The Shadow
On Tuesday, April 2, Alleghany Highlands Chamber of Commerce and Tourism celebrated the arrival of attorney Dirk Padgett with a ribbon cutting ceremony. Padgett, who currently practices law out of his firm in Vinton, joins Alleghany County with many years of experience and a wealth of knowledge in his field.
“I was a prosecutor for 22 years,” Padgett shared with the Virginian Review, “and I prosecuted in Bedford County for many years. I was a deputy commonwealth attorney. I’ve been a special assistant United States attorney, I’ve been a prosecutor for the Al-Qaeda terrorists in Guantanamo Bay —I was one of the chief prosecutors for that— and worked on that for 7 years for war crimes trials. I used to have 5 top secret clearances: CIA, Department of Justice, Department of Defense, Department of Homeland Security, and Safe Department.”
Padgett also shared his love of small towns, adoration of the area, beauty of the mountains, and that tranquil feeling he gets when he’s out in the woods. He has future plans to purchase a home in the area and go hunting.
Josh Taylor— the brand-new Alleghany Highlands Chamber of Commerce Executive Director who replaces the freshly retired Teresa Hammond— opened the ribbon cutting with a few words for the newest lawyer in our area, “…We are so excited that you guys that you guys have expanded your business into the Alleghany Highlands and what a beautiful spot you have here in Downtown, Covington in this historic building.”
The Dirk Padgett Law Firm is located at 301 West Main Street and, according to paralegal/Padgett’s personal assistant, Laken Seal, the books on the shelves in the front room of the office have been there for years. Whatever businesses have moved in/out of that office have left the books to their own devices and so, they have been well-preserved for decades.
Additional speakers at the ribbon-cutting ceremony included Chamber Board President, Lee Higginbotham; Clifton Forge Mayor, Jeff Irvine; Vice-Chairman of the Alleghany County Board of Supervisors, James Griffith; Covington Mayor, Tom Sibold; Gina Tingler with the Alleghany Highlands Economic Development Corporation; and Vice Mayor for the City of Covington, David Crosier. “Welcome to the neighborhood! Thank you very much for your investment here,” Crosier said. “We look forward to seeing you around in the months to come.”
“You may live to regret that,” Padgett joked, prompting a boisterous laugh from the crowd. “…I thank you for coming… People ask me why I went to Vinton because I was in downtown Roanoke for a while. Because there’s no lawyers there and when you get in there, you start integrating the community, you really see how they appreciate somebody coming in because people would just come on my porch and say, ‘Dirk, I got a question for you!’ when I talk to them. It’s just nice to have someone local that you can talk to.”
Attorney Dirk Padgett practices a number of different types of law including family law, divorces, child custody and support cases, personal injury, and criminal law. The firm is available by appointment only and can be reached at 540-774-1270. They can also be reached by email at legal@dirkpadgettlaw.com or by web at www.dirkpadgettlaw.com.
The Virginian Review welcomes our new neighbor and wishes his firm the best of luck here in Olde Town Covington.
