Sogand Zamani is the founding and managing principal of the firm. She is a strong, creative and persistent advocate of her client’s interests throughout representation in all aspects of family and domestic relations law. As a former client observed: “Her legal talents are matched in their quality and depth only by her ability to connect on a human level with clients.”

Her practice includes adoption, assisted reproductive technology (ART), child custody, child protective services investigations, divorce, division of businesses and complex assets, Hague abduction matters, relocation, child support, spousal support, domestic violence protection orders, premarital or cohabitation agreements, and parenting agreements.

Sogand is called upon by colleagues and/or courts to serve in her capacity as a trained mediator, parent coordinator, best interest attorney (Guardian ad litem) for minor children, and parent coordinator to aid parents in reaching parenting plans. Sogand is a strong advocate for Collaborative dispute resolution processes and leader in the Collaborative community, representing individuals seeking to pursue divorce and dissolution in a dignified and less acrimonious way through the Collaborative practice. When out-of-court options do not suffice, she is equal to the task of litigating matters with pragmatism and discretion through appeal.

Family Law (Custody/Divorce). A significant portion of Sogand's practice is devoted to representing individuals and families in domestic and international custody and divorce disputes. Sogand has a strength in bringing discretion and a strong attention to detail to complex financial and business disputes in divorce and in negotiation of premarital agreements. Sogand helps craft unique, creative solutions in cases with complex mental health issues (substance abuse, difficult personalities, resist-refuse dynamics), relocation challenges, and cross-cultural and cross-jurisdictional issues given her years of experience, educational background, language proficiencies, and experience in international mediation and conflict resolution.

Family formation (Adoption/Assisted Reproductive Technology). Sogand assists adoptive parents and birth parents in independent or agency adoptions, foster parent and stepparent adoptions, break the seal petitions, and other related proceedings, including proceedings involving sensitive LGBTQ+ considerations. She also advocates for and represents individuals and couples seeking to use ART, such as gestational carrier (surrogacy) arrangements and donor egg and/or embryo arrangements to create or expand their family.

Community Involvement. Sogand has worked extensively in her community to improve the field of family law and accessibility to individuals of modest means. Currently, she volunteers on the Domestic Relations Subcommittee of the D.C. Superior Court to help the court meet the changing needs of the family law community. Sogand is the co-founder and past-present (2012-2015) of the Collaborative Project of D.C., a non-profit entity seeking to bring collaborative resources to individuals of modest means in the D.C. metropolitan area, and continues to serve on its Board. She is also the co-founder of and volunteer for Third Thursday’s, a free divorce workshop that takes place virtually on the third Thursday of each month. Previously, Sogand completed a three-year elected term on the Alternative Dispute Resolution Section Board of the Maryland State Bar Association (2012-2015), and six years as a Board Member (2012-2018) to the D.C. Academy of Collaborative Professionals, for which she served as a past-President (2014-2015).

Sogand enjoys volunteering on the Board for Voices for Children Montgomery County, which trains volunteers who aid children in foster care, and for D.C. Prep, a charter school system in Washington, D.C. serving some of the District's most vulnerable children. Sogand has guest lectured at American University Washington College of Law, Howard University Law School, Catholic Law School, and Georgetown Law School on the subjects of Assisted Reproductive Technology, child welfare, divorce and practice management, as well as at the George Washington University Law School, Catholic Law School and the University of Maryland Law School on the subject of Collaborative law.

Accolades:

Sogand is routinely recognized by her peers in publications, including:

• The Washingtonian Top Lawyers

• Bethesda Magazine Top Attorneys (Divorce, Adoption)

• Super Lawyers Washington, D.C.

• Top 50 Women Washington, D.C. Super Lawyers

• Martindale Hubbell (A.V. Preeminent Ranking)

• Best Lawyers, U.S. News & World Reports

• Zamani & Associates PLLC is listed as a Tier 1 Best Law Firm in U.S. News & World Reports for in the area of family law in Washington, D.C. 

Sogand’s professional involvement has included:

• Past-President (2014-2015), Board Member (2012-2018), and member of D.C. Academy of Collaborative Professionals

• Past-President (2012-2015), Board Member (2012-present), Collaborative Project of Washington, D.C.

• Council Member, Alternative Dispute Resolution Section, Maryland State Bar Association (2012-2015)

• Board Member and Co-Chair, Education Committee (2013-2014), Collaborative Dispute Resolution Professionals of Montgomery County, MD

• Member, D.C. Bar Association (Family Law Section)

• Member, Maryland State Bar Association (Family Law and ADR Sections)

• Bar Association of Montgomery County (Family Law and ADR Sections)

• Member, LBGT+ Family Law Institute

• Member, Subcommittee on Assisted Reproductive Technologies of the Family Law Section of the American Bar Association

• Professional Member, American Society of Reproductive Medicine

• Member, Maryland Collaborative Practice Council

Education

Sogand received her Juris Doctor from The George Washington University Law School. There she was Executive Articles Editor of the American Intellectual Property Law Association Quarterly Journal, a member of the Moot Court Board and Mock Trial Board, Champion of the Cohen & Cohen Mock Trial Competition, and a student intern with the Honorable Judge Peter J. Messitte at the United States District Court for the Southern District of Maryland. She received a Master of Arts from Harvard University Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, and a Bachelor of Science cum laude from Georgetown University School of Foreign Service. Sogand is proficient in French and Persian.