Swidler Berlin Shereff Friedman LLP was a

Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...

-based

law firm A law firm is a business entity formed by one or more lawyers to engage in the practice of law. The primary service rendered by a law firm is to advise clients (individuals or corporations) about their legal rights and responsibilities, and to r ...

, itself a product of the merger between D.C. law firm Swidler & Berlin and New York City's Shereff, Friedman, Hoffman & Goodman LLP in 1998. The firm merged with

Bingham McCutchen Bingham McCutchen LLP was a global law firm with approximately 850 attorneys in nine US offices and five international offices. It ceased operations in late 2014, when several hundred of its partners and associate lawyers left the firm to join Phi ...

in 2006. At its height in 2005, Swidler Berlin employed some 300 attorneys with offices on D.C. K Street lobbying corridor and in New York City's iconic

Chrysler Building The Chrysler Building is an Art Deco skyscraper on the East Side of Manhattan in New York City, at the intersection of 42nd Street and Lexington Avenue in Midtown Manhattan. At , it is the tallest brick building in the world with a steel fra ...

. Swidler Berlin Shereff Friedman was known for its regulatory, telecommunications, insurance coverage and lobbying capabilities, the latter of which was enhanced by its association with the

Harbour Group The Harbour Group, LLC is a Washington D.C. lobbying and public relations firm. History Harbour Group was founded in 2001 by former Clinton administration senior advisor for policy and communications Joel Johnson, who left in 2005 to join the ...

, a lobbying and public relations firm with strong ties to the

Clinton Administration Bill Clinton's tenure as the 42nd president of the United States began with his first inauguration on January 20, 1993, and ended on January 20, 2001. Clinton, a Democrat from Arkansas, took office following a decisive election victory over Re ...

. The firm engaged in lengthy but ultimately inconclusive merger talks with California-based law firm

Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe Orrick is an international law firm founded in San Francisco, California. The firm advises on transactions, litigation and regulatory matters for venture-backed companies, public companies, E&I funds, financial institutions and governments. Histo ...

in 2004.'Orrick targets Washington with Swidler Berlin talks,' ''The Lawyer,'' May 4, 2004. http://www.thelawyer.com/cgi-bin/item.cgi?id=109868 The next year, Philadelphia-based

Dechert Dechert LLP () is an American multinational law firm of more than 900 lawyers with practices in corporate and securities, complex litigation, finance and real estate, financial services, asset management, and private equity. In 2021, the firm ra ...

made a mass raid on Swidler Berlin's DC and NY offices, hiring 57 attorneys from both the firm's corporate and litigation departments. This included many legacy Shereff Friedman attorneys and was widely seen as a blow to the firm's long-term prospects. The firm merged with bicoastal firm

the next year and the Swidler Berlin name was retired from use. Now-defunct San Francisco firm

Heller Ehrman Heller Ehrman LLP was an international law firm of more than 730 attorneys in 15 offices in the United States, Europe, and Asia. Heller Ehrman was founded in San Francisco in 1890 and had additional offices located in most of the major financia ...

inherited much of the insurance team at that time because of conflict of interest issues. The association with the Harbour Group was discontinued although Bingham McCutchen continues to have a strong political, election law and lobbying practice.

Notable Mandates

*Represented Suiza Foods Corporation, a conglomerate of dairies and dairy operating companies in its $1.5 billion merger with

Dean Foods Dean Foods was an American food and beverage company and the largest dairy company in the United States. Headquartered in Dallas, Texas, the company maintained plants and distributors in the United States. Dean Foods had 66 manufacturing faciliti ...

to create the "new" Dean Foods Company in 2001.

References

{{Defunct law firms of the United States Defunct law firms of the United States 1998 establishments in Washington, D.C. 2006 disestablishments in Washington, D.C. Law firms established in 1998 Law firms disestablished in 2006

Notable Mandates

See also

References