William Burford resigns from JP Morgan Private Bank to return to MWE’s Private Client practice
McDermott Will & Emery announced today that William R. Burford has rejoined the Firm as a partner in the Private Client Practice Group, resident in the Los Angeles office. Mr. Buford’s arrival marks the second to the Firm’s West Coast Private Client team this year, following the arrival of Laurelle Gutierrez in the Firm’s Silicon Valley office in January.
Mr. Burford, who served as counsel and partner with McDermott from 2006 to 2011, rejoins the Firm from J.P. Morgan Private Bank where he was a Managing Director for Wealth Advisory. In that role, he worked with clients and their advisors to identify estate and tax planning opportunities and implement comprehensive strategies to meet their personal, financial and charitable objectives.
At McDermott, Mr. Burford will focus his practice on advising clients and their families on matters related to tax and estate planning, probate and trust administration, and estate and trust controversies.
“We are delighted to welcome Bill back to McDermott,” said Carol Harrington, partner and head of McDermott’s Private Client Practice Group. “He is a seasoned and highly experienced practitioner who will be of tremendous value to our West Coast clients, which includes affluent families and highly successful high tech entrepreneurs and business owners. Bill is well acquainted with the unique and often complex needs of high net worth individuals, their families and business concerns.”
“I’m very pleased to be back at McDermott and to have the opportunity to return to the practice of law, serving the Firm’s very sophisticated clients,” said Mr. Burford. “McDermott‘s Private Client Practice Group is recognized as one of the premiere T&E practices in the nation, and I am honored to work with this outstanding team of lawyers.”
Bill’s articles have appeared in a variety of publications, including Trusts & Estates, Estate Planning, the Tax Management Estates, Gifts and Trusts Journal, the California Trusts & Estates Quarterly, the Los Angeles Lawyer, the Los Angeles Business Journal and the California Family Law News. He has been an instructor in State Bar of California CEB programs and speaks regularly to both legal and non-legal audiences on estate planning, trust administration and related topics.
Mr. Burford received his LL.M. in taxation from the New York University School of Law. While at the New York University School of Law, he served as a graduate editor of the Tax Law Review. He earned his J.D. (cum laude) from the University of Michigan Law School, and his B.A. in economics with high distinction from the University of Michigan.
McDermott Will & Emery’s Private Client Practice Group represents high net worth individuals, families and closely held businesses with an extraordinary focus on clients’ specific, unique objectives. The Firm’s team of nearly 70 lawyers and 30 non-lawyer professionals is recognized by prestigious organizations as the top private client practice in the United States and among the top practices worldwide. In 2011, U.S. News–Best Lawyers named McDermott “Law Firm of the Year” in Trusts & Estates Law. Chambers USA ranked McDermott’s Private Client Practice Group in the top tier nationwide from 2006 to 2014, and three times McDermott was the only firm ranked in the top tier.
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