Donna Dougherty was raised in a small town in Ohio, she attended Miami University in Oxford, Ohio, and she attend Cleveland-Marshall College of Law in Cleveland Ohio. After law school, Donna relocated to the Northern Virginia area.

After graduating from law school, Donna began practicing law in Fairfax, Virginia focusing on civil litigation to include family and real estate litigation. In 2011, Donna opened Donna Dougherty Law, PC in Prince William County with the goal of providing a boutique law firm dedicated to focusing on Family Law. Donna Dougherty Law handled a variety of complex domestic relations litigation across Northern Virginia, to include but not limited to appeals to the Court of Virginia. In fact, while serving as a Guardian ad Litem, Donna successfully defended the ruling of the Fairfax Circuit Court regarding a complex custody matter which included components of alienation and mental health issues.

In addition to all of her other accomplishments, Donna also serves as a Guardian ad Litem for children in Prince William, Fauquier, Loudoun, and Fairfax Counties. She has served in this role since her inception of the practice of law as she finds serving as an advocate for children in Family Law and Abuse and Neglect matters as one of the most important things she does as an attorney. Both in and out of the courtroom Donna is known for her strength, generosity of spirit, innovativeness, leadership, and desire to advocate for those in need.