About Virginia Hinrichs
Virginia Hinrichs McMichael has spent more than four decades in the law, building a practice centered on appellate work and legal analysis. Her path into the profession was shaped by study in the United States and abroad. She completed a Bachelor of Arts in English at Middlebury College in 1978 after beginning her studies in 1974. She later studied English at the University of London, Goldsmiths College in 1976 and earned her J.D. from the University of Texas at Austin in 1983.
McMichael began her legal career in private practice. In 1983 she joined the firm Lynne Z. Gold-Bikin & Associates, where she handled matters that introduced her to the demands of legal briefing and courtroom procedure. Two years later she moved into public service as a lawyer and advisor at the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, a position she held starting in 1985. That role exposed her to federal administrative practice and the interplay between agency decisionmaking and judicial review.
After several years in both public and private roles, McMichael turned her attention increasingly to appeals. In 2013 she founded Appellate Law Group LLC and serves as its managing lawyer. The firm concentrates on appellate litigation, drafting briefs, and advising clients on issues that arise after trial-level rulings. As founder and manager, she combines casework with the operational responsibilities of running a small specialty practice.
Her courtroom credentials include admissions to argue in multiple jurisdictions. She is admitted before the U.S. Supreme Court and practices in Pennsylvania as well as in the federal appellate courts for the Third and Second Circuits. Those admissions allow her to represent clients across a range of state and federal appellate venues.
McMichael maintains an active presence in the bar. She is a member of the American Bar Association Council of Appellate Lawyers, the Pennsylvania Bar Association Appellate Advocacy Committee, and the Philadelphia Bar Association’s Appellate Courts Committee. She also holds membership in the Delaware County Bar Association and participates in the Pennsylvania Bar Association’s Women in the Profession Committee. These affiliations keep her connected to developments in appellate procedure and professional practice.
Her practice emphasizes appellate briefing and oral argument, along with advising on preservation of issues for appeal. She works with lawyers and clients to identify appellate strategy after trial or administrative decisions and to present legal issues to higher courts. She currently focuses on appellate litigation and counseling at Appellate Law Group LLC.
