Imie Aisiku Harber, Director

Imie is a Director and a member of the Civil Litigation, Business Law, and Municipalities & Local Governments Practice Groups. Her practice includes extensive experience in personal and commercial liability defense, workers’ compensation defense, and corporate legal matters.

Before joining McCandlish Holton, Imie served as in-house counsel in the litigation department for one of the country’s largest insurance providers. During her eight years in-house, she handled thousands of personal and commercial liability cases and workers’ compensation claims, on behalf of individuals and public and private corporations. Her practice included cases involving complex legal issues, multiple parties, and cross actions. In her workers’ compensation practice, Imie also handled appeals from the Deputy Commissioner level to the Full Commission, as well as appeals from the Full Commission to the Virginia Court of Appeals. This included making oral arguments in front of the Full Commission and Court of Appeals.

Imie also has extensive experience with settlement negotiations and ADR practice, such as mediation and arbitration.

Imie also served as lead attorney for some of the largest manufacturing clients in the Richmond area. As lead attorney, she often conducted site visits, held management roundtables discussing best practices for handling on-the-job accidents, and conducted information sessions informing key individuals within the companies of new and existing legal issues that were relevant to their industry.

Imie has represented corporations in various business transactions, and currently serves as general counsel for a telehealth company and tech firm.

Prior to her work as in-house counsel, Imie litigated workers’ compensation on behalf of the claimant, as well as personal injury claims including wrongful death and toxic tort, misdemeanor criminal defense, and family law. During her time practicing family law, Imie was certified as a Guardian ad Litem for children.

Following law school, Imie completed an externship with the Commonwealth’s Attorney’s Office where she litigated misdemeanor and felony cases in General District and Circuit Court, as well as prepared briefs for the Virginia Court of Appeals and the Supreme Court of Virginia. 

Imie values opportunities to give back to the community. She has volunteered as a mentor for Big Brothers/Big Sisters and still remains active within the organization. She is a contributor to Crossover Healthcare Ministry, which is a non-profit organization that provides healthcare to the uninsured and those on Medicaid in the Richmond area. She is also involved in her firm’s diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives serving as mentor to new associates from diverse communities.

Representative Outcomes:

• Successfully argued for the admissibility of a defense billing expert to challenge the amount in medical bills claimed by the plaintiff in Circuit Court.
• Successfully argued a pretrial motion in City of Richmond Circuit Court, dismissing a $500,000 personal injury action brought against a local government agency by an individual in the custody of the agency.
• Obtained defense jury verdict in Nottoway County Circuit Court awarding $0 in damages in a single vehicle, personal injury claim for $300,000 in which defendant stipulated to liability. Following the verdict, Imie successfully opposed plaintiff’s motion for additur, thereby upholding the $0 jury verdict award.
• Successfully asserted a contributory negligence defense and received a defense verdict in a jury trial of a $300K personal injury action in Henrico County.
• Obtained a defense verdict from a jury in a slip and fall claim brought against a national restaurant chain in Hanover County, Virginia.
• Negotiated a $5,000 settlement on behalf of a national hotel chain sued in federal court for $5 million alleging negligence against the hotel.

Professional and Community Involvement

• Virginia State Bar
• Old Dominion Bar Association
• Local Government Attorneys of Virginia
• Metropolitan Richmond Women’s Bar Association
• Big Brothers Big Sisters | Mentor
• Phi Delta Phi, International Legal Honor Society, past 

PUBLICATIONS

• Thomas M. Cooley, Journal of Practical and Clinical Law  |  Associate Editor