Jean Galloway Ball

Jean Galloway Ball is a senior partner at Hale Ball Murphy, PLC, in Fairfax, Virginia. She focuses on elder law, estate and life-care planning, special needs trusts, guardianships, conservatorships, probate, and trust administration. Her practice also includes fiduciary litigation involving contested guardianships, will and trust disputes, allegations of financial exploitation, and requests for accountings. She works with older adults, people with disabilities, and families planning for care, financial management, and asset transfers.

Jean earned a B.A. from the University of California at Berkeley, where she was elected to Phi Beta Kappa, and a J.D. with honors from George Washington University. Her legal education supports work that combines estate documents, court proceedings, and the protection of vulnerable individuals. She is admitted to practice in Virginia, Maryland, the District of Columbia, and California, as well as before the U.S. Supreme Court and the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia.

Jean represents clients in contested guardianships, will contests, trust administration disputes, elective share claims, and cases involving the financial exploitation of vulnerable adults. Her representative cases include Estate of Parfitt v. Parfitt, Dowling v. Rowan, and Andrews v. Creacey. She is certified in elder law by the National Elder Law Foundation. Her practice connects forward-looking care and estate planning with litigation when trustees, agents, or family members dispute their responsibilities.

Jean Galloway Ball is a Fellow of the National Academy of Elder Law Attorneys and has chaired its Council of Advanced Practitioners Steering Committee. She is also a past president of the Virginia Academy of Elder Law Attorneys. She was named Best Lawyers’ 2020 Elder Law Lawyer of the Year for the Washington, D.C., area and has received Super Lawyers and AV peer-review recognition. Her work advances planning and advocacy for seniors, people with disabilities, and their families.

Law Office Affiliations

• Senior Partner, Murphy Law Group, LLC
• Member, Virginia State Bar
• Member, Maryland State Bar Association
• Member, District of Columbia Bar
• Member, The State Bar of California
• Chair, Steering Committee, Council of Advanced Practitioners (CAP), National Academy of Elder Law Attorneys (NAELA)
• Past President (Two-Term), Virginia Academy of Elder Law Attorneys
• Member, Virginia Trial Lawyers Association
• Member, Fairfax Bar Association
• Member, American Bar Association, Litigation and Estates and Trusts Section
• Member, Virginia Women Attorneys Association
• Member, Academy of Special Needs Planners

Licensed State

• Virginia
• Maryland
• District of Columbia
• California

Education

• George Washington University
  Juris Doctor (JD)
• University of California at Berkeley
  Bachelor of Arts (BA)

Awards & Badges