The Hon. Melinda L. VanLowe is a judge for the 19th Judicial District Juvenile and Domestic Relations District Court of Virginia in Fairfax County. She joined the bench in 2022.
VanLowe previously sat as a substitute judge for the 19th Judicial District Court and Juvenile and Domestic Relations District Court since 2016. She also managed her own private practice since establishing her law firm in Fairfax in 2011. Her practice there focused on criminal, traffic, administrative hearings, and domestic relations matters.
Before opening her office, she was an associate at Greenspun Shapiro, PC (2004 to 2011) and a law clerk to the Hon. Dennis J. Smith with the 19th Judicial Circuit Court (2001 to 2003).
VanLowe received a B.A. from the University of Virginia in 1997. She then completed a J.D. at American University Washington College of Law in 2002.
Her memberships include the Fairfax Bar Association, the Northern Virginia Black Attorneys Association, the Virginia State Bar Council, the Virginia State Bar Mandatory Continuing Legal Education Board, and the Virginia Women Attorneys Association.
VanLowe also sat as a member of the Fairfax County Juvenile and Domestic Relations District Court Committee and its subcommittee tasked with updating the Juvenile and Domestic Relations Manual.
VanLowe was born in Columbia, Maryland.