The Howard Law Firm, P.C.

Sharon Effatt Howard was born in Kingston, Jamaica. She graduated from high school at age 15; graduated from college at age 18 and was the youngest member of her graduating class at American University Law School where she received the "Law Student of The Year" award. The D.C. Area Clinical Program named her "The Most Outstanding Student Litigator" among law students in the Washington, D.C. area. Ms. Howard initially worked as an associate for an Atlanta firm that represente...d the Martin Luther King, Jr. Center and the King family. Ms. Howard worked primarily on licensing agreements and contract matters. In 1981, she accepted a position as Associate General Counsel for the National Labor Relations Board. For six years, she investigated and litigated a number of complex labor cases. As a senior partner, Ms. Howard litigates numerous personal injury, civil rights and employment cases. Ms. Howard developed extensive experience in litigating complex catastrophic injury and wrongful death cases arising from medical malpractice, product liability, premises liability, slip and falls, common carrier negligence and motor vehicle accidents. Ms. Howard is a certified mediator and limits her labor practice to the mediation of labor cases. Ms. Howard served as President and an Executive Board member of the Atlanta Chapter of the Georgia Association of Women Lawyers. She has been the lead attorney coach for the Tucker High School Mock Trial team for over 11 years and volunteers in numerous activities involving young people. She founded Discovery Academy, a private school in Lithonia, Georgia and has been a member of its Board for over 18 years.

James W. Howard was admitted to The Florida Bar in 1980, where he initially practiced law with Jacksonville Area Legal Aid. In 1981, he was admitted to the State Bar of Georgia. As a public defender in Fulton County, Georgia, Mr. Howard represented minors in juvenile court, drafted appellate briefs to the Georgia Court of Appeals and represented a wide range of felony defendants in Fulton Superior Court. In 1984, he went into private practice as a partner in an Atlanta law fi...rm. As a senior partner, Mr. Howard has conducted more than 100 civil and criminal jury trials in state and federal courts. He also received permission to handle individual civil and criminal cases in other jurisdictions, including the United States District Court for the Southern District of Georgia, the Superior Court for Bronx, New York and two counties in Maryland. His areas of civil practice include catastrophic injuries resulting from medical malpractice, product liability or motor vehicle collisions. Mr. Howard has also taken the lead role in the successful litigation of consumer fraud and malicious prosecution claims. Mr. Howard is recognized for his criminal defense work throughout the Atlanta metropolitan area. He has successfully defended and resolved a large number of felony cases in the federal district court in Atlanta, Fulton County, DeKalb County, Cobb County, Gwinnett County and Clayton County. He is experienced in defending a wide variety of criminal prosecutions that include drug trafficking, murder, armed robbery, rape, aggravated assault, kidnapping, Medicaid fraud, theft and extortion.

Leif A. Howard joined The Howard Law Firm, P.C. in 2016 as a partner who focuses on civil litigation and criminal defense. Starting in 2007, Leif Howard practiced real estate and contract litigation for the large Florida based firm Lowndes, Drosdick, Doster, Kantor & Reed. Between 2010-2015, he was a Senior Assistant District Attorney For Fulton County District Attorney's Office and DeKalb County District Attorney's Office. As a prosecutor, he was lead counsel in numerous ...felony trials, including 25 murder trials. During his time as a prosecutor, he received the fastest verdict in Georgia history (8 minutes) and never lost a case. As a former prosecutor, he has the unique skill set of analyzing the weakness or strength of a criminal case which enhances his ability to represent his clients in criminal defense. His practice includes personal injury, medical malpractice, product liability, premises liability, contract litigation, wrongful death, and criminal defense. See more

Crismeily A. Alburquerque joined The Howard Law Firm, P.C. in 2013 as an associate, bringing her skill as a bilingual litigator to the team. While a law student, Ms. Alburquerque focused her coursework on litigation and criminal law. She has been both a student assistant district attorney with the Kings County District Attorney in Brooklyn, New York; and a student public defender with the Washtenaw County Public Defender's Office in Ann Arbor, Michigan. Since joining The Howard Law Firm, Ms. Alburquerque has focused her practice of law on civil litigation and minor criminal matters.