Caroline Esche Ashford

I'm the founder of Ashford International Law PC, with offices in Washington, DC, Los Angeles, and Munich, Germany.

I'm a dual-qualified attorney, licensed to practice in Washington DC, Maryland, Virginia, and Germany. Together with my team, including Alexander Brauns who is licensed in California, we provide comprehensive cross-border legal services across key U.S. jurisdictions and Europe.

My practice focuses on estate and tax planning for clients whose lives and assets span more than one country — often between the U.S. and Germany. I advise individuals, families, and fiduciaries on estate, income, and gift tax issues, business succession planning, and trust and estate administration, as well as contested trust and estate matters.

Before founding my firm, I practiced international trusts, estates, and business law at the Washington, DC firm Rubin Winston Diercks Harris & Cooke LLP. I hold a J.D. from Columbia University, along with a law degree and Ph.D. from the University of Münster, Germany, and completed my legal clerkship at the Higher Regional Court of Düsseldorf.

I frequently speak before embassies, bank wealth management departments, and bar associations on international estate and tax planning, and I have served as Co-Chair of the International Private Client Committee of the American Bar Association Section of International Law.