ATLANTA (September 30, 2026)—Fulton County Superior Court is excited to welcome three new judges to the bench following judicial appointments by Gov. Brian Kemp.
• Judge David H. Emadi
• Judge Debbie-Ann R. Rickman
• Judge Nikia Smith Sellers
Judge Emadi brings a wealth of diverse experience to the bench. Before this appointment, he served as director of the State Ethics Commission of Georgia since 2019. Before that, Judge Emadi spent seven years in the Douglas County District Attorney's Office as chief assistant district attorney. In 2017, he was named a Rising Star by the Daily Report among the top 30 lawyers in Georgia under 40, at just 29. He earned his undergraduate degree from the University of Georgia and his Juris Doctor from Georgia State College of Law, where he currently serves on the Board of Alumni.
Judge Rickman is a seasoned jurist who previously served as a Fulton County magistrate judge, presiding over both criminal and civil cases. Before this, Judge Rickman served as a public defender in Atlanta. She also previously served with distinction in the DeKalb County Solicitor-General’s Office and was recognized as the 2017 prosecuting attorney of the year. Judge Rickman holds a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science, with honors, from Florida International University and a Juris Doctor, with honors, from the University of Florida.
Judge Sellers is a veteran prosecutor with more than a decade of service in the Fulton County District Attorney’s Office. Judge Sellers supervised prosecutions in Accountability Court, including Drug Court, Behavioral Health Treatment Court, and Veterans Court. She also led complex prosecutions on the specialized Competency Docket, addressing the intersection of criminal law and mental health. She is an alumna of Shaw University, where she earned academic and athletic scholarships. She was also a merit scholar at The Pennsylvania State University Dickinson School of Law, where she earned a Juris Doctor.
Now that our three new judges are on the bench, they will immediately begin tackling Georgia’s busiest civil and criminal trial courts.