Ronald J. McGaw

Ronald J. McGaw

also known as Judge McGaw (Retired)

5.0
Rating: 8.5

Licensed for 38 years

Family Lawyer at Poughkeepsie, NY
Practice Areas: Family, Landlord & Tenant

3 Cannon Street, Poughkeepsie, NY

About Ronald

Biography

Practice Areas

2

Practice Areas

Family 70%

20 years

70%

Fees and Rates

Cost

Hourly Rates

$ 350-350 per hour

Retainer

Sometimes


Payment Methods

  • Cash
  • Check
  • Credit Card

Looking for an attorney? Avvo can help.

search module image

Search our directory

Quickly connect with top attorneys through our legal directory to get help with your legal issue.

chat module image

Avvo's live chat agents can help coordinate a consultation with a local attorney.

Chat with a live agent who can match you with the right attorney for your legal needs.

Chat with

Licenses

Licensed in New York for 37 years

State: New York

Acquired: 1988

Currently Registered

No misconduct found

Licensed in California for 38 years

State: California

Acquired: 1987

Resigned

No misconduct found

Location

Ronald J. McGaw, Esq.

3 Cannon Street, Poughkeepsie, NY, 12601-3249

Ad

Transform legal challenges into solutions.

Connect now to review your situation.

The Avvo Rating explained

display-bg

The Avvo Rating explained

Ronald J. McGaw's Reviews

Avvo Review Score

5.0 /5.0

18 Client Reviews

Filter Avvo Reviews (18) Refine reviews to match your needs. Use the filters to quickly surface reviews that align with your case or priorities.

Showing 1 - 5 of 18 reviews

Posted by Christina | December 08, 2021 | Hired Attorney | Lawsuits & Disputes

Excellent attorney

Ron is the attorney you want. His knowledge of the law is outstanding. When I was losing hope with a previous attorney who had thankfully stepped down, Ron was appointed to me. I was losing hope until Ron explained everything to me and my entire case turned around. My desired outcome became reality. ...I couldn’t have done it without him. He is very responsive via email and explanative. He gets right to the point. A million thank you’s wouldn’t be enough to Ron. He got me back my purpose in life and for that I am forever grateful to him. Ron is the attorney you want representing you.

Posted by Dave (New York City) | October 13, 2021 | Landlord & Tenant

Genuinly Willing To Help

I had called Mr McGaw re: a Landlord/Tenant issue, and although he was not able to officially represent me on the matter, he was generous enough to spend considerable time on the phone helping me understand what I would need to do in order to resolve my problem.

Posted by George | December 14, 2020 | Hired Attorney

Very friendly and extremely professional.

Made me feel very comfortable to hire him with his level of experience. He did everything in his power to get me out of a tough situation. I would definitely recommend his services to any family or friend..

Posted by Noah | May 04, 2019 | Hired Attorney

My case - Noah June

He did an excellent job with my case. Worth every penny. Makes your issue his issue and makes it a priority to get the job done.

Posted by anonymous | April 06, 2019 | Hired Attorney | Family

Family Court Custody/Visitation

Mr. McGaw is calm, composed and extremely knowledgeable. He explained everything precisely so that I always knew what was going on. He was easy to get a hold of on the phone, prompt for court appearances and always responded to my emails. The one thing would have liked to see more of is passion for "...winning the case", although he might have helped me to be more "realistic" with my expectations, sometimes you just want to "feel" like your lawyer is going to kick butt and take names. That being said, we did "WIN THE CASE" and although Mr. McGaw was a court appointed attorney, I never felt like I got any less from him than I would have as a self pay client. I would highly recommend him to anyone for family court matters.

See All Client Reviews

Ronald J. McGaw's Lawyer Endorsements

Endorse Ronald
Theoni Stamos-Salotto headshot
Theoni Stamos-Salotto

Family lawyer | Apr 02

Relationship: Fellow lawyer in community

"I endorse this lawyer."

Bruce A. Petito headshot
Bruce Petito

Criminal defense lawyer | Apr 16

Relationship: Fellow lawyer in community

"I endorse this lawyer."

Dennis R. Vetrano headshot
Dennis Vetrano

Criminal defense lawyer | Apr 07

Relationship: Opposing Counsel on matter

"I endorse this lawyer."

Joseph Paul Petito headshot
Joseph Petito

Family lawyer | Apr 06

Relationship: Fellow lawyer in community

"I endorse this lawyer."

Steven H. Klein headshot
Steven Klein

Family lawyer | Apr 06

Relationship: Fellow lawyer in community

"I endorse this lawyer."

Joshua Paul Bannister headshot
Joshua Bannister

Criminal defense lawyer | Mar 21

Relationship: Fellow lawyer in community

"I endorse this lawyer for his knowledge, experience & contribution to the Avvo community."

Anthony C. Cillis headshot
Anthony Cillis

Family lawyer | Dec 05

Relationship: Fellow lawyer in community

"I endorse this lawyer."

Sharon Marie Faulkner headshot
Sharon Faulkner

Family lawyer | Dec 05

Relationship: Worked together on matter

"I endorse this lawyer."

Eric Stephen Shiller headshot
Eric Shiller

Family lawyer | Oct 25

Relationship: Opposing Counsel on matter

"I endorse this lawyer."

