Services
Divorce and Litigation
Almost all of the prominent divorce lawyers in the Washington D.C. metropolitan area gained their reputation due to their abilities in a courtroom. David E. Roop, Jr. is no exception. He came to the practice of family law after having experience with a broad range of contract, tort, civil and malpractice trials and cases. He conducted approximately 15 solo trials in his first year of practice.
As a family lawyer, Mr. Roop was trained by two of the most talented local lawyers, and has conducted well over a hundred motions and trials. He has a facility with mathematics and strategy, and has made his trial-court reputation by outworking other lawyers and being more reasonable. While the majority of his clients are from all walks of life, Mr. Roop has successfully handled the family law matters of professional athletes, a politician, CEOs and a national news anchor. He has received referrals from most of the top divorce lawyers in Northern Virginia. Mr. Roop has twice appeared on the cover of Virginia Lawyers Weekly, and has lectured to other divorce lawyers in the areas of custody, relocation, equitable distribution, domicile, malpractice and professionalism.
The Roop Law Firm, PLLC makes every reasonable attempt to settle a case once adequate discovery has been exchanged. However, if the other lawyer or party will not settle the matter fairly, we understand that the point of litigation is to win the arguments in dispute. Our thought process is that we cannot always make the other side be reasonable outside a courtroom, but we can always hold them accountable in a courtroom.
Most family law cases are won or lost before the parties enter the courtroom. Accordingly, from the initial consultation, we are focused on what we need to prove if the matter does not settle. We distinguish ourselves from other firms who see you as a "case" to be filed in court. We recognize that the failure to resolve family disputes as early as possible creates financial and emotional consequences for the participants and their families. However, we also understand that a certain percentage of the cases will go to trial, and our ethos is to out-work the other side when we are required to use a courtroom to obtain a fair result for our clients.
Spousal Support or Alimony
Spousal support, also known as alimony, is how a spouse of higher income or earning capacity is required to transfer money to a spouse with substantially lower income or earning capacity. Spousal support can be temporary, permanent, in a lump sum, or of a defined duration. It is a derivative right, in that it is affected by many other considerations: fault in the marriage; the assets and debts of the party seeking spousal support; the length of the marriage; whether there are children; need and the relative earning capacities of the parties.
At The Roop Law Firm, PLLC, we evaluate spousal support obligations and needs, considering the lifestyle of the parties, the ability of the parties to handle two households instead of one, the income and expenses of the parties and the tax effects of spousal support. We also look at the distinguishing aspects of a particular family situation to decide what, if anything, should be the amount and duration of spousal support in your particular situation.
Division of Assets and Debts
The division of assets and debts is called "equitable distribution" and is Virginia's way of describing the process of (a) classifying and (b) dividing marital property.
(a) Classification is the determination as to whether an asset is separate (e.g. a trust fund undisturbed during the marriage or an inheritance by one spouse always kept in sole name), marital (e.g. a house purchased with funds earned during the marriage) or hybrid, meaning part-marital/part-separate (e.g. a retirement account with an employer, commenced before the marriage, into which contributions were made during the marriage). Virginia Code Section 20-107.3 sets forth the definitions of marital, separate and hybrid property. (b) Division is the determination as to how to divide and in what percentage to divide marital or part-marital property.
At The Roop Law Firm, PLLC, we ascertain the likelihood of classifying certain property as separate and of tracing that property into today's assets. We are mindful of the pitfalls and costs of doing so, and give the client our best opinion as to the pros and cons of trying to do the tracing. We also see situations where marital property ought to be divided in some proportion other than 50/50. Based on our investigation and the client's individual situation, we decide whether settlement, litigation, mediation, or collaborative divorce is the course best calculated to meet the goals of the client.
Child Custody, Visitation, and Support
There are two types of custody: (1) physical custody and (2) legal custody. Physical custody is the physical time-sharing arrangement pertaining to the children. Legal custody is the description of who and how major decisions are made about the children, such as schooling, religion, elective surgery, and health care. The two most common forms of legal custody are joint legal custody, where the parties are required to reach a consensus before making a major decision, or sole legal custody, where one parent or guardian alone may make a major decision.
At The Roop Law Firm, PLLC, our lawyers collectively have experience as parents, social workers, and custody litigators. We undertake to ascertain what time-sharing arrangement would promote the best interest of the children (e.g. what is the right custody situation for our client and the family). We select the approach, whether it is settlement, litigation, mediation or collaborative law based upon our sense of the family situation, the needs of our client, and the receptivity of the spouse and opposing counsel to dispute resolution.
Mediation
In the context of divorce, mediation is an attempt to bring about a settlement between the spouses through the intervention of a neutral professional, often a counselor or a lawyer. In Virginia, the mediator typically informs each of the spouses that he or she should have a lawyer to make sure that any proposed settlement is appropriate and comprehensive. Mediation can be appropriate and result in a significant cost savings in many cases involving custody, visitation, support and equitable distribution (asset and debt division), and can be done with or without one's own lawyer being present at the time of negotiation.
The Roop Law Firm, PLLC has employed a fair, cost-effective and successful method to use mediation to end disputes. Discovery is conducted as to the incomes, assets and debts of the parties, instead of being left to the voluntary disclosures of one's spouse. Discovery can be done formally (through court process) or informally (outside of court), depending on the risks and the client's preferences, but is calculated to result in the lawyers and the parties having the same knowledge level of all the assets, debts, and income. Then, a retired judge is selected as a mediator. Typically, over the course of one long and difficult day where five people are present - the mediator, the lawyers and the spouses - the disputes of the marriage are resolved. In many cases, a comprehensive agreement is drafted and signed on the day of the mediation.