Winthrop, Stimson, Putnam & Roberts


Winthrop, Stimson, Putnam & Roberts was a prominent New York City law firm that traced its origins to a law partnership formed there in 1868. It merged with San Francisco–based law firm Pillsbury, Madison & Sutro in 2001. The merged firm subsequently became Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman in 2005.

History

The firm was founded in 1868 as Root & Clarke. After several name changes, and the addition of Bronson Winthrop, it was known as Winthrop & Stimson after 1898, and Winthrop, Stimson, Putnam & Roberts after 1927. The firm represented clients including W. E. B. Du Bois, America West Airlines, Zapata Petroleum, Clark Estates Inc., and Ethyl Corporation, among others.
In 1980, the firm published Winthrop, Stimson, Putnam & Roberts: A History of a Law Firm.
Immediately prior to its 2001 merger, Winthrop had offices in Tokyo, London, Hong Kong, and Singapore with more than half of the firm's revenue coming from abroad. The 2001 merger with Pillsbury, Madison & Sutro, which was then twice the size of New York City-based Winthrop, Stimson, Putnam & Roberts, created one of the largest law firms in the country with more than 860 lawyers in 16 offices. As of 2000, Pillsbury had been headquartered in San Francisco for 126 years.
In 2005, the Pillsbury Winthrop LLP firm merged with Shaw Pittman LLP forming a new entity, known as Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman LLP, with over 900 lawyers.

Notable alumni

The firm produced a number of leaders in law, jurisprudence and public service, including: