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The Womble Bond Dickinson family mourns the loss of John Hagner, a founding Partner of the firm’s Washington, D.C. office and former Real Estate Practice Group Leader.

John retired from the firm in 2021, after a 50+ year career that saw him help reshape the Greater D.C. skyline. In 1998, he and his partners in David, Hagner, Kuney & Davidson, P.C. merged their 20+ year old real estate boutique with Womble to establish the firm’s office in our nation’s capital. The firm remains a stalwart presence in the D.C. legal market due in no small part to the foundation John helped build.

“John was not just a mentor to so many of us but a true North Star to the firm,” said Womble Bond Dickinson Chair & CEO Merrick Benn. “I think it is fair to say that without John, there would be no Womble in D.C., with so many great people that we have today.  We owe John so much.”

John embodied the core value of service.  He served in numerous leadership roles at Womble, including multiple terms on Womble’s Firm Management Committee and its Executive Committee. He also was the first Chair of the firm’s Pro Bono Committee, building on his own extremely active pro bono practice.  John’s commitment to pro bono was recognized by the firm in 2000, when he was awarded the Irving Carlyle Pro Bono Publico Award.

In 2006, John was awarded the firm’s H. Grady Barnhill, Jr. Award for Service to Clients.

John was also deeply committed to training the next generation of lawyers. For more than 20 years, he served as an adjunct professor at Georgetown University Law Center, where he co-taught JD and LLM students the commercial real estate finance course and co-developed and co-taught a course in how the capital markets worked. At the firm, John was a champion of younger lawyers as they developed into future leaders and was a role model for succession planning.

“John was an unparalleled mentor, advocate and friend,” said Elizabeth Lee, a legacy David Hagner colleague and former D.C. Office Managing Partner. “He invested 100% of himself in his clients, colleagues, family, and community. He both grounded and uplifted all of us who were privileged to work with him. He is deeply loved and will be sorely missed.”

A memorial service will be held on Saturday, March 22, 2025, at 11:00 am at Saint Mark Presbyterian Church, 10701 Old Georgetown Road, Rockville, MD 20852. A reception will follow.

The service will be live streamed at www.pumphreyfuneralhome.com. Memorial donations may be made to Saint Mark Presbyterian Church.

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