Member at the firm Meriwether & Tharp, LLP
Areas of Practice
Divorce; Family Law; Child Custody; Child Support; Domestic Violence; Visitation Rights; Premarital Agreements; Corporate Law; Contracts; Business Litigation; Business Law; Business Arbitration; Business Dissolutions; Business Development; Business Formation; Business Estate Planning; Business Organization; Business Planning; Business Start-Ups; Business Reorganization; Business Succession Planning; Business Successions; Business Transactions; Buy-Sell Agreements; Buying and Selling of Businesses; Complex Business Litigation
Admitted
1996, Florida and Georgia. Admitted to all Appeallate Courts in both states. Admitted to the Northern Federal District Court in Georgia
Law School
University of Florida, J.D., 1995
College
University of Miami, B.A., 1992
Membership
State Bar of Georgia (Member, Sections on: Family Law; Business Law); The Florida Bar; American Bar Association (Member, Sections on: Family Law; Business Law).
Biography
Mr. Meriwether was admitted to practice law in Florida and Georgia in 1996. In 1998, Patrick L. Meriwether left the Atlanta office of Arthur Anderson and joined Robert Tharp to establish Meriwether & Tharp, LLP. His position at Arthur Anderson involved providing tax advice to a variety of large corporations. Mr. Meriwether; however, missed the personal satisfaction that comes with running his own practice and assisting small businesses and individuals with their legal needs. This is where he felt that he could really make the biggest difference. Practice Areas - Since 2000, Mr. Meriwether has focused seventy percent (70%) of his practice on family law and thirty percent (30%) on business law. Through time, he has found that family and business law complement each other well in practice, as his skills from one area transfer easily to the other. Business litigation cases tend to require fewer Court appearances, but the family law cases of Mr. Meriwether's practice have afforded him the opportunity to appear in Court more often and hone skills necessary both for family law and business litigation. Mr. Meriwether's business litigation and transactional work provide the experience and ability to examine and tirelessly move through financial documents, both for business cases, including personal and small businesses, as well as family law cases involving large marital estates in need of equitable division. Mr. Meriwether utilizes the latest computer software to maintain detailed and comprehensive records of his complex cases. This software allows Mr. Meriwether and his clients to quickly access case information and ensures that no details of the case are overlooked. Family Law - Mr. Meriwether handles a broad range of family law cases, including divorce, adoption, child custody and support modification, adoption, domestic violence, and premarital agreements. He regularly deals with marital assets ranging from those of little or even negative value to those worth millions of dollars, and competently calculates spousal and child support when applicable. Mr. Meriwether has said "In the Courtroom, we zealously represent our clients. But often, fierce litigation is not the best way to resolve a divorce, and we work to settle cases through active negotiation. A divorce can be the most life altering and stressful event anyone can go through, but it does not have to be." To help alleviate the stress often involved in family law cases, Mr. Meriwether takes a collaborative approach to family law. This approach involves utilizing negotiation and mediation to help maintain an amicable relationship between the parties. In cases with children, collaborative law protects the children above all else, creates a win/win situation for the parties, and the parties walk away as satisfied as possible. In some family law cases, collaborative law will not work, or is inappropriate. Mr. Meriwether evaluates every case on an individual basis to determine how aggressive to approach the case based on the facts, the Court in which the case will be heard, and the Judge who will hear the case. The goal is to achieve the best possible outcome for an individual client. In Mr. Meriwether's experience, compared to a more subtle approach, a "take no prisoners" attitude often results in higher attorney's fees without a corresponding increase in the achieved result. As such, Mr. Meriwether aims to provide the correct level of aggressiveness to each case for the best result possible. Business Law - Mr. Meriwether handles a variety of business law cases including simple and complicated business formations, and business divorces. He routinely forms Limited Liability Companies and Corporations. In so doing, he often is asked to draft complex contracts to assist the new business entity with its operations. He also assists clients with the buying and selling of businesses (including the due diligence associated with this process). Mr. Meriwether views business formations involving a group of friends or acquaintances as marriages, albeit financial ones, and he excels in spotting potential pitfalls when parties are entering into a business relationship. He works hard to ensure that his clients enter into their business ventures well-informed and protected from whatever business complications they may encounter. Speaking Engagements - LLC Trends and Developments by National Business Institute. Continuing Legal Education for fellow attorneys. The Paralegals' Guide to Contracts and Transactional Documents by National Paralegal Institute, Continuing Legal Education for Paralegals. Arbitration - In 2007, Mr. Meriwether obtained his certification for arbitration and is a registered arbitrator with the Georgia Office of Dispute Resolution. He is ready to arbitrate any Family Law issues and most Business Law matters. Community Experience - Mr. Meriwether volunteers time to teach Judo to both children and adults. He holds a Black Belt in Judo and, when he competed in law school, he was the Florida State Champion in his weight division two years in a row. At the 2007 Georgia State Games, he won the gold in his division. He also volunteers his time as a moderator and facilitator of Dave Ramsey's Financial Peace University, a 13 week program that helps people dump their debt, get control of their money and learn new behaviors around money that are founded on commitment and accountability. The course is extremely helpful to couples who are having difficulty communicating about money and teaches them how to work together for their family financial future. Certified Arbitrator.
Born
Houston, Texas, June 29, 1970
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