DC and MD Matrimonial Lawyer Focusing on Custody, Divorce and Prenups
For over 20 years, Regina A. DeMeo has been helping families in MD and DC with custody and divorce issues either through mediation, litigation or advocacy. She is an alumna of Georgetown University and GW University Law School, who is nationally recognized as a top matrimonial attorney. She is frequently quoted in the media for her ideas to promote healthier relationships and featured in the Washington Post, ABA Journal and Bethesda Magazine for her care and commitment to her clients. As a legal commentator, she has appeared on Washington Post Express Facebook Live, ABC tv, Good Morning America, MMCTV, YouTube and Sirius XM, and has been quoted in various magazines, books and journals across the country.
Regina offers appointments in Maryland and DC. Her areas of practice include:
Latest Blog Posts by GenXSmartie
Fireworks & Buckets
Some of us are originally wired to put people into one of only two buckets-- they are either in or out; you either like them or you don't. Sadly, this leaves people with a very small margin of error, and as a result first impressions count for a tremendous amount. But as it turns out, some people can talk a great game in the beginning, and others need more time to warm up and share parts of themselves with others. In dating, I have found that instead of an in-or-out mentality, which can be overly harsh, it might be better to create 3 buckets: (1) yes; (2) no; and (3) maybe. With this latter category, I try to suspend judgment and not expect a "wow" moment right away. Letting go of the fireworks isn't easy, but as more than one friend has pointed out to me those with fireworks in the beginning have a proven tendency to burnout quickly. Under the "wow" spell (which may be induced by someone's looks, smarts or charm), we have tendency to ignore some pretty major red-flags, so perhaps when you come to this realization, you may want to implement a different approach. As a romantic, it may be really hard to let go of the love-at-first-sight scenario, but after enough of these relationships go [...]
Making a Clean Break
In today's Washington Post there was an article about break-ups in the age of modern technology. As a divorce attorney, I've obviously been involved with many break-ups over the past 14 years, not including those in my personal life over the last 20 years. One thing is clear- technology has definitely made it easier for many to limit their communications and rein in their emotions by sticking to text and email versus an actual phone call or in person meeting. Depending on how long you have been together, however, text or email won't always cut it, and if you have stuff you need to exchange, there is no avoiding the in-person meeting. Whatever method you use, I strongly encourage people to try and keep it civil-- short and sweet is often best. Also remember that not every email or text requires a response, and sometimes silence can say it all. If you have to say something, just remember that things can go viral fast. While there is that old adage "hell hath no fury like a woman scorned,"men are quickly proving themselves to be hot heads too these days-- if you disagree, I just have 2 words: revenge porn. To both sexes, my advice would be don't say or do anything that would embarrass your mom. The best thing to [...]
With Relationships, Perfection Is The Enemy of Good
Voltaire is credited with the saying, "perfection is the enemy of the good." No where is that more appropriate than in personal relationships. No one is pefect-- we all have our flaws, and sadly those who are stubbornly waiting for Mr. or Ms. Perfect to come around are probably going to die alone. For those who are motivated to share your lives with someone, you need to learn to pick your battles. This applies during the dating phase, in marriages, and especially as a parent. The fact is whenever you are trying to co-exist with someone, in order to avoid a constant battle of wills, you have to learn when to give in a little and find compromise. You cannot always have your way, and everything will not always go according to your plans. I have learned to accept this, and instead I just do my checklist to make sure that the good outweighs the bad. I admit that my attitude adjustment didn't happen overnight, and in large part stems from having witnessed so many people throw away their spouses or friends like disposable Kleenex. Let me assure you that the grass is not always greener on the other side-- dating or living on your own post-divorce has a million challenges of its own. Therefore, if there is still good [...]
Understanding Athletes
There is a small percentage of us that get to compete nationally, train at the Olympic Training Center, and enjoy the spotlight at an early age. I was very fortunate to have this experience, but I retired from rhythmic gymnastics after my freshman year at Georgetown, because I knew I did not want to be a professional athlete and that there was too much risk in taking a year off to train for the Olympic trials. Instead, I focused on becoming a lawyer, and building a national brand-- but making this shift was far from easy. Being a committed athlete is something that impacts your entire life-- it means you watch what you eat, you are dedicated to working out daily, you make sure to get adequate rest, and you sacrifice a huge part of your social life with others while training and traveling to competitions. Your sport is a huge part of your identity, and some will always remember you just this way. To this day, many of my former classmates write to me and say that whenever they watch the Olympic gymnasts they think of me. It is amazing that 20 years post-retirement, I still have people asking me if I'm involved at all in my former sport. Just to be clear-- I made a clean break [...]