About
Sam Vance was born in New York City, New York, but grew up in Roanoke, Virginia.
Sam has been happily married to Tracy Hawkins Vance since 1994. They live in Rustburg, Virginia with their three children, Jack, Clarice and Meredith. Sam’s hobbies include spending time with his family, fishing, running, and traveling. Sam is an active member of Saint Andrew Presbyterian Church, where he is a member of the Board of Deacons and the Usher’s Guild.
Sam is a member of the Campbell County Bar Association, Virginia State Bar, Roanoke Bar Association, Lynchburg Bar Association, Local Government Attorneys of Virginia, and Virginia Trial Lawyers Association. Sam also holds an AV designation from Martindale-Hubbell, the highest possible designation from the premier attorney rating agency.
In addition to his law practice, Sam has served as a lecturer and moderator with Virginia Continuing Legal Education and has served as an Assistant Professor of Law at Virginia Western Community College in Roanoke, teaching corporate law and corporate organizations.
Experience
Prior to joining Overbey, Hawkins, Wright & Vance, PLLC as a partner in 2011, Sam practiced with the Roanoke law firms of Gentry Locke Rakes & Moore from 1999 to 2001 and Glenn Feldmann Darby & Goodlatte from 2002 to 2009. In addition, Sam served as one of the in-house counsel attorneys for Advance Auto Parts, a Fortune 500 company, from 2009 to 2011.
In his practice with Overbey, Hawkins, Wright & Vance, Sam has successfully represented hundreds of clients in personal injury cases, and works on personal injury cases daily. Sam is actively involved with finding solutions to his client’s real estate, estate planning, and small business issues and needs, spending a significant portion of time in those areas. He is chief legal counsel to the Campbell County Educational Foundation and the Lynchburg Symphony Orchestra. Sam is admitted to practice in all state courts in Virginia, and he is also admitted to practice in all federal courts in the state, including the United States Bankruptcy Court.
If you ask Sam what his favorite part of the practice is, he would say it is shaking hands with his clients at the end of each successful representation.
Education
Sam graduated from Duke University in 1992 with a degree in Public Policy Studies. He took graduate courses at the University of Virginia Health Sciences Center from 1992 to 1993, and in 1999 he graduated from William and Mary School of Law. Sam was admitted to the Virginia State Bar that same year.
Practices
Sam spends the majority of his practice devoted to personal injury cases, but he has also focused in the following areas: criminal defense, real estate, wills and estate planning, business, and local government law.