Lawyer of Firm Description

About Cordell & Cordell — Divorce Virginia Beach Virginia

Divorce Virginia Beach clients navigating custody battles, property division, and complex family court proceedings will find Cordell & Cordell at 477 Viking Drive to be a well-resourced firm with deep experience in contentious family law matters. The Virginia Beach office has handled high-conflict custody cases, multi-jurisdictional divorce matters involving military families, and decade-long custody disputes involving false allegations, CPS involvement, and competing legal strategies. Attorney Maggie McNamara has earned particular recognition for her courtroom tenacity, her expertise in identifying and countering narcissistic behavior in custody disputes, and her ability to achieve full custody outcomes that many clients describe as seemingly impossible before she took their cases. The firm serves both men and women, despite a reputation for representing fathers in custody proceedings.

Divorce Virginia Beach cases carry unique complexity because of the city’s large active-duty and veteran military population. Virginia Beach is home to Naval Station Norfolk, JEB Little Creek, and multiple other installations, meaning divorce and custody cases frequently involve military pay, BAH calculations, SCRA protections, and relocation orders that require an attorney familiar with both Virginia family law and military regulations. Virginia divorce attorneys at Cordell & Cordell understand these intersecting requirements and bring a structured, detail-oriented approach to every case in Virginia Beach Family Court.

Divorce Virginia Beach — Practice Areas & Services

Divorce and legal separation in Virginia Beach
Child custody and parenting plan disputes
Military divorce and SCRA compliance
Property division and equitable distribution
Child and spousal support modifications
High-conflict custody litigation

What Clients Say

Clients of Cordell & Cordell Virginia Beach describe a firm that delivers in high-stakes situations. One client described Maggie McNamara simultaneously handling three overlapping cases involving false allegations, CPS intervention, and a PI investigation — achieving dismissals, not-guilty verdicts, and full custody across all three. Another client praised attorney Joi Brown for nearly achieving 50/50 custody for a father before the child’s second birthday after 10 months of persistent effort. Attorney Erik McCauley earned recognition for handling a case “quickly, efficiently, and effectively” with realistic expectations and minimal client burden. Reviewers across multiple attorneys describe a firm that communicates well, moves cases forward, and fights where it counts.

Frequently Asked Questions

How does Virginia Beach Family Court handle child custody disputes?

Child custody cases in Virginia Beach are heard in the Virginia Beach Juvenile and Domestic Relations District Court for initial determinations, with the Circuit Court handling appeals and certain complex matters. Virginia courts apply the best interests of the child standard across 10 statutory factors, including each parent’s role in the child’s life, the child’s relationship with siblings, and each parent’s willingness to support the other’s relationship with the child. Virginia Beach’s military population adds additional considerations around relocation and deployment that require attorneys experienced with both state family law and the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act.

What are the grounds for divorce in Virginia Beach, Virginia?

Virginia recognizes both fault and no-fault divorce grounds. No-fault divorce requires separation for one year — or six months if the parties have no minor children and have a signed separation agreement. Fault grounds include adultery, cruelty, desertion, and felony conviction with imprisonment. Adultery can bar spousal support for the at-fault spouse, making the choice of grounds strategically significant. An experienced Virginia Beach divorce attorney can assess which grounds apply to your situation and how the choice affects property division, support, and custody negotiations.

Quick Facts: Divorce in Virginia Beach, Virginia

Virginia Crash & Demographic Data: Virginia DMV publishes annual traffic crash facts including Virginia Beach area data — Virginia DMV Traffic Crash Facts
Virginia No-Fault Divorce: Virginia Code §20-91 requires one year of separation (six months with no minor children and a settlement agreement) for no-fault divorce — Virginia Code
Military Divorce Protections: The Servicemembers Civil Relief Act (SCRA) governs stay of proceedings and default protections for active-duty servicemembers — 50 U.S.C. §3901

Related Guide: Divorce Lawyers Directory

AI-Powered Reviews Summary

Cordell & Cordell – Divorce Attorney Office in Virginia Beach, Virginia, is a highly regarded law firm specializing in divorce and family law services. Many clients praise the firm for its attentive and effective representation, with attorneys like Maggie McNamara and Joi Brown receiving accolades for their dedication, communication, and expertise in handling complex custody cases. Overall, clients express gratitude for the support they received during challenging times, highlighting the firm’s commitment to achieving favorable outcomes for their clients.

