Caroline Hennessy, Senior Manager, Public Relations & Digital Marketing
(312) 715-5231
Caroline.hennessy@quarles.com
Milwaukee, Wisconsin – In celebration of its 125th anniversary this week, Quarles & Brady LLP has compiled a timeline of milestones achieved by the firm, which has grown from a small Milwaukee law office to a national firm dedicated to clients across the world.
The firm’s storied history began in June of 1892 when Edgar Liberty Wood graduated from the University of Wisconsin Law School. Wood’s firm merged with that of Bernard Brady in 1957, and, in 1974, that combined law firm merged with another started by Louis Quarles in 1910. That firm then grew, achieving significant milestones along the way, to the Quarles & Brady of today with 10 offices nationwide.
The photo-rich timeline chronicles the history of the firm, including: the firm’s support of World War II by arguing for legislation offering tax incentives to Wisconsin companies building new plants for defense contracts; the 1994 appointment of Quarles & Brady attorney Walter White, Jr. to head the new Asian-American Enterprise Fund in Kazakhstan in Central Asia; the 2007 naming of John W. Daniels, Jr. as chair, the first African American to hold that position at the firm; various expansions over the last 30 years; and the 2013 naming of Kimberly Leach Johnson as chair, the first woman to hold that position at the firm.
The interactive timeline is interspersed with interesting tidbits about members of the firm – such as the patent awarded to Lawrence Olwell in 1918 for a one-handled briefcase that did not require a buckle to keep the flap in place; and Richard Cutler (who joined Brady’s firm in 1954 and remained through 1987), who served in WWII as a combat intelligence officer and later worked to recruit former German spies to gather information on the Russians as the Cold War began.
In addition to numerous Best Lawyers and U.S. News Media Group awards, and impressive AmLaw 200 rankings, Quarles & Brady has been recognized for its support of women in the law and workplace equality. The firm has received seven-time Gold Standard Certification by the Women in Law Empowerment Forum for the many women in leadership roles; six times been named among the 50 Best Law Firms for Women by the National Association for Female Executives and Flex-Time Lawyers; and received a perfect score of 100 percent on the 2017 Corporate Equality Index (CEI), a national benchmarking survey and report on corporate policies and practices related to LGBT workplace equality.
About Quarles & Brady LLP: Quarles & Brady is a full-service AmLaw 200 firm with more than 475 attorneys offering an array of legal services to corporate and individual clients that range from small entrepreneurial businesses to Fortune 100 companies, with practice focuses in health care and life sciences, business law, labor and employment, real estate, data privacy and security, and complex litigation. The firm has offices in Chicago; Indianapolis; Madison; Milwaukee; Naples, Florida; Phoenix; Scottsdale; Tampa; Tucson; and Washington, D.C. Additional information can be found online at quarles.com, as well as on Twitter, LinkedIn, and Facebook.
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