Nicole Alexandra Rizza

Nicole A. Rizza (She/Her/Hers) serves as a Law Clerk in the Midtown, Atlanta office of Meriwether & Tharp, LLC.

Nicole attended Georgia State University and earned a Bachelor of Science in Criminal Justice. During her time at Georgia State University she maintained the Zell Miller Scholarship. She was a member of the Criminal Justice Student Association, and Alpha Phi Sigma - the Criminal Justice Honor Fraternity. She received Dean's List recognition for multiple semesters while at Georgia State.

Nicole attended Atlanta's John Marshall Law School and earned a Juris Doctor. While at John Marshall she was awarded the CALI Excellence for the Future Award for her top grade in Contracts I. She maintains to this day the highest score ever earned on the Multiple Choice Question section of the final examination. Nicole was the president of OUTLaw & Allies; she served as a Student Ambassador, Peer Mentor, and Title IX Victim Advocate. Nicole was a member of Phi Alpha Delta - Law Fraternity; and the Georgia Association of Women Lawyers AJMLS chapter.

During her time at John Marshall Nicole handled a Pro Bono Divorce matter for her client in Cobb County Superior Court. She handled negotiating a Temporary Agreement, multiple Contempt proceedings, and a Final Trial. Nicole further handled a Pro Bono Name Change case for a Transgender Woman. She prepared the pleadings, arranged for publication, and a Final Hearing.

During her time at John Marshall Nicole was a Summer Law Clerk for the Honorable Mike Jacobs of the DeKalb County State Court. Nicole researched case law, reviewed pleadings, draft bench memorandum, drafted proposed orders, reviewed cases in default, and conferred with Judge Jacobs concerning legal questions, construction of documents, and granting of orders.

As a member of the Stonewall Bar Association of Georgia Nicole was awarded the Kay Young Scholarship and was able to attend the Lavender Law conference hosted by the National LGBTQ+ Bar Association in 2019 in Philadelphia.

Nicole previously worked for a solo practitioner, working as Paralegal and Law Clerk in the practice areas of Civil/Corporate/Business, Entertainment & Sports, Family Law, and Estate Planning.

Nicole will focus her practice on Family Law. She is knowledgeable in the LGBTQ+ and Recovery communities. Nicole is trauma informed and seeks to make the divorce and family law process better for her clients, as she herself was once divorced. Nicole has a beagle (John Thurgood) Marshall, and a tuxedo cat (CAThryn) Janeway.