Richard Edelin Crouch (Age 85)
Memorial service info
Richard Edelin Crouch, 85, of Arlington, Virginia, died peacefully of advanced Parkinson’s Disease on Christmas Eve, Wednesday, December 24, 2025, with his family by his side, in his room at Sunrise at Bluemont Park in Arlington. Richard was born December 3, 1940, in Washington, D.C. Richard is survived by his wife of 60 years, Mary Crouch, son John Crouch (wife Laura), grandchildren Jack, Griffin and Fiona Crouch of Arlington, sister Stephanie Crouch Burgess, brother J. Douglas Crouch, and many nieces, nephews, cousins and friends. He was preceded in death by his daughter Virginia (Ginny) Crouch, brother Howard Rodney Crouch, and his parents.
Richard was dedicated to preserving knowledge and physical reminders of our history. He served on the Boards of Frying Pan Farm Park, the Fairfax Historical Society, and many other local historical organizations. He led the rebuilding and preservation of his thrice-great grandfather Jesse Crouch’s home in Boones Creek, Tennessee. He was the author of Brandy Station: A Battle Like None Other; Rough-Riding Scout: The story of John W. Mobberly, Loudoun’s Own Civil War Guerrilla; and The Virginia Gentleman: A Field Guide, an Owner’s Manual, a History, and a Way of Life.
Richard is a 1958 graduate of Washington-Lee High School in Arlington. He completed his undergraduate and law degrees at the College of William & Mary in Williamsburg. After law school, he served for four years as a lawyer in the U.S. Army Judge Advocate General’s Corps after completing basic training and infantry commander training. From 1968-1981, he worked as a legal writer and editor for the legal publisher BNA, writing for Criminal Law Reporter and United States Law Week before becoming the first editor of Family Law Reporter. At the same time he practiced law in Arlington, focusing on military law, criminal law, family law, legal malpractice and discipline, and especially civil liberties and other public-interest litigation. His practice became officially full-time in the early 1980s, with an increasing focus on family law. He became one of the first specialists in inter-state and international family law. Richard was a partner in the law firm Crouch & Crouch alongside his son John until his retirement in 2018.
Richard was involved in the drafting of divorce laws such as those about property division, diplomats’ pensions, and the first ethics code for mediators. He was long active in the American Bar Association Family Law Section, the American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers, the International Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers, and local bar associations. From 1991 to 2014, he served on the State Bar Family Law Section’s Board of Governors and edited its quarterly. He was the author of Family Law Checklists, published by West Group, Interstate Custody Litigation, published by BNA, The Legal Status of Homemakers in Virginia, published by the Government Printing Office, and the editor, then co-editor with John Crouch, of Negotiating and Drafting Marital Agreements, published by Virginia Continuing Legal Education.
He was buried in the Crouch family plot in Chestnut Grove Cemetery in Herndon. A memorial service was held at his church, Church of Our Saviour at Oatlands near Leesburg.
In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations be made to The Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson’s Research.
Submitted by Crouch & Crouch
