History

Herbert L. Satterlee (1863-1947) founded the firm—originally known as Satterlee & Canfield—in 1894.  Mr. Satterlee, whose clients included Mark Twain and many of the most prominent corporate leaders of the day, was responsible for incorporating General Motors, a name which Mr. Satterlee suggested.  In November of 1900, the marriage of Louisa Pierpont Morgan, daughter of J.P. Morgan, to Mr. Herbert Satterlee, in New York City was the social event of the season.

During its first century, the firm was the home for many talented and colorful attorneys.  Harlan Fiske Stone (1872-1946) was a partner at the firm when it was known as Satterlee Canfield & Stone, and went on to become Dean of Columbia Law School, Attorney General of the United States, and ultimately Chief Justice of the United States Supreme Court.  Another Satterlee alumnus, Hugo Wilkinson Jervey, also served as Dean of Columbia Law School.

“Satterlite” Moe Berg” (1902-1972) exhibited talent of a different sort.  For half of the year he was a lawyer with the firm and for the other half he was a catcher with the Brooklyn Dodgers, the Chicago White Sox and a succession of other teams.  Berg is remembered for being fluent in twelve languages, “although he couldn’t hit in any of them” (lifetime average .243), and for his work with the OSS during World War II.

In 1987, Satterlee joined with Burke & Burke, a New York firm with an equally long and distinguished heritage, and took on its present name, Satterlee Stephens Burke & Burke LLP.  Today, in its second century, our mid-sized firm is proud to have a number of attorneys selected for inclusion in The Best Lawyers in America, Super Lawyers New York, Chambers USA and Who’s Who Legal.

We invite Satterlee alumni to share their recollections of the firm’s history with our librarian, Dolores Fusik-Bruzenas, .