Amy McMullen Harber
Amy Harber is a dynamic Virginia litigator and advocate with nearly 18 years of combined criminal and civil trial experience and having represented clients on both sides of the courtroom.
At Whitlock Law, Amy focuses her practice in Northern Virginia and manages the firm’s Leesburg office and non-injury operations. She spends most days in Court and splits her caseload primarily between personal injury and criminal and traffic matters.
She began her career as a prosecutor, serving as an Assistant Commonwealth’s Attorney in the City of Hampton, Va. from 2008-2012 and Loudoun County, Va. from 2012-2020. In that time, she litigated cases ranging in severity from traffic tickets to murder and everything in between. She also developed a specialty in criminal street gang-related prosecutions and mental health related cases and helped to develop the Loudoun General District Court’s Mental Health Docket. Amy served as the legal instructor for her local police agency's Crisis Intervention Training for more than five years and received commendations from three law enforcement agencies related her work on three different homicide cases between 2016-2019.
During the pandemic in 2020, Amy pivoted to civil practice and joined Allstate Insurance Company’s Client Legal Services Office. She served as a Senior Attorney there until the fall of 2024. At Allstate, she handled litigation matters involving bodily injury claims, property damage, automobile diminished value, wrongful death, infant settlements, contractual disputes, and fraud and coverage investigations. She collected more than $2 million in subrogation recoveries for Allstate and its Virginia insureds during her time with the company.
Amy grew up in Northern Virginia and she earned a bachelor’s degree in Journalism & Criminal Justice from the University of Richmond. Though she initially thought she wanted to be a reporter, she opted to pursue the law instead after spending a semester interning at a metropolitan newspaper. She attended law school at George Mason University School of Law as an evening student while working full time as the Assistant Director of the Spotsylvania County Commonwealth’s Attorney’s Victim/Witness Program. She finished the evening program in 3.5 years and was licensed to practice law in April 2008.
She currently serves on the Board of Directors as the Treasurer of the Loudoun Bar Foundation, a non-profit organization that sponsors scholarships and enrichment programs for Loudoun County, Va. residents. She also is an active member of numerous local and specialty bar associations, including the Virginia Women's Attorney's Association and Virginia Trial Lawyers Association, and she previously served in leadership roles within Loudoun County’s and the Town of Leesburg’s boards and commissions. She is certified by the Virginia Indigent Defense Commission to represent court-appointed clients and also takes appointments of clients suffering from mental illness during commitment proceedings.
Outside of court, Amy is a married mom of one son and stepmom to a son and daughter. She's a former competitive swimmer, rower, and water polo player and avid fan of all things Olympics. She also enjoys traveling to places near & far—London remains her favorite destination—attending concerts and musicals, rowing indoors with her Row House gym, trying Michelin-starred restaurants with her husband, and spending as much time outdoors and near the ocean as possible.
• George Mason University (Antonin Scalia Law School) - J.D.
• Loudoun "100" Honoree (2019)
• Loudoun "40 Under 40" Honoree (2019)
• Virginia Trial Lawyers Association
• Virginia Women's Attorney's Association
• Loudoun Bar Foundation
• Loudoun County Bar Association
• Fairfax County Bar Association
• Legal Services
• Education
What do you attribute your success to?
I attribute my success to the compassion I have for others. Humanity is flawed, and people seek out legal counsel at some of the worst times in their lives. Sometimes they've been harmed, and sometimes they've made mistakes. Regardless of the situation, I take pride in my ability to speak to them like the people they are and help them understand their options and quell their concerns so that I can effectively advocate on their behalves.
What’s the best career advice you’ve ever received?
The best career advice I’ve ever received came from my professional mentor, Linda Curtis: "Don't Back Down." Yes - cue the Tom Petty song. I've always been the person in the room who is not afraid to say what no one else will, even when it is not always in my best interest. This willingness to stand firm in my convictions (and sometimes be proven wrong) has taught me countless lessons on risk and human behavior, and it ultimately shaped me into the practitioner that I am today.
What advice would you give to young women entering your industry?
Be open-minded and don't pigeon hole yourself into one type of practitioner too early. Get varied experience so you can figure out what aspects and fields of legal practice you actually enjoy. Also, money is important - but so is your sanity.
What are the biggest challenges or opportunities in your field right now?
Virginia has a large problem with legal deserts; there are many more people throughout the Commonwealth that need assistance than practicing lawyers that can help them. Economic factors compound that problem as criminal or personal injury legal expenses are not generally costs that people budget or plan for. The effect of this is two-fold: more people turn to AI or social media for legal advice from non-lawyers (bad idea for clients) or attorneys become over-extended trying to help more clients than they can reasonably manage (bad idea for attorneys). Of course, this shortage also creates opportunities for those individuals who want to practice law or companies who wish to innovate to fill some of these gaps; the jury is still out at the moment as to when we will achieve that balance.
What values are most important to you in your work and personal life?
My father was a career public servant - serving 25 years in the U.S. Army and then working in the federal government. He instilled in me the value of public service, sacrifice, and giving back from a young age - before I fully appreciated what they meant. I try to exemplify this mentality throughout my personal and professional lives. My father unfortunately passed away unexpectedly in 2022 - which taught me the halting lesson that you won't always have the chance to say goodbye. That loss led me to cherish time with my family above all and spend my time more intentionally because tomorrow is not guaranteed.