104-Year-Old Biglaw Attorney Who Was Still Practicing Law Has Passed Away

One of Biglaw's only practicing centenarians has passed away. RIP.

Murray H. Shusterman

Murray H. Shusterman

Amid the excitement over bonus season, some somber news seems to have been swept under the rug here at Above the Law. Although we mentioned this briefly earlier in the week, the death of one of Biglaw’s only centenarians — a man who continued to practice law until his passing — deserves more than a blurb.

Murray H. Shusterman began practicing law in 1936, and he died this week at the age of 104. Shusterman was just five years younger than Fox Rothschild, the firm where he’d worked for almost 50 years (Shusterman was born in 1912, the firm was founded in 1907, and he started working there in 1969). When Shusterman joined the firm, only 25 lawyers worked there; the firm now boasts more than 750 lawyers and is now an Am Law 100 firm.

Shusterman was a man who had dedicated his life to the law, so much so that he refused to retire from the firm he’d devoted almost half of his life to. Although his title at the time of his death was “senior counsel,” about 20 years ago, Shusterman was known as a “senior partner” at Fox Rothschild. “What? Retire? Sit in a rocking chair and wait to die?” Shusterman said in a 2014 interview with the Philadelphia Inquirer.

When speaking with the Legal Intelligencer, Abraham C. Reich, co-chair of Fox Rothschild, described Shusterman as “a real role model in terms of a family man, a lawyer’s lawyer, someone who was committed to the community and understood the concept of giving back.” Mark Silow, Fox Rothschild’s firmwide managing partner, had this to say of Shusterman: “Above all, Murray had an active mind and was always curious about politics, business and the law, literally right up to the moment he passed away.”

Several years ago, when Shusterman was asked to name the best and worst moments of his life, he gave a remarkably thoughtful answer, which now strikes a more poignant chord since his passing. Today, we share it with our readers:

There’s no such thing [as a best or worst moment]. A person has many experiences over time, some good, some bad. . . . The real secret is to be decent, to be fair, and to be forgiving.

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We here at Above the Law would like to extend our condolences and sympathies to Murray Shusterman’s family, friends, and colleagues. May he rest in peace.

Murray Shusterman of Fox Rothschild Dies at 104 [Legal Intelligencer]
Murray Shusterman, 104, lawyer, philanthropist [Philadelphia Inquirer]
Fox Rothschild lawyer dies at 104; he was still practicing law [ABA Journal]

Earlier: A 101-Year-Old Attorney Is Still Working At This Biglaw Firm


Staci ZaretskyStaci Zaretsky is an editor at Above the Law. She’d love to hear from you, so feel free to email her with any tips, questions, or comments. You can follow her on Twitter or connect with her on LinkedIn.

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