Users Reviews Comments – Google

Originally we hired Maggie McNamera for my then boyfriend, for his divorce/custody. We hired her after hearing a friend who is a court reporter say “she’s a spit fire in the courtroom.” I was also in the middle of a divorce from a special forces guy, that should have been cut and dry but it wasn’t. I assumed she only represented men but she took my case too. Soon, my first fighter pilot husband of 12 years, that I have 2 kids with, that has taken me to court for the last 10 years, enters the group chat. The 2 Navy guys team up to try to take my house and my kids, along with a PI. Maggie represented all 3 of our cases together, along with her other clients effortlessly. I have been represented by many over the years and felt like I was “reminding them” each week about my case. Not Maggie. My exes filed false allegations and tried to get me and my boyfriend fired, I resigned, I was arrested, CPS case opened, attack to my nursing license, endless list of attacks. Maggie got every single thing shut down/not guilty/dismissed. They were all made up. Now the boyfriend and I are happily married in our home I fought to keep, full custody of my kids (after 10 years) and my step son just moved in with us full time too. She is an expert on Narcissist behavior now and how to win against it. Forever grateful for her.

This law firm was a bitter disappointment, we spent over $5,000 and cannot identify ANYTHING that was done that helped with our case. I would not under any circumstances recommend this law firm.

I had a consultation with Maggie Mcnamera and initially thought she and the office staff were great. However after my initial consultation all communication from both her and her paralegal stopped. I left multiple messages with the staff and was told for the past week that Maggie would reach out to by the end of business that day, or the next day. Despite these promises I never received a phone call from Maggie or her staff. Today I get a phone call from the staff at Cordell and Cordell saying they are “no longer accepting new clients”. Essentially wasting a week of my time when trying to deal with a time sensitive legal issue regarding the custody of my Daughter. Extremely disappointed and frustrated with both the time and money I’ve wasted.

Fantastic law firm, highly recommended. Maggie McNamara was great to work with. Very personable and right on point. Communications always flowed seamlessly and on time.

I would highly recommend Cordell & Cordell to any man who is going through a custody battle. My attorney Maggie McNemara was top notch. She was able to quickly become in tune with my specific custody situation and needs, gave me excellent advice throughout the entire process, and worked diligently to give me a very favorable outcome to my case. As a man, I was nervous about fighting for custody of my young child, but Maggie ensured me that I did have a strong case, put me at ease about many details of the process, and got me the results that I wanted.

Very unimpressed with this law office and more specifically Drew Ashcraft (apparently this is some sort of summer assistant the associates pawn their work on). They have blown through $11,000 with nothing to show…not even the defendant being served. This law firm is good at making money for themselves.

Cordell & Cordell is your best option. I had consultations with various Lawyers but clearly this Law Firm stood out from the rest. Jacob Smith is a fantastic lawyer. He is professional and excels in all legal matters. I had been struggling with custody problems for almost a decade. Due to Jacob Smith and his team these custody problems have been resolved for the best. I can not thank them enough for all their advice and hard work.

My experience with Cordell&Cordell has been amazing to say the least! Joi Brown really is a compassionate mother of 3. She has really worked hard on my case for the past 10 months and never let up. The time and effort she has put in my custody case really paid off. I am going to almost have 50/50 custody before she is 2 years old. I would recommend Joi Brown to any Fathers out there struggling and think they have no hope.

Joi Brown & Lisa Small were awesome to work with. They kept me updated every step of the way and I couldn’t have been happier with the end results. Thank you both for your hard work and genuine concern for my interests.

This lawyer firm targets divorce men this is the worst lawyer firm I’ve ever dealt with with money the lawyer was great Miss Brown but this company is all about money money they get your credit card and run it to there’s nothing left on it and then one another one I went to court twice maybe an hour each time and they didn’t do nothing but paperwork and charge me almost $8,000 and told me when I was in there it would probably run me for 5,000 Max and it’s still climbing and they have not done anything else for me they are charging me for trying to collect that money the balance this is a money hungry lawyer firm do not use them .

