Milbank
International law firm
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Milbank LLP is an American multinational law firm headquartered in New York City.[4][5] It also has offices in Washington, D.C., Los Angeles, London, Frankfurt, Munich, Tokyo, Hong Kong, São Paulo, Seoul, and Singapore.[1]
New York City
| |
| Headquarters | 55 Hudson Yards New York City |
|---|---|
| No. of offices | 11[1] |
| No. of attorneys | 912 (2024)[2] |
| Major practice areas | General practice |
| Revenue | $1,235,499,000 USD (2020)[3] |
| Date founded | 1866 |
| Company type | Limited liability partnership |
| Website | milbank.com |
History
Milbank's origins trace back to 1866, with the inception of the original firm, Anderson, Adams & Young. In April 1929, Murray & Aldrich merged with Webb, Patterson & Hadley to form Murray, Aldrich & Webb. In 1931, the firm merged with Masten & Nichols to become Milbank, Tweed, Hope & Webb. The name was changed in 1962 to Milbank, Tweed, Hadley & McCloy.[6] For decades, the firm's biggest clients were the Rockefeller family and the Chase Manhattan Bank.
The firm was responsible for the legal work on the building of Rockefeller Center, and up until 2018, had offices located at One Chase Manhattan Plaza, which was later readdressed 28 Liberty, in 2015.[7] After World War II the firm advised new commercial and industrial developments.[6]
Milbank created hedge funds and other investment vehicles for financial clients in the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s, and capitalized on the growth of international business, finance, and technology transactions in the 1990s. Today, Milbank has offices in financial centers including London,[8] Frankfurt, Munich, São Paulo,[9] Seoul, Tokyo, Singapore, Hong Kong and Beijing, in addition to domestic offices in Los Angeles and Washington, D.C.[6]
In 1977, Milbank became the first U.S. law firm to establish an office in Tokyo under its own name, amid opposition from both the Ministry of Justice and Japan Federation of Bar Associations, who viewed it as illegal for foreign lawyers to practice in Japan at that time.[10] Despite these protests, Milbank's office remained open through the early 1980s and was the only office of an American law firm in Japan during that time.[11] Restrictions on foreign law firms in Japan were eased with the introduction of the attorney at foreign law system in 1987.
In 1998, Milbank Partner John Gellene was convicted for knowingly and fraudulently making false declarations under penalty of perjury during the 1994 Bankruptcy case of Bucyrus-Erie. Gellene was sentenced to prison time and Milbank had to disgorge $1.8 million in fees.[12]
In early 2015, Milbank opened a Foreign Legal Consultant Office (FLCO) in Seoul.[13]
On February 19, 2019, Milbank changed its name from Milbank, Tweed, Hadley & McCloy LLP to Milbank LLP.[4]
In November 2023, amid a wave of antisemitic incidents at elite U.S. law schools, Milbank was among a group of major law firms who sent a letter to top law school deans warning them that an escalation in incidents targeting Jewish students would have corporate hiring consequences.[14]
In April 2025, amid the Donald Trump administration's campaign of retaliation against law firms that provided services to his political opponents, Milbank agreed to contribute $100 million of pro bono legal services to support goals of the Second Trump administration in exchange for not being among the targets.[15]