Wilentz, Goldman & Spitzer
Encyclopedia
Wilentz, Goldman & Spitzer is a law firm
in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern United States with headquarters in Woodbridge, New Jersey, and other offices in New Jersey
, New York and Pennsylvania
. The firm presently has approximately 150 attorneys in various business and personal practice areas.
The firm traces its origins to the law office founded in 1919 in Perth Amboy by David T. Wilentz
, G. George Goldman and Henry Spitzer. Founder David Wilentz is best remembered as the Attorney General of New Jersey who in 1935 prosecuted Bruno Hauptmann
for the kidnap and murder of the son of aviator Charles Lindbergh
. His son, Robert Wilentz
, who also was a partner in the firm, was Chief Justice
of the New Jersey Supreme Court
from 1979 to 1996.
The Wilentz firm has gained a reputation for its representation of plaintiff
s in mass tort
and product liability
cases, including a lawsuit against a large tobacco company that led in 1988 to a jury
awarding $400,000 in damages to the heirs of Rose Cipollone, a heavy smoker who had died of lung cancer. This was first time a U.S. court granted a monetary award in a case involving death from smoking. The ruling was reversed on appeal by the U.S. Supreme Court in 1992 (see Cipollone v. Liggett Group, Inc.
), and in 1993 the firm stopped representing consumers in tobacco cases.
As of 2003, the firm ranked 236th in size among United States law firms. In 2009, the firm yield $210,345 in profit per partner.
Law firm
A law firm is a business entity formed by one or more lawyers to engage in the practice of law. The primary service rendered by a law firm is to advise clients about their legal rights and responsibilities, and to represent clients in civil or criminal cases, business transactions, and other...
in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern United States with headquarters in Woodbridge, New Jersey, and other offices in New Jersey
New Jersey
New Jersey is a state in the Northeastern and Middle Atlantic regions of the United States. , its population was 8,791,894. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York, on the southeast and south by the Atlantic Ocean, on the west by Pennsylvania and on the southwest by Delaware...
, New York and Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania
The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...
. The firm presently has approximately 150 attorneys in various business and personal practice areas.
The firm traces its origins to the law office founded in 1919 in Perth Amboy by David T. Wilentz
David T. Wilentz
David Theodore Wilentz was the Attorney General of New Jersey from 1934 to 1944. In 1935 he successfully prosecuted Bruno Hauptmann in the Lindbergh kidnapping trial...
, G. George Goldman and Henry Spitzer. Founder David Wilentz is best remembered as the Attorney General of New Jersey who in 1935 prosecuted Bruno Hauptmann
Bruno Hauptmann
Bruno Richard Hauptmann was a German ex-convict sentenced to death for the abduction and murder of the 20-month-old son of Charles Lindbergh and Anne Morrow Lindbergh. The Lindbergh kidnapping became known as "The Crime of the Century".-Background:Hauptmann was born in Kamenz in the German Empire,...
for the kidnap and murder of the son of aviator Charles Lindbergh
Charles Lindbergh
Charles Augustus Lindbergh was an American aviator, author, inventor, explorer, and social activist.Lindbergh, a 25-year-old U.S...
. His son, Robert Wilentz
Robert Wilentz
Robert Nathan Wilentz was Chief Justice of the New Jersey Supreme Court from 1979 to 1996, making him the longest-serving Chief Justice since the Supreme Court became New Jersey's highest court in 1948.-Biography:...
, who also was a partner in the firm, was Chief Justice
Chief Justice
The Chief Justice in many countries is the name for the presiding member of a Supreme Court in Commonwealth or other countries with an Anglo-Saxon justice system based on English common law, such as the Supreme Court of Canada, the Constitutional Court of South Africa, the Court of Final Appeal of...
of the New Jersey Supreme Court
New Jersey Supreme Court
The New Jersey Supreme Court is the highest court in the U.S. state of New Jersey. It has existed in three different forms under the three different state constitutions since the independence of the state in 1776...
from 1979 to 1996.
The Wilentz firm has gained a reputation for its representation of plaintiff
Plaintiff
A plaintiff , also known as a claimant or complainant, is the term used in some jurisdictions for the party who initiates a lawsuit before a court...
s in mass tort
Tort
A tort, in common law jurisdictions, is a wrong that involves a breach of a civil duty owed to someone else. It is differentiated from a crime, which involves a breach of a duty owed to society in general...
and product liability
Product liability
Product liability is the area of law in which manufacturers, distributors, suppliers, retailers, and others who make products available to the public are held responsible for the injuries those products cause...
cases, including a lawsuit against a large tobacco company that led in 1988 to a jury
Jury
A jury is a sworn body of people convened to render an impartial verdict officially submitted to them by a court, or to set a penalty or judgment. Modern juries tend to be found in courts to ascertain the guilt, or lack thereof, in a crime. In Anglophone jurisdictions, the verdict may be guilty,...
awarding $400,000 in damages to the heirs of Rose Cipollone, a heavy smoker who had died of lung cancer. This was first time a U.S. court granted a monetary award in a case involving death from smoking. The ruling was reversed on appeal by the U.S. Supreme Court in 1992 (see Cipollone v. Liggett Group, Inc.
Cipollone v. Liggett Group, Inc.
Cipollone v. Liggett Group, Inc., , was a United States Supreme Court case. In a split opinion, the court held that the Surgeon General's warning did not preclude suit by smokers against tobacco companies on several claims...
), and in 1993 the firm stopped representing consumers in tobacco cases.
As of 2003, the firm ranked 236th in size among United States law firms. In 2009, the firm yield $210,345 in profit per partner.