About
W. Ford Graham, IMBA, Esq. is a senior vice president on McGuireWoods Consulting's national infrastructure & economic development team, serving as part of Vestian's Local and State Incentives team, and a partner with McGuireWoods LLP. Ford has a depth of experience working in the economic development sector where he has been one of the leading recruiters of international companies to the Southeastern United States. He has facilitated new industry and industrial expansion in over 132 projects, which have resulted in commitments of more than 13,000 new jobs and $38.9 billion in new investment. Ford's practice focuses on companies opening or expanding operations in the U.S. In addition to economic incentives, Ford assists companies with the full spectrum of legal needs that arise when companies enter new markets.
Most recently, Ford was a partner at an international AmLaw 100 law firm, and he previously served as director of international strategy and trade for the South Carolina Department of Commerce. In that role, he directed all aspects of the agency's international efforts, including South Carolina's four international offices in Delhi, Munich, Shanghai, and Tokyo, uncovering foreign direct investment opportunities, and assisting South Carolina companies with exporting their products to the rest of the world. Before that, he worked as general counsel for a real estate development/investment firm and served as a judicial clerk in the 5th and 14th Judicial Circuits of South Carolina. Ford served as a United States Peace Corps Volunteer in Guatemala.
Ford is an avid runner and has completed more than 40 marathons/ultramarathons in sixteen states including multiple 50-mile races and a 100-mile race in Georgia.
Ford has been named to The 2026 edition of The Best Lawyers in America®.
