Alton C Ward
USA Guide 2024
Senior Statespeople : Employee Benefits & Executive Compensation
Email address
[email protected]Contact number
813-222-8703Share profile
Senior Statespeople
About
Provided by Alton C Ward
Practice Areas
Employee Benefits & Executive Compensation; Health & Welfare Plans; Professional Employer Organizations; Executive Compensation; Qualified Retirement Plans; Tax Exempt Organizations; Fiduciary & Prohibited Transactions
Career
Al Ward has focused for over four decades on executive deferred compensation, employee benefits, trusts and taxation. He represents many clients including publicly traded and privately held, taxable and tax-exempt entities and professional corporations with respect to their benefit programs. Al has extensive experience representing clients in disputes with the Internal Revenue Service, the U.S. Department of Labor and Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation. Prior to entering the practice of law, he was an actuarial and employee benefits consultant for over eight years.
Al served as chairman of the Tampa Bay Pension Council from 1991 to 2012. He was a founding board member and past president of the Florida West Coast Employee Benefits Council. He serves as employee benefits counsel for The Florida Bar, is a member of the Southern Employee Benefits Conference, and a member of the Employee Benefits Committee of the Tax Section of the American Bar Association. He is a Fellow in the American College of Employee Benefits Counsel.
Professional Memberships
Gulf Coast Area TE/GE Council: Membership Chairman (2007-2010)
American College of Employee Benefits Counsel: Fellow
Florida West Coast Employee Benefits Council: Past President; Founding Board Member; Board of Directors (1984-1989)
Tampa Bay Pension Council: Chairman (1991-2012); Founding Member
Awards
AV Preeminent® Rating
Martindale-Hubbell Peer Review
America's Leading Lawyer, Employee Benefits & Executive Compensation (2016-2024)
Chambers USA
Senior Statesperson, Employee Benefits and Executive Compensation
Chambers USA
2024
Florida Super Lawyers (2006-2023)
Florida Super Lawyers
Florida Trend’s Legal Elite (2004-2011)
Florida Trend
Leading Florida Attorneys (1996-2007)
Tampa Top Lawyers (2016-2017): Employee Benefits Law
The Best Lawyers in America® (1995-2024)
The Best Lawyers in America®
Employee Benefits (ERISA) Lawyer of the Year
The Best Lawyers in America®
2023
Tampa Employee Benefits (ERISA) Lawyer of the Year (2010, 2016, 2018)
The Best Lawyers in America®
TAMPA Magazine's Top Lawyers; Employee Benefits (ERISA) Law
TAMPA Magazine
2023
Chambers Review
USA
Alton Ward is a seasoned employee benefits lawyer. He is widely respected by clients and peers for his expertise in the employee benefits space.
Strengths
Provided by Chambers
"Alton provides outstanding expertise in employee benefits."
"Alton provides outstanding expertise in employee benefits."