Kate McDonough

Kate McDonough, Esq.

PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE

I have been in private practice in Maryland since 2007.

McDonough Law was established in 2018.

AWARDS & RECOGNITION

•I have received an annual Award in Recognition and Appreciation from the Montgomery County Volunteer Pro Bono Legal Aid Program for 2009 through the present year.

•In 2010, I received the Montgomery County Bar Foundation’s President’s Citation for Outstanding Pro Bono Service.

•The Montgomery County Chapter of the Inns of Court presented me with the 2011 James Salter Pro Bono Program Award.

•In 2011, I was nominated, selected and recognized by the Daily Record as a Maryland “Leading Woman”—an award bestowed to a small group of women, all under the age of 40 years, in recognition of their accomplishments to date in their business and legal careers.

•I was named a “Rising Star” in the area of Family Law by Super Lawyers Magazine each year from 2012 through 2020.

•In 2014, I received the Montgomery County Bar Association’s Section Chair of the Year Award for my work as the Co-Chair of the Family Law Section.

COURT ADMISSIONS

I am admitted to practice law in all Maryland state courts and Federal courts, including the Federal District Court and United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit. I was admitted as a member of the United States Supreme Court in 2017.

EDUCATION

•J.D., Cleveland-Marshall College of Law

Cleveland, Ohio (2006)

•B.A., Xavier University

Cincinnati, Ohio (2003)

•Georgetown Visitation Preparatory School

Washington, DC (1999)

PROFESSIONAL ASSOCIATIONS

I am an active member of the Bar Association of Montgomery County, Maryland and its Family Law Section; the Maryland State Bar Association, the Montgomery County, Maryland Chapter of the Women’s Bar Association; and the International Academy of Collaborative Professionals. I was a Co-Chair of the Family Law Section for the BAMC from 2013-2015 and President of the WBA from 2015-2016.

COMMUNITY ACTIVITIES

I am a former President of the Xavier University National Alumni Association (Washington, DC Chapter) and a member of the Georgetown Visitation Preparatory School Young Alumnae Association. I am a Junior Member of the Janet Montgomery Chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution and a parishioner at St. Bernadette’s Catholic Church in Silver Spring, Maryland. I frequently volunteer my time with the Montgomery County Pro Bono Program, the Family Law Self Help Center, Catholic Charities and the Maryland Volunteer Lawyers Service.

I am proud of the many successful outcomes I have obtained for my clients, both in litigating contested matters in the courtroom, as well as in negotiating favorable settlements for them. I am committed to representing my clients’ interests in the most ethical, professional, results-driven, and cost-effective manner possible.

My legal career since 2007 has been focused primarily in the area of family law. The other two areas in which I practice are (1) probate and contested estate and trust matters, and (2) collections, judgment enforcement, and civil litigation.

I have extensive experience at all court levels, including Federal District Court and the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit, as well as District and Circuit Courts throughout the State of Maryland. I have argued before the Maryland Court of Special Appeals and been victorious in each of my cases at the appellate level.

In 2011, I was nominated, selected and recognized by the Daily Record as a Maryland “Leading Woman”—an award bestowed to a small group of women, all under the age of 40 years, in recognition of their accomplishments to date in their business and legal careers. Additionally, I have been named a “Rising Star” in the area of family law by Super Lawyers Magazine each year from 2012 through 2020.

My professional memberships include the Bar Association of Montgomery County, Maryland and its Family Law Section, of which I served as co-chair from 2013-2015; the Maryland State Bar Association; the Montgomery County Chapter of the Women’s Bar Association, of which I served as President from 2015-2016; and the Inns of Court.

I am a Montgomery County native and a graduate of Georgetown Visitation Preparatory School in Washington, D.C. I earned my Bachelor of Science, with a double-major in International Affairs and Spanish and a minor in Latin American Studies, from Xavier University. My Juris Doctor is from the Cleveland-Marshall College of Law.

I am fluent in Spanish, as are a number of my paralegals.

In my free time, I enjoy spending time with my husband, our children, and our two beagles, skiing, working on home renovation projects, doing jigsaw puzzles, and using my passport. I am also an avid fan of Xavier basketball, and the Washington Nationals.