To be honest, I was hesitate at first to call because I noticed they specialize in helping Men with Divorce and legal matters so Initially as a female I was not going to call. However, the Attorney I wanted was part of Cordell and Cordell so I decided to go in for the initial consult and I am so thankful I did. I’m not disappointed.

Erik McCauley and his office were a great asset in ensuring that I had my case handled quickly, efficiently, and effectively. The firm continually contacted me to inform me of what was occurring as well to ensure that I was taken care of and not left wanting. Everyone at the firm treated me well and made sure that I felt valued as a customer. They led me to realistic expectations and allowed my case to be resolved without any headache or astronomical cost. There was very little work necessary on my part. 10/10 recommendation!!

From the first time I walked in, no more than five minutes later, I knew that I made the right choice. Every one presented themselves extremely caring and professional. Put you at ease about dealing with stressful situation. Can’t express enough how much I appreciate them on my side.Each one can easily stand on their own,, t but together they are unstoppable. If you find yourself facing divorce, there isn’t any better. Do yourself a favor and go with them, best decision you can make.

My Divorce was already final, but once my Kids got close to 18 years old, My X wife decided to file a show cause saying I owe $3800 dollars in medical bills. I thought no problem I kept all receipts and cashed checks, I will go to court and produce them and it will be a simple case. Well in JDR court the judge never looked at any evidence and just ruled for the mother. I was shocked but long story short, I appealed the decision to circuit court. I had to pay the full amount to the court in order to appeal. I decided to hire an attorney to make sure I am heard. I found cordelllaw, “Divorce lawyers for men” I hired them, The attorney’s name was Joi, She seemed like a nice person, however I wished she would not have wasted my time and just come up behind me and say, “stick um up” all she did was drain my finances until I could no longer pay then dropped me as a client a month before the case that I hired her to represent me. She subpoenaed receipts from medical providers for my kids all the way back to 2014. Some providers said they have no receipts anymore and my daughter over 18 they would not send, but I am being charged for all this when I told her there is no need to do that because I have every receipt she ever sent me and the checks that I sent my X that she cashed. She never looked at those once. My X wife filed another show cause asking to claim my youngest on her taxes, and so confident of her success in court that she claimed him before we got to court. My attorney set up a phone meeting to discuss court, in which she advised me to write a check for 170.00 to give to my X at court. I was confused but I was thinking, she is the attorney, maybe she see’s something I am not. The day of court I decided to ask her about it before court and I showed her the show caused and then she said , “this is not even in the right format and she objected to that in court and it was dismissed, but that showed me that she did not even look at the paperwork until I showed it to her before court. With all that I had paid Cordellaw over $7000 and she was saying I owe more, Keep in mind, only 3800 is at stake. I asked her again to stop requesting receipts that I already have, she told me about due diligence and other legal terms that only made me think that she passed her legal glossary terms in law school, and I told her what good is due diligence if all it does is drain your client dry and leave him without an attorney on the court date that he hired you to represent him. I told her I only paid 3000 for the whole contested divorce. My bill now is approaching 10,000 dollars like this is a murder trial or something and still being charged for what I will call nonsense that will be of no help to me in court. Well I went to court by myself, fortunately in circuit court the judge did look at the evidence, and she could not produce any receipts that I did not pay in the parameter dates of the show cause, If I had an attorney present, that attorney could have insist that the show cause be dismissed, or something else to defend me, but since I didn’t have one present, The judge told me that she will extend the show cause dates to present and gave her a extra month to come up with receipts, so we have to go back to court in a month, There is a lot more I can say but I will end this here. In my opinion, I was ripped off and taken advantage of. I only worked with one attorney here but their billing process sucks and it seems they do a lot of unnecessary things to bill you more and more and leave you in more debt. This is my opinion, Billy is a nickname, My name is Darren, I would strongly suggest you seek legal help elsewhere.

Great service, answered all my questions and always stayed in touch and Kept me up-to-date throughout the whole process. Divorce is a terrible Thing to go through but they definitely made it a lot less painful, thanks Jonah , Lisa and the rest of the team