Lane Powell PC

Lane Powell PC
HeadquartersSeattle, Washington, United States
No. of offices4
No. of attorneys200
Major practice areasCorporate law, Litigation, Labor & Employment
Key peopleBarbara Duffy, President[1]
Date founded1875 (1875)
Company typeProfessional corporation
Websitewww.lanepowell.com

Lane Powell PC is an American law firm based in Seattle, Washington, with offices in Anchorage and Portland.[2] The firm was established in 1875, making it one of the Pacific Northwest’s oldest and longest-running law firms. Today it employs nearly 200 lawyers. The firm's clients include individuals, startups, and large businesses, offering corporate, regulatory, and litigation services.[3]

The firm represents or has represented clients such as Nordstrom, Starbucks, Bank of America, Safeway, Cigna, Aetna, Chevron, and BNSF Railway Co.[4]

History

Portland

In 1875, William D. Fenton began practicing law as a partner at Portland law firm McCain and Fenton. Upon his death, Fenton's home library was donated to the University of Oregon, which built Fenton Hall in his name.[5] His home, the William D. Fenton House, was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1979.[6]

After Fenton's passing in 1918, McCain and Fenton was renamed to Hampson and Nelson, and moved to the Pacific Building in Portland.[7] From 1918 to 1979, the firm went through several leadership and name changes with the addition of partners like Herbert Anderson, Oglesby Young and William Lubersky. In 1979, John Bledsoe joined as a naming partner, changing the firms name to Spears, Lubersky, Campbell and Bledsoe.[8] Anderson and Young were also added to the naming partner group, renaming the firm in 1988 to Spears, Lubersky, Bledsoe, Anderson, Young and Hilliard.

Seattle

Lane Powell's Seattle office began in 1889 when John H. Powell arrived in Seattle and practiced law in the firm Stratton, Lewis & Gilman.[9] In 1900, William A. Peters and Powell entered into a partnership under the name Peters & Powell, located in the Dexter Horton Building.[10] The addition of partners such as W. Bryon Lane and Gordon Moss in 1959 led the firm to be named Evans, McLaren, Lane, Powell & Moss. In 1966, Pendleton Miller joined the firm as naming partner, changing the firm to Lane, Powell, Moss & Miller.[11] During this time, the firm expanded to Anchorage by merging with Ruskin, Barker & Hicks.[12]

Mergers

In 1990, the Portland firm Spears, Lubersky, Campbell, Bledsoe, Anderson, Young & Hilliard merged with Seattle-based firm Lane, Powell, Moss & Miller, leading to the name Lane Powell Spears Lubersky LLP.[13] In 2002, when the firm was called "Lane Powell Spears Lubersky LLP", it was part of a court settlement regarding the collapse of the Portland-based investment firm Capital Consultants LLC, for which the law firm was the primary outside consultant. The settlements, amounting to $25 million, came from the law firm's insurance coverage.[14] The company renamed to Lane Powell PC in 2005. In September 2024, Lane Powell agreed to merge with Ballard Spahr as of 2025, with the combined firm to operate under the Ballard Spahr name.[15]

Philanthropy

In partnership with the University of Washington School of Law, Lane Powell annually supports the school through the Ronald E. Beard Scholarship, Gregoire Fellows program and Lane Powell & D. Wayne Gittinger Endowed Professorship.[16] [17] Other beneficiaries include the American Heart Association, Basic Rights Oregon, Campaign for Equal Justice, Food Lifeline, Fred Hutch Cancer Research Center, Start Making A Reader Today (SMART), and the United Way.[18][19][20]

Leadership

In 2019, Barbara Duffy was named president of the company.[21]

Notable alumni

Awards and honors

  • 2019 – Received 100 percent score in the Human Rights Campaign Foundation's Annual Corporate Equality Index[25]
  • 2018 – Named One of the Nation's Best Places to Work for LGBTQ Equality by The Human Rights Campaign Foundation[26]
  • 2018 – Named in Puget Sound Business Journal "Top 75 Corporate Philanthropists" list[27]