Christopher S. Coleman headshot
Christopher Coleman

Family lawyer | Aug 28

Relationship: Fellow lawyer in community

"I endorse this lawyer."

Todd W. Carpenter headshot
Todd Carpenter

Family lawyer | Aug 19

Relationship: Fellow lawyer in community

"I endorse this lawyer."

Michael A Fakhoury headshot
Michael Fakhoury

Criminal defense lawyer | Aug 14

Relationship: Fellow lawyer in community

"I endorse this lawyer. Excellent attorney and former judge."

View All Endorsements
Lee David Klein headshot
Lee Klein

Consumer protection lawyer

Bruce A. Petito headshot
Bruce Petito

Slip and fall accident lawyer

Joseph Paul Petito headshot
Joseph Petito

Family lawyer

Kent A. Pritchard Jr headshot
Kent Pritchard

Child custody lawyer

Terry David Horner headshot
Terry Horner

Appeals lawyer

Steven H. Klein headshot
Steven Klein

Divorce and separation lawyer

Richard Allen Berube headshot
Richard Berube

Criminal defense lawyer

Marco Caviglia headshot
Marco Caviglia

Criminal defense lawyer

Kelly Romano Brady headshot
Kelly Brady

Divorce and separation lawyer

Dennis R. Vetrano headshot
Dennis Vetrano

Divorce and separation lawyer

Christopher Pearce Ragucci headshot
Christopher Ragucci

Criminal defense lawyer

Christopher S. Coleman headshot
Christopher Coleman

Business lawyer

Todd W. Carpenter headshot
Todd Carpenter

Criminal defense lawyer

Eric Stephen Shiller headshot
Eric Shiller

Family lawyer

Michael A Fakhoury headshot
Michael Fakhoury

Bankruptcy and debt lawyer

Sharon Marie Faulkner headshot
Sharon Faulkner

Family lawyer

Experience

Rating:  8.5 (Excellent)

Honors

2004

Advanced Evidence Certificate, The National Judicial College

2002

When Justice Fails Certificate, The National Judicial College

2000

General Jurisdiction Certificate, The National Judicial College

1999

Constitutional Criminal Procedure Course Certificate, The National Judicial College

1985

LAW REVIEW, Univ. of San Francisco School of Law

Work Experience

1996 - 2006

City Court Judge, City of Poughkeepsie Court

1993 - 1996

Attorney, Fitzpatrick Cella Harper & Scinto

1988 - 1993

Attorney, Nims, Howes, Collison, Hansen & Lackert, PC

Associations

1996 - Present

Dutchess County Bar Association

Member

2016 - 2017

City of Poughkeepsie Charter Review Commission

Chairman

1996 - 2006

Respect for Law Alliance

Member

1996 - 2006

Dutchess County Magistrates Association

Member

Sample of Legal Cases

People v. Nicole Z.

Serious felony reduced and resolved as non-felony with no jail.

McKevitt v. McKevitt

Joint custody and nearly even split of parenting time.

People v. K. Thomas

Drinking/Driving offense negotiated down to simple fine with no suspension.

Dept. of Community and Family Services v. Francis

Dismissal of all charges

People v. Risby

Dismissal of all charges.

See More Legal Cases

Education

1987

U of San Francisco SOL

JD - Juris Doctor

1982

San Jose State Univ

BA - Bachelor of Arts

Speaking Engagements

2004

Conference on Domestic Violence

Domestic Violence

Publications

2015

Createspace Lorenzo's Daggers

2005

7 Misc. 3d 1002(A) People v. Walker

2005

9 Misc. 3d 1113(A) People v. Knapp

2004

7 Misc. 3d 885 People v. Scivolette

2003

2003 N.Y. Misc. LEXIS 588 People v. Alexander

2002

190 Misc. 2d 815 People v. Xiaojun Wang

2002

190 Misc. 2d 818 People v. Bryan

2002

193 Misc. 2d 306 People v. Sosa

2002

2002 N.Y. Misc. LEXIS 1552 People v. Garrity

2001

187 Misc. 2d 704 People v. Ruparelia

2001

2001 N.Y. Misc. LEXIS 1278 People v. Gamble

2000

186 Misc. 2d 433 People v. Whitted

1998

176 Misc. 2d 354 People v. Green

1996

1996

170 Misc. 2d 987 People v. Davis

1996

170 Misc. 2d 979 People v. Barnes

Languages

English

Activity

Avvo Rating

Our Rating is calculated using information the lawyer has included on their profile in addition to the information we collect from state bar associations and other organizations that license legal professionals. Attorneys who claim their profiles and provide Avvo with more information tend to have a higher rating than those who do not.

What determines Avvo Rating?
  • Experience & background Years licensed, work experience, education
  • Legal community recognition Peer endorsements, associations, awards
  • Legal thought leadership Publications, speaking engagements
  • Discipline Disciplinary information may not be comprehensive, or updated. We recommend that you always check a lawyer's disciplinary status with their respective state bar association before hiring them.
Avvo Rating Levels
10.0 - 9.0 Superb8.9 - 8.0 Excellent7.9 - 7.0 Very Good6.9 - 6.0 Good5.9 - 5.0 Average4.9 - 4.0 Concern3.9 - 3.0 Caution2.9 - 2.0 Strong Caution1.9 - 1.0 Extreme Caution