Don D. Ford III

In 2024, Mr. Ford celebrated the 25th anniversary of opening his firm, Ford + Bergner LLP.  Originally founded in Houston, the firm has expanded to offices in Dallas and Austin over the last 25 years and is a leader in the trusts and estate practice across Texas.  Over the 25 years since opening his firm, Mr. Ford has been fortunate to enjoy a prolific career and has developed a true expertise in trusts and estates.  To that end, in 2010, Mr. Ford achieved the highest distinction available to an attorney practicing in the area of estate planning and probate in Texas. He has become Board Certified by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization, which is a coveted recognition bestowed on few attorneys who have demonstrated special competence in this area of law and who have received recommendations from fellow attorneys and judges with whom they have worked.Over the last several years, Mr. Ford has served as one of the 9 commissioners on the Judicial Branch Certification Commission for the Supreme Court of Texas.  He one of 4 non-judicial commission members, and he was appointed as a result of his expertise in guardianships.  Through his service on the Commission, Mr. Ford helps to oversee private professional guardians across Texas.In 2009, Mr. Ford completed the required course-work to become certified to serve as a mediator. In pursuit of this distinction, Mr. Ford attended the world-renowned Straus Institute for Dispute Resolution at the Pepperdine University School of Law in Malibu, California. He attended this intensive course with the goal of being able to conduct mediations in probate and guardianship cases, as few mediators in Texas specialize in these areas.Mr. Ford’s recent distinctions are reflective of a dedication to the areas of estate planning, probate, and guardianship that began early in his education. In law school, Mr. Ford was fortunate to be able to concentrate his education in estate planning and business planning, not unlike a major in undergraduate school. His concentration in estate planning and business planning involved a curriculum designed around an in-depth study of those areas.Additionally, he was able to regularly work one-on-one with professors in those fields so that before he even graduated from law school he had experience in tax planning and will drafting.Mr. Ford graduated from Baylor University with degrees in Accounting and Law. He has also completed several post-graduate courses at Baylor in pursuit of a Masters in Taxation.Following law school, he began his career as a Tax Attorney for a large international accounting and consulting firm, where he assisted clients primarily in the areas of estate and gift tax and personal income tax.The combination of his tax-related degrees and his experience working as a tax attorney have given Mr. Ford a strong background in the areas of estate planning and probate, and he has focused his attention and expertise in these areas ever since.Mr. Ford devotes his knowledge and experience to maintaining the reputation of Ford+Bergner as a leading estate planning and probate firm in Texas.