Crowe & Dunlevy

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Crowe & Dunlevy
Headquarters Oklahoma City
No. of offices 3
No. of attorneys 131
Major practice areas Business Law, Oil and Natural Gas, and Litigation
Key people Kevin Gordon, President
Date founded 1902
Company type Professional Corporation
Website
www.crowedunlevy.com

Crowe & Dunlevy is an American law firm in Oklahoma. It has offices in Tulsa and Oklahoma City, and is the second largest firm in the state.[1] According to the National Law Journal's 2012 list of largest U.S. law firms by number of lawyers (commonly known as the "NLJ 350"), Crowe & Dunley is the 340th largest law firm in the country. Founded in 1902, Crowe & Dunlevy is Oklahoma's oldest law firm.[2][3]

History

1902-1949

The firm was founded in 1902 by Charles Edward Johnson (1870-1950).[3] Johnson was a Swedish emigrant and a University of Texas Law School graduate. The firm's first office was located at 131 ½ West Grand. The Westin Hotel stands at this location today.

In 1903, Albert P. Crockett (1871-1918) joined Johnson's practice, forming the firm's first partnership. Judge Benjamin F. Burwell (1866-1916) joined the firm in 1907 and the name changed to Burwell, Crockett & Johnson. Judge Burwell began practicing law in Oklahoma in 1891. By 1898, he was serving as an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court for the Territory of Oklahoma, a position he held from 1898 until statehood in 1907.[4] Judge Burwell died in 1916 and John Embry (1869-1960), a former U.S. Attorney for the state of Oklahoma joined the firm. The firm's name changed to Embry, Crockett & Johnson. In 1918, Crockett died and Chester P. Kidd joined the firm. The name of the firm changed to Embry, Johnson & Kidd.

In 1922, Kidd retired due to illness. That same year, Raymond A. Tolbert (1890-1960), joined the firm. The firm's name changed to Embry, Johnson & Tolbert. Tolbert would serve as the firm's Managing Partner until his death. In 1929, Vincil Penny Crowe (1897-1974), a former Assistant Attorney General for the State of Oklahoma, joined the firm and the name became Embry, Johnson, Crowe & Tolbert.[5] The First National Building was completed in 1932 and the Firm moved to Suite 640 at the southeast corner of Park and Robinson. The firm's name changed to Embry, Johnson, Crowe, Tolbert & Shelton in 1943 when Troy Shelton became the newest partner.[5]

1950-1980

In 1950, the firm's founder, Charles Edward Johnson, died. By 1951, the firm's name changed again this time to include the new partner, and Embry's son-in-law, Calvin P. Boxley (1901-1966). The firm became known as Embry, Johnson, Crowe, Tolbert & Boxley.[5] Though he died in 1950, Johnson's name remained a part of the firm name until 1953. That year Charles Edward Johnson's name was dropped from the firm name and Bruce H. Johnson's name was added. The two Johnsons were not related and the firm became Embry, Crowe, Tolbert, Boxley & Johnson.[5] In 1959, Vivian Diffendaffer became the first woman attorney to work at Crowe & Dunlevy.

John Embry and Raymond A. Tolbert both died in 1960, and Fred W. Dunlevy (4/19/1914-9/13/1994), C. Harold Thweatt and John W. Swinford all became partners. In 1961, the firm's name became Crowe, Boxley, Dunlevy, Thweatt, Swinford & Johnson. The new partners were not new to the firm; Dunlevy joined the firm in 1937, Thweatt joined in 1944 and Swinford joined in 1946.[5] Calvin P. Boxley died in 1966 and in 1968 the Firm's name became Crowe, Dunlevy, Thweatt, Swinford, Johnson & Burdick to include Ben L. Burdick, a new partner who had been with the firm since 1947. In 1979, the moniker 'A Professional Corporation,' was added to the firm's name.[5]

1981-Present

In 1981, the name of the firm was changed one last time to Crowe & Dunlevy, A Professional Corporation. That same year, the firm moved to the Mid-America Tower (now known as the Continental Oil Center) at the southeast corner of Main and Broadway. Both the firm's name and location have remained the same since. To meet the needs of its expanding client base, Crowe & Dunlevy opened Tulsa office in 1989 and a Norman office in 1991. In 2007, Crowe & Dunlevy formed the Oklahoma Law Alliance. In 2011, Crowe & Dunlevy merged with another Oklahoma law firm, Day, Edwards, Propester & Christensen.[6] Attorneys from Day, Edwards, Propester & Christensen joined Crowe & Dunlevy, with a focus on the securities and litigation and banking and financial institutions. In April 2012 Kevin Gordon was elected president of the firm.[7]

Areas of Practice

Crowe & Dunlevy's clients include individuals and small businesses, as well as large national and multi-national corporations.[8] Crowe & Dunlevy has represented clients in all aspects of commercial law practice, in both state and federal courts.[9] The firm's major areas of practice include: Administrative; Antitrust; Appellate; Aviation; Banking; Bankruptcy; Commercial; Corporate/Securities; Employment; Employee Benefits; Energy; Environmental; Franchising; Gaming; Healthcare; Indian; Insurance; Intellectual Property; Natural Resources; Product Liability; Public Finance; Real Estate; Tax; Trusts/Estate and White-Collar Crime.[1][3]

Executive Committee

  • Kevin D. Gordon, President
  • John M. Thompson, Vice-President of Economics
  • Timila S. Rother, Member
  • Gary R. McSpadden, Director
  • William H. Hoch, Director

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 "The Journal Record", 2012, "The 2012 Book of Lists", Aug 28, 2012
  2. ↑ "The Muskogee Phoenix", Aug 6, 2009, "OU law dean Coats to retire", August 29, 2012
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 Djordjevich, Vera (2007). Vault Guide to the Top Texas & Southwest Law Firms. Vault, Inc. pp. 83–85. ISBN 1581314612. 
  4. ↑ The National cyclopaedia of American biography, Volume 17. James T. White and Company. 1920. p. 75. 
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 5.4 5.5 Max Nichols, "The Journal Record", August 22, 1992, "189 Attorneys Have Served Crowe & Dunlevy", Oklahoma City, OK, "page 2"
  6. ↑ Don Mecoy, "Tulsa World", April 22, 2012, "Crowe & Dunlevy merger set for OKC attorney's firm", March 13, 2011
  7. ↑ Paula Burkes, "newsok.com", April 22, 2012, "Mentors shaped career of firms new president", Aug 28, 2012
  8. ↑ "Martindale Hubble","Crowe & Dunlevy", Aug 28, 2012
  9. ↑ "Native American Times", June 22, 2009,"Crowe & Dunlevy recognized by international legal publisher, Chambers & Partners Twenty attorneys", Aug 29, 2012

External links

1. Official Firm Website


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