References

  1. ^ Stewart, Ashley. June 4, 2019. Large Seattle law firm names new president Puget Sound Business Journal. Retrieved June 7, 2019.
  2. ^ Our Locations Lane Powell. Retrieved April 25, 2019.
  3. ^ Lane Powell Chambers and Partners. Retrieved April 25, 2019
  4. ^ Lane Powell - Clients Law 360. Retrieved April 25, 2019
  5. ^ Architecture - Fenton Hall University of Oregon. Retrieved April 25, 2019.
  6. ^ Fenton, Judge William D Sr, House Oregon Historic Sites Database. Retrieved April 18, 2019.
  7. ^ University of Michigan Alumnus Association. 1929. The Michigan Alumnus, Volume 36 Google Books. page 498. Retrieved April 19, 2019.
  8. ^ (July 12, 2011). John Perry Bledsoe Obituary The Oregonian. Retrieved April 19, 2019.
  9. ^ (September 14, 1990). Law and Lawyers in Seattle’s History HistoryLink. Retrieved April 16, 2019.
  10. ^ Hubbell, J.H. 1902. Hubbell’s Legal Directory for Lawyers and Businessmen J.H. Hubbell & Company. Page 1290. Retrieved April 27, 2019.
  11. ^ (July 28, 2014). Home Indem. Co. v. Lane Powell Moss & Miller American Bar Association. Retrieved April 29, 2019.
  12. ^ Ragsdale, Rose. "Law Firm Makes Critical Legal Connection." AKWA Connection, Exploring Alaska-Washington Connection (n.d.): 34-35. Petroleum News. 28 Aug. 2011. Print.
  13. ^ Leeson, Fred. "Toward a New Century." Rose City Justice: A Legal History of Portland, Oregon. Portland, Or.: Oregon Historical Society, Published in Cooperation with the Oregon State Bar, 1998. 224-25. Print. ISBN 9780875952697
  14. ^ Staff (July 21, 2002) "Local firms part of Capital Consultants settlement" Puget Sound Business Journal
  15. ^ Tribe, Meghan; Strom, Roy (9 September 2024). "Ballard Spahr to Merge With Pacific Northwest's Lane Powell". Bloomberg Law. Retrieved 10 September 2024.
  16. ^ Lane Powell Spearheads Support to Honor Influential Double Dawgs University of Washington School of Law - Alumni. Retrieved April 15, 2019.
  17. ^ (November 15, 2018) Announcing the 2018 Gregoire Fellows The University of Washington School of Law - News. Retrieved April 15, 2019.
  18. ^ (May 24, 2018) Corporate Philanthropists - Midsize Puget Sound Business Journal. Retrieved April 19, 2019.
  19. ^ (July 25, 2018) Victory! Federal Judge Upholds Protections for Oregon’s Rural Transgender Students Basic Rights Oregon. Retrieved April 15, 2019.
  20. ^ Business Partners SMART Oregon. Retrieved April 25, 2019.
  21. ^ Stewart, Ashley. June 4, 2019. Large Seattle law firm names new president Puget Sound Business Journal. Retrieved June 7, 2019.
  22. ^ Beeks, William Trulock Federal Judicial Center. Retrieved April 30, 2019.
  23. ^ (June 2014) WILLIAM L. DWYER OUTSTANDING JURIST: Judge Thomas Zilly King County Bar Association. Retrieved May 1, 2019.
  24. ^ Luthy, Dana. 2004. Profile of Judge James L. Robart Federal Bar Association of the Western District of Washington News, Vol. 27, No. 1, pp. 11 & 13.
  25. ^ Romano, Benjamin. (March 29, 2019) Amazon, other Washington companies, get perfect scores for LGBTQ policies, but some advocates ask for more The Seattle Times. Retrieved April 15, 2019.
  26. ^ (2018) Corporate Equality Index 2018 Human Rights Campaign Foundation. Page 47. Retrieved April 16, 2019.
  27. ^ Crowe, Melissa. (April 9, 2018) Revealed: The 75 biggest corporate philanthropists in Washington Puget Sound Business Journal. Retrieved April 16, 2019.