W. Taylor Corbett, Esq.
Founder & Attorney, Fidelis Law, PLC
Serving Southwest Virginia
A Lawyer Who Knows the Land
We work our entire lives for the property we acquire — in an effort to secure and provide for our families. So when that property is threatened, it feels deeply personal. That is why people are willing to fight over very small pieces of land. I have heard adverse parties say, "I don't understand, it's practically just a blade of grass." But to the person fighting for it, it is never just a blade of grass. It is what they worked for. It is what they built.
That understanding is at the heart of how I practice law.
I am a landowner in Southwest Virginia. I fly fish with my children in these creeks, hike these ridgelines, and know this land the way my clients know it. When you walk into my office with a boundary dispute, an access road conflict, or a contested estate, I understand what is at stake — not just legally, but personally.
A Background Built For This Work
Most litigation attorneys come to property law through casebooks. I came to it through courthouse deed rooms.
Before attending law school, I spent years as a mineral title abstractor and landman — first through Bluegrass Land Services, a company my wife Aimee and I founded together, and later as an in-house abstractor with Steptoe & Johnson, a national firm, where I researched mineral and surface title throughout Virginia, Kentucky, West Virginia, Pennsylvania, and Ohio.
That work required piecing together land ownership puzzles that sometimes took days or weeks to solve — tracing title chains through centuries of deeds, old surveys, family heirships, and courthouse records. I loved it. The depth of knowledge required, and the sense of accomplishment when the puzzle finally came together, is what ultimately drove me to pursue a law degree.
I graduated from Appalachian School of Law in 2013, where I received a Book Award for Alternative Dispute Resolution and published an article in the Appalachian Journal of Law on coalbed methane and the intersection of mineral and property law in Virginia. That publication grew directly out of the work I had accomplished in the field, and it reflected a level of technical knowledge of Southwest Virginia property law that I have continued to build ever since.
Nearly Two Decades of Combined Experience
My legal career has taken me through some of Southwest Virginia's most respected firms. As a partner at Galumbeck & Kegley, Attorneys at Law, in Tazewell, Virginia, I handled real estate litigation, commercial law, estates, and civil litigation across the region. I later joined Stephen W. Gooch, PC, where I deepened my practice in real estate litigation, probate, estate administration, guardianships and conservatorships, will contests, and complex civil matters in both state and federal court.
During that time I represented landowners in administrative proceedings before the Virginia Gas and Oil Board — arguing on behalf of property owners who objected to proposed access roads, well sites, and similar intrusions on their land. I also represented corporate clients in environmental compliance matters involving the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality, handling consent orders arising from notices of violation related to air quality and waste disposal.
In July 2024, I founded Fidelis Law, PLC — because I wanted to be more selective about the clients I serve, so I could give each case the focused attention it deserves.
Why Fidelis?
The name Fidelis comes from the Latin word for “faithful” and “loyal.” It reflects my core belief that trust and loyalty are the foundation of any successful attorney-client relationship.
I am a Southwest Virginia resident by choice — I moved here in 2006 and never left, because this is home. I know these counties, these courthouses, and the unique legal challenges that arise when land, family, and culture intersect in this region. That local knowledge is not something you can acquire from a textbook. It comes from years of working in these communities and caring about the people in them.
When you hire Fidelis Law, you are not hiring a firm that will hand your matter to a junior associate. You are hiring me, directly, and you will have my personal attention from the first consultation through the resolution of the case.
Education & Credentials
J.D., Appalachian School of Law (2013)
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Book Award - Alternative Dispute Resolution
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Published in Appalachian Journal of Law: Coalbed Methane: The Struggle for Consistency and Predictability in Mineral and Property Law in Virginia
B.B.A., King College, Bristol, Tennessee
Virginia State Bar
Admitted to practice:
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Virginia State Courts
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US District Court for the Western District of Virginia (including Bankruptcy Court)