Derek M. Wright

Derek M. Wright

3.5
Rating: 7.4

Licensed for 30 years

Criminal defense Lawyer at Fayetteville, GA
Practice Areas: Criminal Defense, Family, Personal Injury, General Practice

P.O.B. 143265, Fayetteville, GA

About Derek

Practice Areas

4

Practice Areas

Criminal Defense 70%

Federal, State, Murder, Armed Robbery, Drug Cases, DUI, Conspiracy, Probation Revocations, Family Violence, Appeals, Habeas, and Post Conviction Relief

31 years

70%
Family 10%

Divorce, Child Custody, and Child Support

31 years

10%
General Practice 10%

General counsel and transactional litigation

10%
Personal Injury 10%

Auto Collisions, Premises Liability

10%

Fees and Rates

We have not found any cost information for this lawyer


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Licenses

Licensed in Georgia for 30 years

State: Georgia

Acquired: 1995

Active Member in Good Standing

Lawyer disciplined by state licensing authority in 2006

Location

Derek M Wright

P.O.B. 143265, Fayetteville, GA, 30214

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Derek M. Wright's Reviews

Avvo Review Score

3.5 /5.0

30 Client Reviews

Showing 21 - 25 of 30 reviews

Posted by anonymous | February 18, 2013 | Contracts & Agreements

Great Attorney

Derek has helped me out of difficult situations in Riverdale and Fayette County. He has reviewed contracts and business deals for me. He has basically been a great attorney, problem solver, and friend.

Posted by anonymous | October 26, 2012 | Lawsuits & Disputes

The most UNPROFESSIONAL lawyer Georgia.

I hired this lawyer in 2010 to represent me in a civil matter. From the very beginning I could see signs of this being a headache to deal with. Communication was horrible. In fact I had to reverse a payment made to Mr Wright because I could never get a return phone call. I received a few calls after ...that but they once again became obsolete. Over the course of the 3 years dealing with this case, I have probably have spoken to Mr Wright 7 times as he insists on doing business by text message. Months go by and I don't hear a word about my case, dare I call and ask but whenever I do I am told that he is the first to know whenever a ruling is made and once he knows I will know. Well on September 24th a ruling was made in my case. I didn't find out until October 23rd and that was because I googled the case to see if anything had come up. Low and behold I lost my case. One of the reasons were because he failed to respond to more than 3 motions. I immidietly got on the "text message" with him just for him to tell me he had not received anything. He promised to find out what happened and call me that night, which turned in to I'll call you in the morning which turned into I'm in court I'll call you shortly which turned into never hearing from him at all. I'm not sure how he sleeps at night knowing his level of professional service is so poor. Certainly this can't be the only way he feeds his family... Oh yeah that's right Stream Energy, he'll call you till 10 pm to set you up on that! Maybe he picks and chooses what case deserves the most attention and professionalism I'm not sure but I have received faster and more professional service from The DMV.

Derek Wright

Replied last February 18, 2013

I was hired to represent this client in a 42usc1983 case against the Sandy Springs Police Department for false arrest, false imprisonment, etc. I filed the lawsuit and conducted discovery, which included 3 depositions. The defense filed a motion for summary judgment in which the defenses of sovereign and qualified immunity were raised. The primary issue was whether the police had probable cause to arrest her. While I disagree with the Court, the Court found that the police may have been wrong regarding the information they received, but were acting on in good faith on such information and had probable cause to make the arrest. It did not help that my client had an outstanding warrant on her which could have also served as a basis for her arrest. We lost summary judgment based on the finding of probable cause. Not because something was not done. I lost several thousand dollars I invested in my client’s case because I believed in her and her case. It took the court almost 6 months to rule on the motion. I checked it monthly for several months. She is correct that she found out before me as to the adverse ruling, as I did not see an email notification which had been emailed to me. Unfortunately, it would not have changed the result. I did everything I could to get past summary judgment. However, these kind of cases are very difficult to get past summary judgment. I am disappointed that this client would turn her anger on me. Despite her review, I still choose to think highly of her and wish her the best.

Posted by Frank | October 26, 2012 | Lawsuits & Disputes

Disillusioned

Paid Mr. Wright to represent my son. Had fast talk about how he could get the job done. It's been @ 3 years and coming up on the 4th delay of court date. Will not respond to phone calls or letters. Pathetic.

Derek Wright

Replied last February 18, 2013

In sum, strange enough I still represent this client. There have been several continuances. First, understand that this client is serving a life sentence for alleging raping a white girl in south Georgia. He is African-american. Why? Because the attorney they hired didn’t fight for him and, I believe, inappropriately convinced him to take a plea to a life sentence. The evidence doesn’t make sense and I sure as hell would never have recommended a plea. The appeals attorney did not put the trial attorney on the stand to prove up the ineffective assistance which made it impossible to win an appeal when the issue is to undue a plea. As such, the habeas petition I now represent this client on requires both the trial attorney and appeal attorney be subpoenaed and subjected to examination. One continuance was because the trial attorney is now a judge and had a conflict. One continuance was because the daughter of the appeals attorney was scheduled to compete at Olympic trials and requested a continuance. One continuance was because I was on jury trial. And I think that one continuance was requested by the state. I will fight for this young man because the plea was wrong. If his parents choose to call me pathetic, so be it. I will be whatever name they choose to call me, but at the end of day I will do all that I can to get their son out of a bad plea that should never have been agreed to by him or them. I am more concerned with their son’s case than whether they are disillusioned or calling me names. The day after the fight for their son is made, win or lose I expect they will amend this review as they see fit.

