Family law encompasses a broad range of legal issues and the economic ties arising from human relationships. Our Firm seeks to unravel the legal from the emotional entanglements. While only about eight percent of divorce cases nationwide are contested, the state court civil trial dockets in Northern Virginia are 50% to 85% related to domestic relations on any given day.

While we are well known as aggressive and effective litigators, our goal is to complete your case through either settlement or trial with as little emotional and financial cost as possible. Use of litigation to punish or harass is not only improper, it is enormously expensive. Regrettably, there are some cases where our clients are being victimized by those who are utilizing the system for vindictive purposes. Countering such behavior may also be costly, but it is even more draining financially and emotionally to let it drag on indefinitely while being ineffectively opposed. We are often called upon to end it, sometimes after one or more other legal professionals have failed to do so.

Many, cases, however, can be brought to a conclusion without extensive litigation.  Our approach is to stabilize each case, develop a realistic settlement position, attempt voluntary resolution, offer alternative dispute resolution, and, if that fails, try the case in court. A case prepared for court has the best chance of favorable resolution. A case that is not well prepared will likely never settle justly and the trial will often be disastrous.

We utilize a team approach to contested cases. This means that a primary attorney, an assistant attorney, and at least one paralegal will be cross-knowledgeable about your case, tracking deadlines, and sharing tasks to effect a predetermined strategy to achieve your goals. We have found that managing a case in this manner assures optimum preparation and cost efficiency.

We ask that our clients be part of the process, make certain that they understand it, and welcome their participation in all stages of the case. This synergistic involvement between lawyer and client yields an informed understanding of what is being done and allows everyone involved to contribute to the task of achieving a successful resolution.