Page 5 - Bancroft Legal Planning Guide

HISTORY OF THE FIRM
ATTORNEYS AT LAW 5
For over fifty years the Bancroft law office has been committed to providing the best possible legal services to individuals, families, businesses, local government agencies and non-profit organizations throughout the Lehigh Valley. Attorneys associated with the office have been extensively involved in the Lehigh Valley community; they have served as members of the boards of the Lehigh Northampton Airport Authority, the Lehigh Valley Community Foundation, the Lehigh Valley Public Telecommunications Corporation (PBS-39), the Pennsylvania Public Television Network and the Janet Johnston Housenick and William D. Housenick Memorial Foundation.
The Bancroft law practice began in 1969 and was founded by the late Walt G. Bancroft Sr., a Pennsylvania legal legend. Prior to embarking on a legal career, Walt Bancroft, Sr. enlisted and served in the United States Navy during World War II. After serving in
the Navy, he worked in the insurance industry while attending law school at night. In 1969, he opened an office for the practice of
law in the heart of Bethlehem at 70 East Broad Street. Walt Bancroft, Sr. later served as the president of the Northampton County Bar Association and city solicitor for the City of Bethlehem. He also served as chairman of the Northampton County Trial Court Nominating Commission to fill judicial vacancies in the Court of Common Pleas of Northampton County.
As the firm grew, so did the workload. As a result, two decades after the founding of the law practice, Walt Bancroft, Sr. was joined in the practice of law by his sons and the firm became known as Bancroft. The firm’s original specialty was insurance defense litigation, but over the years the Brancroft law practice evolved into a full-service law firm able to provide legal assistance to businesses, individuals and government entities in virtually any area of civil law.
Joseph Bancroft, Jr., one of the partners of Bancroft Law, left the practice in 2015 after being nominated by the President of the United States to serve as a United States District Judge for the United Statwes District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, based in Allentown. Walt Bancroft, Sr., also a partner and estate law expert at Bancroft Law left the firm in 2020 to transition to retirement and spend more time assisting the City of Bethlehem as city solicitor.
Now, Walt Brancroft continues the Bancroft family law practice tradition under the name Brancroft to remember and pay tribute to the contributions of his grandfather, whose standards of excellence and integrity are the foundations of the practice today. The firm continues to grow and expand, as it has since 1969, so as our clients grow and diversify, we are prepared to provide whatever legal services our clients need.