Attorneys Glean Lessons From Bogle & Gates' Demise -- Even Large Firms Can Be Vulnerable, Legal Analysts Say

When the partners at Bogle & Gates decided to dissolve the firm yesterday, the vote wasn't even close. Of the 94 attorneys who control the partnership, only a handful wanted Bogle & Gates to celebrate its 109th year.

The move made Seattle history; never has such a large corporate law firm crumbled so quickly.

Attorneys at other major firms said they will try to glean lessons from the demise of Bogle & Gates. But in the end, they said, the collapse of Seattle's fourth-largest law firm may say more about lawyers themselves than the local business climate or legal community.

Law firms are woven together with a delicate fabric of ego, personality and ambition. Sometimes it doesn't take much to rip them apart.

"These are organizations comprised of people, and there's a frailty to human institutions," said Dick Sprague, who worked at Bogle & Gates for 41 years before joining Bellevue developer Kemper Freeman in 1997.

Bogle & Gates' troubles became public last week when Minneapolis-based law firm Dorsey & Whitney announced it had hired 16 lawyers - including eight partners - from Bogle & Gates' securities practice to expand its four-lawyer Seattle office.

Merger talks between Bogle & Gates and Dorsey & Whitney followed, but negotiations ceased earlier this week when the Minneapolis firm said it did not want to manage a large Seattle office, said James Tune, chairman of Bogle & Gates' executive committee.

After merger talks ended, Tune said he put together a plan for the firm that called for a sharp reduction in partner income and layoffs. Yesterday's vote showed that the majority of partners did not have confidence in the firm's future, he said.

"The loss of 16 attorneys should not have rationally resulted in this decision," said Tune. "It was a question of confidence for the remaining people. It was just too difficult."

Attorneys debated whether they wanted to practice together at a scaled-down firm or leave for other opportunities, said attorney Charles Blumenfeld. Bogle & Gates has a national reputation for handling large, complex cases. When it wasn't certain the firm could live up to that promise, attorneys decided to leave, he said.

"It was done professionally and calmly, but it's very sad. It's like a death in the family."

The announcement caps a history that traces Seattle's development from a scruffy port town to a center of technology and industry.

In 1891, Lawrence Bogle's father, who never graduated from law school, began practicing maritime law in Tacoma. Thirty-five years later, father and son joined Cassius Gates, who specialized in business and tax law.

Bogle & Gates' early clients included steamship lines that established commercial links to Alaska and Asia. The firm grew quickly during World War II, when its clients included Todd Shipyards.

In recent years, Bogle & Gates was known for its bare-knuckle litigation tactics. It represented Exxon Shipping in the Valdez oil-spill litigation. The firm won a defense verdict for International Paper against $300 million in claims over timber-management practices, and it is a leading trial firm in state and local taxation.

Yesterday, Bogle & Gates attorneys called clients to reassure them that their affairs would be handled until the firm closes on March 31. Some vied for future business.

Many Bogle & Gates attorneys are expected to form their own specialized practices. Kelly Corr, co-chair of the litigation practice, said he plans to start his own firm with other litigators. Others are likely to be hired by other law firms around town. Several large firms such as Preston Gates & Ellis have been invited to post job openings at Bogle & Gates' offices at Two Union Square.

Dorsey & Whitney said last week that it plans to hire more attorneys from Bogle & Gates.

Legal experts say seasoned lawyers should have no trouble finding employment. Younger associates - who do not have a financial stake in the partnership and did not vote yesterday - may have a harder time.

In the coming days and weeks, outside observers said they will seek to find answers why a firm with such a national reputation could seemingly self-destruct.

"It's a shocking turn of events. People will do post-mortem for a while," said David Tang, managing partner of Preston Gates & Ellis.

But in the final analysis, he said, it may come down to the fact that attorneys for Bogle & Gates could no longer agree to a common mission.

"Culture is huge. The values people subscribe to is the glue that holds everything together."