Justin Banford

Justin T. Banford is a Partner in both Corporate and Business (80%) and the Trust and Estate (20%) section at Dunlap Bennett & Ludwig. His clients reflect a cross-section of the DC economy, with many clients in technology, government contracting, and professional services. Justin has helped entrepreneurs form over 100 companies and works with executives to scale operations before they exit. Serving as outsourced general counsel, Justin is the first legal call his clients make. He believes in relationship-oriented representation and has taken many founders through multiple ventures. In addition to his core corporate practice..., he assists business owners with estate, asset- protection, and succession planning.

Corporate and Business: Justin helps entrepreneurs and executives effectively grow their companies through all stages of the business lifecycle:
Formation: On formation, Justin provides seasoned guidance on proper corporate, tax, and management/governance structures, often working with clients’ tax professionals, angel capital, institutional lending, and other capital sources.
Growth: For growing companies, Justin works closely with executives and governance boards to put in place scalable service agreements; employee incentive programs, including restricted stock, options and phantom stock; manage investor and management relations; and foster continued growth, including through mergers and acquisitions.
Exit: Finally, Justin advises on succession planning and preparing company operations in advance of a sale and performs all attendant transactional work.

Estate Planning: Justin developed his estate planning practice as an offshoot of his corporate work, initially helping entrepreneurs, executives, and high net worth families with concerns regarding estate taxes, legacy planning, asset protection, and charitable giving. However, his estate planning work addresses the universal concerns of protecting one’s family, probate avoidance, and incapacity planning.

Justin and his wife are blessed with three children and live in Fairfax Station, where they are active in their children’s schools and athletic teams.