Posted by J | June 27, 2012 | Car Accidents

STAY AWAY,VERY UNSCRUPULOUS!

I contacted this attorney after my vehicle was damaged in the city of Atlanta, he spoke very eloquently and requested $500 to start the process of recovering the cost of my repairs. Immediately after I paid the $500, attorney Wright stopped answering my calls and emails. He had initially told me that... he expected to be able to settle my case in a few wks, however I never received a settlement and finally got an email from him 2 months later requesting additional monies.

Derek Wright

Replied last February 18, 2013

This client tried for several months to resolve his claim against the Darlington and/or the City of Atlanta. In sum, his car was damaged by a drain in the Darlington driveway. He tried to make claims against both the City of Atlanta and the Darlington and neither would accept responsibility for the drain. He hired me for just $500 to see if I could make headway since he was unable to obtain results. First, I filed an ante litem letter with Atlanta. Atlanta would have delayed him past the statute of limitations and without an ante litem he would have been out of luck. The Darlington sent me their insurance information. As such two things were accomplished he was unable to do. Yet, neither would enter into settlement negotiations. I advised a lawsuit was needed and indicated more fees would be necessary. Suddenly, I was terminated and a credit card payment reversed. And this client calls me names, really? I leave him to his own karma.

Posted by anonymous | April 06, 2012 | Divorce & Separation

Worthless Lawyer

I used this lawyer for my divorce and he has been totally poor in communication, and finishing his job. I would never ever recommend him not even to my worst enemy.

Derek Wright

Replied last February 18, 2013

Not enough information to determine who this is. I would gladly respond, so please provide more information. I own any mistakes I may make in my practice or in life. I will defend against unjust and inaccurate reviews or allegations. You don’t have put your name, but give enough information so I know who you are. I am not allowed to call you out by name, but I will certainly respond to allegations that contain allegations of specific actions or omissions as opposed to generalized conclusions.

See All Client Reviews

Derek M. Wright's Lawyer Endorsements

Endorse Derek
Stephone B. Johnson headshot
Stephone Johnson

General practice lawyer | Nov 15

Relationship: Fellow lawyer in community

"I endorse this lawyer. Derek has an unmatched and unparalleled work ethic. He is nothing short of an absolute perfectionist. He cares deeply about those he represents - he is more than just a zealous advocate for his clients, he is also a confidant and friend, and he ensures that his clients obtain only the absolute best result in their case. Derek is extremely knowledgeable and versed in his field of expertise, and is always up for a battle. Derek never accepts "no" for an answer, and he never backs down from a challenge, no matter how daunting the task."

Michael S. Waddington headshot
Michael Waddington

Criminal defense lawyer | Oct 14

Relationship: Fellow lawyer in community

"I endorse Derek. He is a highly skilled attorney that is well respected in the legal community."

View All Endorsements
Felicia Nichole Johnson headshot
Felicia Johnson

Personal injury lawyer

Experience

Rating:  7.4 (Very Good)

Professional misconduct

This lawyer was disciplined by a state licensing authority in 2006.

Review Panel Reprimand issued in GA, 2006

updated on 05/19/2010

This means the attorney did something wrong, but the Bar did not suspend the lawyer. Typically in this case, the lawyer's poor behavior is exposed to the public in hopes that he or she will not repeat the behavior.

Honors

2012

Distinguished, Martindale-Hubbell

Work Experience

2010 - Present

Managing Partner, Derek M. Wright, LLC

1996 - 2010

Managing Partner, The Wright Law Firm, P.C.

Associations

1994 - Present

HR Butler Lodge #23

1989 - Present

Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc

Education

1995

Georgia State University College of Law

JD - Juris Doctor

1990

Princeton University

BSE- Civil Engineering & Systems Management

Languages

English

Activity

Avvo Rating

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What determines Avvo Rating?
  • Experience & background Years licensed, work experience, education
  • Legal community recognition Peer endorsements, associations, awards
  • Legal thought leadership Publications, speaking engagements
  • Discipline
    This lawyer was disciplined by a state licensing authority in 2006
    Disciplinary information may not be comprehensive, or updated. We recommend that you always check a lawyer's disciplinary status with their respective state bar association before hiring them.
Avvo Rating Levels
10.0 - 9.0 Superb8.9 - 8.0 Excellent7.9 - 7.0 Very Good6.9 - 6.0 Good5.9 - 5.0 Average4.9 - 4.0 Concern3.9 - 3.0 Caution2.9 - 2.0 Strong Caution1.9 - 1.0 Extreme Caution