J. William Gray, a leading authority on charitable giving and tax-exempt organizations, has joined McGuireWoods’ nationally recognized Private Wealth Services Group as a partner in Richmond.
Gray focuses his practice on nonprofit and charitable advisory services. In a career that spans nearly four decades, he has helped clients form numerous charities, business leagues, social welfare organizations and other tax-exempt entities and obtain federal, state and local tax exemptions. He counsels charities and other nonprofits on planned giving, tax reporting, disclosure and corporate governance issues, and advises high-net-worth clients in their charitable gift planning.
Gray, who comes to McGuireWoods from Hunton & Williams, is a fellow of the American College of Trust & Estate Counsel and a frequent speaker at state and national programs on charitable giving, nonprofit formation, planned giving and compliance. He is a founding director and former president of the Virginia Gift Planning Council and serves on the National Association of Charitable Gift Planners’ board of directors. He also is a member of the Virginia Bar Association committee that reviews and crafts state legislation dealing with wills, trusts and estates.
“It is a real coup for us to attract a lawyer of Bill’s stature to McGuireWoods,” said Charles “Skip” Fox IV, chair of the firm’s Tax and Employee Benefits Department. “Bill has earned tremendous respect from clients and peers in Virginia and nationwide for his in-depth knowledge and his practical guidance on tax and compliance issues.”
Richmond partner Michele McKinnon, head of McGuireWoods’ nonprofit industry team, added, “Bill has a well-deserved reputation for helping charities and nonprofits navigate complicated challenges and thrive in an increasingly regulated environment.”
“I have worked with lawyers from McGuireWoods for most of my career and I am impressed with the firm’s commitment to provide the highest level of service to its nonprofit clients,” said Gray. “I’m looking forward to helping build an even stronger practice focusing on exempt organizations and charitable giving.”
McGuireWoods consistently ranks among the best law firms for wealth management, earning the highest nationwide rating eight times in Chambers USA: America’s Leading Lawyers for Business, and recognition as one of only two top U.S. firms in Chambers and Partners’ High Net Worth Guide.