Williams Parker Announces New Leadership:
Ric Gregoria Named President of the Firm
The firm also appoints Rose-Anne Frano to its management committee. Michael J. Wilson continues his service on the firm’s three-person management committee. Jeff Troiano succeeds Frano as the chair of the firm’s estate planning, business succession, and estate and trust administration practice group.
(Sarasota, FL) The Sarasota-based law firm of Williams Parker recently appointed Ric Gregoria to serve as its president. Gregoria succeeds William M. Seider, who served as the firm’s president for nine years. This transition, with other changes in the firm’s management, is part of the firm’s long-term succession plan.
“Ric has long been one of the area’s most respected trust and estate attorneys and has served on our management committee for 10 years,” says Seider. “He has a keen legal mind. He’s intelligent, diligent, and passionate about serving the community. The same traits that make Ric such an outstanding lawyer will make him an exceptional president.”
Gregoria is a board-certified expert in wills, trusts, and estates specializing in counseling individuals, families, and businesses in sophisticated wealth transfers and business succession matters. He also represents fiduciaries in administering complex estates and trusts and is a frequent lecturer on the legal aspects of estate planning. Prior to joining the firm, Gregoria was with the law firm of Squire Sanders and practiced as a CPA with Pricewaterhouse. Gregoria serves on the board of The Patterson Foundation and is the past president of both the American Heart Association and the Family Counseling Center and is a board member emeritus of Catholic Charities Foundation. Gregoria received his law degree from the University of Virginia and his bachelor’s degree in accounting from Florida State University. He joined Williams Parker in 1992 and became a partner in 1996.
“I’m thrilled to accept this role and look forward to building upon the record of excellence the firm has established throughout its 90-year history,” Gregoria says. “Being part of that proud heritage is an honor and a privilege. Today, we carry on the client-first approach established by our founder JJ Williams in 1925. We do this on the strength of more than 40 attorneys, including 34 who are AV-rated, 19 who are board-certified, 10 who have an LL.M. in taxation, five with CPA licenses, four with masters in accounting, and four with MBAs.”
The firm also appointed Rose-Anne Frano to its management committee. Prior to being appointed to the management committee, she chaired the firm’s estate planning, business succession, and estate and trust administration practice group. Frano—a board-certified specialist in wills, trusts, and estates—focuses on estate, gift, and generation-skipping transfer tax planning for individuals and their families and on the administration of estates and trusts. She handles complex estate and trust administrations and has substantial experience in administering trusts and estates comprising closely held businesses and implementing complex post-mortem planning techniques. She joined the firm in 2003 and became a shareholder in 2009. Frano received both her law degree and her LL.M. in taxation from the University of Florida College of Law, and her bachelor’s degree from Tulane University. Frano served as chair of the Easter Seals’ board of directors.
Michael J. Wilson is the third member of the firm’s three-person management committee and serves as the firm’s treasurer. He is certified as a tax specialist by the Florida Bar and handles tax planning, tax controversies, and business transactions. He earned his law degree, masters of accounting, and bachelor’s in accounting from the University of Florida. He became a shareholder in 2007 and has been a member of the management committee since 2009.
Jeff Troiano succeeds Frano as the chair of the firm’s estate planning, business succession, and estate and trust administration practice group. Troiano is a board-certified specialist in wills, trusts, and estates. He handles all aspects of estate, trust, and succession planning working with individuals and families to develop customized and tax-efficient estate plans that meet their needs. Troiano joined the firm in 2007 immediately after receiving his LL.M. in taxation from the University of Florida. He became a shareholder in 2013.
The firm’s real estate practice continues to be chaired by Patrick Ryskamp. Mark Schwartz leads its litigation practice and John Wagner chairs the business and tax practice.
About Williams Parker
Williams Parker was founded in 1925 and is Sarasota’s largest independent law firm. It focuses on high capital families, developers, entrepreneurs, and significant nonprofit institutions. The firm offers one of Florida’s largest trusts and estates practices, an accomplished real estate and litigation practice, as well as a significant corporate practice and a tax group with substantial depth including tax controversy capabilities. The Williams Parker team takes great pride in its contribution to Sarasota’s heritage and ongoing investment in the area’s future. The firm is at 200 South Orange Avenue, Sarasota; 941-366-4800; www.williamsparker.com.
