Dana McKee is one of Maryland’s foremost family law attorneys and a partner of Brown, Goldstein & Levy. She chairs the firm’s family law practice and has extensive experience representing clients with high net worth who are experiencing complex family law cases, including divorce, custody, and related financial issues. Clients turn to Dana for her leading expertise across all aspects of family law that affect their lives, with an emphasis on:

• Divorce and separation agreements
• Custody and visitation
• Child support
• Prenuptial and post-nuptial agreements
• Appeals

Dana provides the highest-caliber legal services that bring each one of her client’s voices centerstage. She is an award-winning divorce attorney recognized for her work across a wide variety of trials, mediations, and appeals. Dana began her career in complex commercial litigation and brings valuable financial insight to her family law and divorce practice that can help settle even the toughest of familial disputes.

Clients regard her as a tough negotiator who is dedicated to bringing justice to the family law system, one case at a time. Through her years of legal practice, Dana’s experience has extended far beyond the courtroom. A compassionate advocate for all stakeholders in a case, Dana understands that often, divorce litigation is not appropriate for protecting the best interests of the families and children tied to a dispute. She is trained and experienced in Collaborative Law; an alternative dispute resolution process that takes family law matters out of the courtroom.

Committed to securing the best possible outcome for each case, Dana uses a combination of passion, ethic, and tenacity to get the job done. She is a recognized Maryland Super Lawyer, Best Lawyer in America, and top female lawyer in the state of Maryland.

Dana serves as a Court Ordered Settlement Conference Facilitator for the Family Division of the Circuit Court for Baltimore City and has taught courses on custody issues for the National Association of Social Workers. Prior to joining Brown, Goldstein & Levy in 1995, Dana was an attorney with Frank, Bernstein, Conaway & Goldman, where her practice was devoted exclusively to complex commercial litigation.

Outside of the courtroom, Dana is a dedicated member of her community. She has served as the Vice-President and then President of the Ten Hills Community Association. She was instrumental in obtaining the historical designation for the Ten Hills community. She also worked closely with city officials and leaders from the surrounding communities in the redevelopment of the abandoned Uplands Apartments in Southwest Baltimore.

Practice Areas

• Family Law
• Divorce
• Custody and Visitation
• Prenuptial Agreements
• Appeals

Education

• Duke University School of Law, J.D., 1985
• Johns Hopkins University, B.A. with General Honors, 1981

Bar Admissions

• District of Columbia
• Maryland
• New Jersey

Activities

• International Academy of Collaborative Professionals, Member
• Collaborative Professionals of Baltimore, Board Member
• Howard County Collaborative Professionals, Member
• Baltimore County Bar Association Family Law Committee
• Baltimore City Bar Association Family Law Committee
• Maryland Volunteer Lawyers Service, Board Member
• Maryland Association of Justice, Member

REPRESENTATIVE CASES

• Experienced in representing professionals and business owners in divorces so that the division of marital property and future support payments do not financially cripple them.
• Successfully represented parents in custody matters in which the children were at risk of harm from the other parent.
• Experienced in negotiating and drafting prenuptial agreements for wealthy individuals who want to protect their assets and cash flow in the event of a divorce. Individuals represented have included physicians, lawyers, executives, real estate developers, and business owners.
• Successfully utilized the Collaborative Law process in divorce and custody matters where the parties desire to work together to achieve a better outcome that allows them to move forward in their lives with dignity and respect.
• Represented parents in custody disputes involving children ranging in age from infants to teens.
• Represented individuals in their divorce actions with assets such as vineyards, curated art collections, minority owned businesses, healthcare practices, law firms, private equity firms, stock/stock options, real estate investments, racehorses and water-front homes.
• Located and obtained the return of a child hidden by a parent for more than a year in an interstate custody dispute.
• Successfully challenged the validity of prenuptial and post-nuptial agreements.
• Experienced in representing retirees or those nearing retirement in their divorces to maximize the division of assets and future support in a manner that allows both spouses to move forward with their lives in an equitable manner.
• Experienced in representing parents in custody matters where one or both parents suffer from a physical or psychological condition that may be inaccurately perceived by others as interfering with their ability to properly care for their children.
• Experienced in negotiating prenuptial agreements on behalf of the less-affluent party so they are protected in the event of their future spouse’s death or divorce.
• Represented spouses in their divorces from local and national public figures.
• Successfully located and obtained the return of a parent-abducted child.
• Represented individuals in divorces with significant assets at stake (closely-held businesses, professional practices, investments, stock options, etc.).
• Successfully represented financially dependent spouses in obtaining permanent or rehabilitative alimony.
• Have negotiated and drafted prenuptial agreements for individuals who expect to achieve significant wealth during the course of their careers.
• Represented individuals, who were in or nearing retirement, in divorces contesting the division of marital property and alimony.
• Experience in divorce cases where a spouse is mentally ill, a substance user or otherwise disabled.
• Successfully challenged the paternity of children, who were born during the marriage as a result of an affair.
• Successfully invalidated a prenup on behalf of an attorney, who claimed that the prenup that he signed was not the one that he had reviewed, and the agreement was so-one sided that it was unconscionable.
• Experienced in handling custody disputes in which a parent has a substance addiction.
• Regularly represent divorce clients who are in retirement or nearing retirement.
• Represented clients at family mediations in contested divorce and child custody matters.
• Represented clients in their divorce using the Collaborative Process when the assistance of mental health and financial professionals were helpful and necessary for the successful resolution of complex custody and financial disputes.
• Regularly represent parents in custody disputes in which one parent lives out of state.
• Regularly fight for the rights of fathers to have sole or shared custody of their children.

AWARDS

• Best Lawyers in America for Family Law and Commercial Litigation, 2014–present
• Maryland Super Lawyers in Family Law, 2013–present
• Top 50 Women Maryland Super Lawyers, 2014, 2015, 2018
• Top 100 Maryland Super Lawyers, 2014, 2015

PRESENTATIONS

• Panelist, “Currency Conversations – Guiding Women to Financial Literacy and Empowerment,” sponsored by The Johns Hopkins University Alumni Association’s Finance Affinity Group, November 13, 2019
• Co-Presenter, “Role of the Mental Health Coach in the Collaborative Process,” at the October 2017 Meeting of the Collaborative Professionals of Baltimore