Lord Day & Lord


Lord Day & Lord was an American large, blue-chip New York City law firm. It was established in 1845 by Daniel Lord, his son Daniel De Forest Lord, and his son-in-law Henry Day.

History

The firm had retained the same name until 1988 when it merged with smaller firm Barrett Smith Simon & Armstrong to become Lord Day & Lord, Barrett Smith. Barrett Smith was a firm of 65 attorneys that focused on white collar criminal defense litigation, commodities and aircraft leasing. It brought major clients the Coffee, Sugar and Cocoa Exchange, Merrill Lynch, and British Airways. Lord Day's traditional clients were the American Stock Exchange, Cunard Line, The New York Times, and Chemical Bank. The combined firm maintained offices in New York City, Washington, D.C., and London. Prior to the consummation of the merger, however, rival New York firm Chadbourne & Parke lured away the entire corporate tax team from Barrett Smith, approximately 30 attorneys. Similarly, the 20-strong flagship white collar group of legacy Barrett Smith defected to Kirkpatrick & Lockhart shortly after the merger.

Dissolution

The firm unraveled in October 1994 amid mounting partner defections and discord. At the time of dissolution, it employed 125 lawyers, which was a decrease of 30% from the year prior. About 50 attorneys joined the New York office of the Philadelphia-based law firm Morgan, Lewis & Bockius. The firm was buffeted by partner departures and declining revenues while still holding the large commercial office rent of $6 million per year for its offices at 1675 Broadway.

Notable alumni