truly matched my personality.  Eventually, this led to both Shaniqua Clark Nelson and I being featured on primetime true-crime shows like Dateline and Paula Zahn bringing it all full circle. Even now as a private attorney,  I have found that compassion and truly listening to people go a long way. Our client reviews all speak to our commitment to serve and we are proud to be both attorneys and counselors at law.

What is the best part of your job and why?

At times, litigation gives you instant gratification. By design, it is a competition with two (or more) opposing sides that are submitting evidence and making arguments in an attempt to get a judge or a jury to determine the winner. That feeling of competition has always been a driving factor in why I love the law. However, while I love to win, I also realize that sometimes litigation is not in the best interests of my clients. For that reason, I have developed a great appreciation and knack for negotiation. Discussing all sides of a problem and helping my client to decide the best outcome for their legal situation keeps me just as fulfilled.

What is it like doing business in Loudoun?

We are so blessed to have the perfect location for a law firm — at 7 E. Market Street in Leesburg — directly across the street from the Loudoun County Judicial Complex. We are also blessed for the many surrounding businesses and people that have been very welcoming to us since our Grand Opening in February 2024.

From the Loudoun Chamber of Commerce to Chair Phyllis Randall and Mayor Kelly Burke, we are so supported and embraced in the community that we could not ask for more. While the word gratitude is appropriate, it could never fully express what we feel and why we love the Loudoun County community so much.

What does Women’s History Month mean to you?

Women’s History Month is a celebration of all of the contributions that women have made locally, nationally, and internationally. While Women’s History, much like African-American History, is American History, it is necessary to reflect on how women fought for inclusion in the workplace, the right to vote and hold public office, and the ability to be self-sufficient in a patriarchal society. Having a designated month helps us all to be more intentional about revisiting the not-so-distant past and to celebrate our diversity.

This year, Women’s History Month is even more important as we watch programs structured to increase inclusion are being stripped away. We must continue to learn about the past so that we are not destined to repeat it.

Favorite things to do when you are not working?

When I am not working, I enjoy spending time with my family and catching up while cooking dinner. I also like to read true-crime fiction novels and I am currently reading “Tell Me What You Did” by Carter Wilson. I have a good-sized collection of houseplants, which became an addiction of mine over COVID-19 thanks to reels. At least once a week, you can find me at Foliage, a plant and bookstore in Downtown Leesburg, when I have a moment between meetings and court hearings.