Roach attended Washington and Lee University for his undergraduate studies.
After law school he clerked for Judge Pierce Lively on the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit.
Thereafter, Roach was an attorney with Akin, Gump, Strauss, Hauer & Feld in Washington, D.C.
In 1995, he joined the law firm of Ransdell, Roach & Wier, PLLC in Lexington, Kentucky and was a partner there from 1996 until 2001.
Roach was General Counsel to Governor Fletcher before his appointment to the bench at the age of 38.