Amy E. Richardson

Amy is a Shareholder in Maynard Nexsen’s Litigation and Government Investigations & White Collar Defense practice groups. Her practice focuses on legal ethics and professional responsibility matters, white-collar defense and complex commercial litigation.

Amy counsels and represents lawyers and law firms in disciplinary investigations, prosecutions, malpractice matters and high-stakes arbitration. She advises her legal industry clients in shareholder admissions and departures and law firm dissolutions. She has presented matters before multiple state bars, federal courts, the USPTO Office of Enrollment and Discipline (OED) and the Office of Professional Responsibility (OPR). Amy has also served as an expert witness, providing opinions on legal ethics issues.

Amy handles complex civil cases in federal court, state court, and arbitration proceedings throughout the U.S., previously supporting several high-profile matters. Her matters have included class actions and multidistrict litigation defense and frequent trial work. She also has experience with cases involving the communications-technology industry, including work pertaining to the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA), intercarrier compensation and access fee disputes.

Amy has successfully represented companies before federal and state regulatory agencies, the Department of Justice, and Offices of Inspector General. She assists her clients in identifying and complying with federal regulatory requirements and, when necessary, prepares clients for grand jury appearances and trial work. Two of Amy's matters have been the subject of documentaries featured on Netflix and Peacock.

Outside of Maynard Nexsen, Amy serves as an Adjunct Professor at the Georgetown University Law Center and a Senior Lecturing Fellow at the Duke University School of Law, teaching legal ethics and professional responsibility. She is also a frequent speaker and leader on ethics and litigation issues.

Amy holds a J.D., cum laude, from the Duke University School of Law. She earned her B.A. in Communications, summa cum laude, from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

Community & Professional

• Women's White Collar Defense Association, North Carolina Chapter Co-Leader
• Association of Professional Responsibility Lawyers (APRL)
• ABA Business Law Section, Chair Professional Responsibility Committee
• Federation of Defense & Corporate Counsel (FDCC)
• Trustee, North Carolina Bar Client Security Fund Board (2019 – 2025)
• Law360 Editorial Advisory Board on Legal Ethics (2025)
• U.S. Court of Appeals for Veterans Affairs, Committee on Admissions and Practice (2019 – 2025)
• North Carolina State Bar Ethics Committee (2018 – 2021)
• North Carolina Bar Association
  • Litigation Council, Vice Chair (2019 – 2020), Chair (2020 – 2021)
  • Professionalism Committee, Vice Chair (2019 – 2020); Member (2019 – present)

Recognition

• Chambers USA, Band 1, North Carolina – Litigation, White Collar and Government Investigations
• Business North Carolina, Legal Elite
• Best Lawyers, North Carolina
• Super Lawyers, North Carolina
  • Recognized in "Top 100: 2025 North Carolina Super Lawyers" (2025)
  • Recognized in "Top 50: Women North Carolina Super Lawyers" (2025)
  • Named as a a Rising Star (2015 – 2017)
• Named to North Carolina Lawyers Weekly's Power List for Business Defense (2023)