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<br />THURSDAY, JUNE 3,1999
<br />
<br />-':FIRM
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<br />.
<br />
<br />~ CONTINUED FROM lA
<br />
<br />more mobile, and 'firin loyalty' is
<br />'becoming a scarce j commodity in
<br />the profession." ,J
<br />In an interview late Wednesday,
<br />Nelson said her law firm suffered
<br />a blow when one of its top-produc-
<br />'ing attorneys, Ralph Morris,
<br />jumped ship last December to join
<br />Minneapolis-based Dorsey & Whit-
<br />ney. Morris, former Doherty chief
<br />executive and head of its agricul:-
<br />tural and eooperativelaw practice
<br />'group, took a similar post at Dor-
<br />! sey, the state's largestlaw firm.
<br />i :' In February, 10' more of ,the I'
<br />i firm's attorneys left' to join the
<br />i Minneapolis-based Lindquist '. &
<br />Vennum law firm. Mark Hanson,
<br />part of that group, now heads the
<br />i Lindquist firm's new, agricultural
<br />.and cooperative law department.
<br />'<Nelson said her,. law firm.will
<br />continue 'to serve ,.' its .,cIJents
<br />. :through the' end. of June':~Dd'is
<br />: taking steps "to provide a smooth
<br />! transition' of serviceS." That could .
<br />mean clients '.'foll<iwi!ig. Doherty.
<br />Rumble' attorneys to new law
<br />firms orfinding new ~~torneysandi'
<br />: law firms, she said:1~ .:,~ ,(~\,~ i,t'
<br />: Before its ,43. partners. decided
<br />Wednesday. ,morniDgto ,close the
<br />law firm, ,Doherty? !lUIIlble . had
<br />,been exploring a~~ger \Vi~ Oth'i:
<br />er law, finDS, inclllding ,F,1ed1'ikson',~
<br />& .' ByrOn" ~dJ'OpIjeDbei#ie~j~\yolff;,
<br />& Donnelly.,Bllt::.~e1s01l: Sll!d .,a ,',
<br />merger didn'~!,p~ io~tJ~use
<br />th~re.. w38,;nqt .... g~".fth\V!thh'j~t!"
<br />law . firms' interested., in. sue an
<br />. .mal1Ce~;':::,'l~"".' {f',:~~~::',:;~",'~~',"\:~ij:~:;}~i~~::~';~:~i~o'r:''~.~'Zl~';'l;:"(';~;~ i
<br />t~... At ,... its" peak,." i><)~'eriy;,RWJ1~le;\
<br />had, about120 j ~ttorneys. ,jA:J,r~j..
<br />/ceDUy as .four, years' ago, th~Jaw,>~
<br />lirm was still growing. In 1998,.
<br />1he .., CityB1JSiness,.",;~k (:,()f~l!"~tsfK
<br />.'tankedDoherty"as 'the')tate's "
<br />'Dinth-latgest'fimiiJby~um~~lof.'
<br />attomeYS;n;:~::r;>' '(,_::.:'-~~'{~. .:~,:~'!:F2.:::>i-.1:~~1$:;t~...,( ,};\i;J.~.f:
<br />,'1 In the last coupleofyears,tDoh~':
<br />:erty Rumble foundW increasingly:
<br />.difficult as a mid-sized;law:firm'
<br />~ keep ~cewith the biggest .,of':
<br />. Minnesota's largest'lawtirms. ,.':;'"
<br />;," The shutdown of the state'sold-';
<br />'.law firm has historical~gnifi.;.
<br />"CaDce OD several, fronts:(1ljl'::',;1 ;.4':?
<br />> The firm began;in St'PauliD>
<br />1859, one. year after ; Minnesota'
<br />,gained statehood. : Its attorneys
<br />helped shape theb1lSiq~r~lationsi
<br />of the old Northwest; ,which had
<br />:~ransportation, grain . mar~eting
<br />~d financec~ncerm,; ,in the Twin
<br />Cities'; .i;'; ....",,;'+p,;;:,r::,;:.;.J.i+i;.q.
<br />:-,;;; Ari~tb~r": Doherty. Rumble'dis-',
<br />.tinction: " The firm represented. the!
<br />Great! Northern '.'i. Railway,; and'
<br />hel~ bring Ford Motor.Co.' to St:
<br />
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<br />
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<br />
<br />I
<br />SAINT PAUL PIONEER PI.tESS
<br />
<br />Paul.
<br />The firm's partners included
<br />Pierce Butler Sr., a former U.S.
<br />Supreme .Court justice, and
<br />Charles Flandrau, a Minnesota Su-
<br />preme Court justice and St. Paul's
<br />first Winter Carnival king in 1885.
<br />Doherty Rumble & Butler law-
<br />yers also pioneered the special
<br />business practice of cooperative
<br />law for the nation under the guid-
<br />ance of Wilfred Rumble in the
<br />1920s. During that period and into
<br />the 1930s, Congress and the Roose-
<br />velt administration created sever-
<br />al cooperative law statutes to' help
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />';"f"J~;:3~,
<br />
<br />.'~",,- ,~."~;/~:,<~:_:",,;::\,,,.::.,:~,;_<-,pt;.'
<br />farmers and ,rural' people,JoP;lD;
<br />businesses.. and4eveloPrura~~ri
<br />vices~ The'acts created.bUsinesses,;
<br />and businesS Pl'acticel;' that . were '
<br />not provided for or authorized. un.;'
<br />der the basic U.S. business code. ..'
<br />Partly because ,o~ the, la~jfuwls:
<br />. influence and servlces"Mii:u1~tai';
<br />has the ~rgestllum~rofc(),O~~-+,
<br />. ative busm~ of~Il~..s~~.,.~Zi;C:i~
<br />
<br />: Scott Carlson, whocove':5 regUlation
<br />! and legal affairs, can.ber~act)ed" at..
<br />i scarlsOn @ploneerpre.s.colII;'or. (651)
<br />228-5:4 70. .Staff~rfter Lee. Egerst(Om
<br />. contrlbut.ed to this story., i" . "i,".>
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