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Hon. Penney S. Azcarate (Ret.) Joins The McCammon Group

For Immediate Release
August 24, 2026
For more information contact:
Katrina F. Jones
kjones@mccammongroup.com

The Honorable Penney S. Azcarate has joined The McCammon Group, a leading provider of alternative dispute resolution (ADR) services in the mid-Atlantic.

The Honorable Penney S. Azcarate recently retired as Chief Judge of the 19th Judicial Circuit Court after eighteen years of distinguished judicial service in Fairfax County, where she made history as the first woman to serve as Chief Judge. Before her appointment to the Circuit Court, Judge Azcarate served for seven years on the Fairfax County General District Court. During her judicial tenure, she championed innovation and access to justice, establishing Virginia’s first stand-alone Veteran Treatment Docket and implementing Fairfax County’s Drug Court. Before joining the bench, Judge Azcarate served as a Fairfax County prosecutor and maintained a successful private practice in both civil litigation and criminal defense. A retired Major in the United States Marine Corps Reserves, she has also served as Chair of the Supreme Court of Virginia’s Veteran Specialty Docket and as is a two-time recipient of the Fairfax Bar Association’s President’s Award.  Judge Azcarate now brings her record of leadership, service, and excellence to The McCammon Group to serve the alternative dispute resolution needs of lawyers and litigants throughout the Commonwealth and beyond.

Since 1995, The McCammon Group has provided ADR services including mediation, arbitration, special master, ombuds, and judge pro tempore. It consists of over eighty Neutrals including retired judges and practicing attorneys located throughout Virginia, DC, and Maryland. Importantly, throughout this time The McCammon Group has achieved a settlement rate of approximately 85% in its mediation work. The McCammon Group is committed to the proposition that ADR processes provide individuals, as well as public and private entities, with many substantial benefits including effective and prompt resolution of disputes, self-determination, cost savings, timeliness, flexibility, and confidentiality.

For more information, please visit www.McCammonGroup.com

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WHAT LAWYERS AND LITIGANTS ARE SAYING:

  • "The mediator was essential to injecting reality into discussions."

  • "A truly excellent job; patient, thorough and helpful in evaluating options."

  • "Scheduling was easy, prompt and efficient."

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  • "We were able to settle a highly contentious case after years of litigation just a few weeks before trial."

  • "Great communication and easy to deal with. Excellent all around."

  • "The mediator was fair and understood how to convey the weakness of a case without being judgmental."

  • "I have always been favorably impressed by the Neutrals at The McCammon Group."

  • "The mediator handled a very difficult mediation with patience and humor."

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  • "Very efficient and courteous."

  • "Sometimes the human side of these cases leaves the practical side and they seem impossible to settle. Your "never give up" attitude carried the day."

  • "You have rendered invaluable service to me and my clients in the past, and we will continue to call upon you in the future when the need for a highly-skilled professional mediator arises."

  • "The depth and quality of the available mediators is exceptional."

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  • "The quality of your panel members allows choice and comfort in the knowledge that your matter will be fully and fairly heard and resolved."