N.Y. Lawyer 'Retires' at 90
After 67 years in practice, a renowned corporate lawyer has decided to retire from his senior counsel post at Thelen Reid Brown Raysman & Steiner. However, what Walter Feldesman considers retirement might sound like a lot of work to the average attorney.
The 90-year-old will continue to advise clients and colleagues from an office at Thelen, serve as elder law counsel to the United Seniors Cooperative, and handle what the 600-lawyer firm refers to in a press release as a “full plate” of pro bono cases. Last month, Feldesman also brought in three new matters to the firm, including a real estate litigation and an employee stock ownership plan matter. A leading authority on elder law, he also continues to work on a five-volume free electronic treatise on the subject.
That agenda does represent a slowdown for this particular lawyer, however: “In 1983, The New York Times reported that Mr. Feldesman served on the boards of more public companies than any other attorney in the United States,” the press release notes. Currently, he is one corporate board, and expects to step down from the post next year.
“Throughout my career, I have been fortunate to work with so many outstanding lawyers and represent wonderful clients. I suppose I’ve continued to practice all these years not for the money or the accolades, but quite simply out of a love of the law,” Feldesman says in the press release.
“The legal business has certainly changed a lot during my lifetime, but the basic principles of effective representation and client service remain the same. I am grateful for the opportunity to have been part of a firm that allowed me all the autonomy in the world to do what I love the most.”
