James Ray Cottrell

James Ray Cottrell has been with the firm since 1977. As the senior attorney, he has experience in all aspects of family law and has tried every conceivable kind of domestic relations case in the trial and appellate courts of the Commonwealth of Virginia.

A passionate and aggressive advocate, Mr. Cottrell has been consistently featured in the Washingtonian Magazine and other periodicals as one of the top family lawyers in the Washington, D.C. Metropolitan Area. He has been listed in The Best Lawyers in America every year since 1989. He is a recipient of the Virginia State Bar Family Law Section’s Distinguished Service Award as well as the Betty A. Thompson Lifetime Achievement Award from the Virginia State Bar Family Law Section. As a holder of the Martindale-Hubbell Legal Directory “AV” rating, he is listed among its Preeminent Lawyers. He has also been selected for inclusion in Super Lawyers, Northern Virginia Magazine, and other peer ranked publications.

Mr. Cottrell is a past Chairman of the Family Law Section Board of Governors of the Virginia State Bar and has been a member of the faculty of the Professionalism Course for newly admitted members of the Bar. He has also served on Boyd-Graves Committees which recommended statutory changes to the Virginia legislature.

Mr. Cottrell is the co-author of Virginia Practice, Family Law: Theory, Practice and Forms, a treatise regularly utilized by law schools, judges, and family law practitioners in the Commonwealth of Virginia. Mr. Cottrell has a well-established reputation as an organized, articulate and skilled family lawyer and trial attorney. He lectures regularly on various family law subjects and is a frequent guest lecturer at law schools and to professional groups.

Mr. Cottrell’s practice focuses on the resolution, through both trial and mediation, of large net worth cases involving complex tracing, transmutation, business valuation and equitable distribution issues. Other challenging and interesting cases he has routinely conducted include international child custody issues and child abuse cases in tandem with custody proceedings . He has many reported appellate cases. Mr. Cottrell regularly conducts oral arguments before the Virginia Court of Appeals and has argued several cases before the Supreme Court of Virginia.

Many past clients have returned to Mr. Cottrell for family-related and other legal needs. A detailed listing of Mr. Cottrell’s memberships and professional affiliations can be found here.

 

Education

UNIVERSITY OF RICHMOND
Juris Doctor, 1976

VIRGINIA MILITARY INSTITUTE
B.A., English, 1974

Bar Admissions

Virginia, District of Columbia

Activities & Affiliations

  • Alexandria, Arlington and Fairfax Bar Associations

  • American Bar Association, Member, Family Law Section

  • Virginia State Bar, Family Law Section

    • Member, 1986-present

    • Secretary, 1987-1988

    • Vice Chairman, 1988-1989

    • Chairman, 1989-1990, Board of Governors

  • Virginia Trial Lawyers Association.