Judy Whisnant smiling standing with pink orchids

I’m not your average divorce lawyer. I have all the trappings of a successful attorney – degree from a good law school, coveted clerkship, solid courtroom record – but my approach is often to remind my clients of the following principles: Life is short; this is not a board game; what goes around comes around; and, we can get through this together.

About Judy

I’m a native North Carolinian and have a “hunger for justice,” thanks in large part to my experience in the Methodist and Quaker communities. This background informs my approach to law, which I’ve been practicing since 1984.

I graduated from Guilford College in Greensboro, N.C., in 1978 with a degree in English and Religious Studies, then headed north to attend Northeastern University School of Law in Boston. I loved Boston and practiced there for seven years before returning home to North Carolina in 1991 with my husband and two children. That year, I was privileged to clerk at the North Carolina Supreme Court with Justice Harry Martin.

In 1994, I launched my own firm, focusing primarily on family law through mediation and collaborative law, as well as handling wills and estate planning matters. I was certified as a Family Financial and Superior Court mediator from 1992 until 2023, and I still practice as a mediator. I’ve also been trained in Collaborative Law since 2009. Outside my office, I love spending time at my Ashe County cabin on land that has been in my family for 200 years. I also enjoy tending to my perennial garden, cooking, reading, and writing poetry. My daughter works for an online mental health care service. My son is a carpenter and window restoration guy and my daughter-in-law is a marriage and family therapist, and they recently gave birth to my fantastic new grandson!

I believe that by working toward an equitable, intelligent, and open-minded application of the law in specific cases, we will move toward a more just and humane society.

Call Judy Whisnant Attorney at Law, P.C. today at (919) 688-6860 to speak to a compassionate Durham family law and estate planning lawyer.