White shoe firm is a phrase used to describe the leading professional services firms in America, particularly firms that have been in existence for more than a century and represent Fortune 500 companies. It frequently—but not always—refers to securities and law firms, and frequently (but not always) refers to firms in New York City. A similar phrase, Magic Circle, refers to law firms in the UK.
According to William Safire, the phrase derives from "white bucks", a type of laced suede or buckskin shoe with a red sole, long popular among upper-class New Englanders, especially at Ivy League colleges.[1] Originally, it reflected a stereotype of old-line firms populated by WASPs, but the phrase has since become innocuous. In the case of investment banks (Goldman, Lazard, Lehman), the term referenced not only WASPs but also aristocratic Jews.
Examples of white shoe firms
The following firms are often referred to as being White Shoe firms:
Securities firms
Law firms
- Cravath, Swaine & Moore
- Cadwalader, Wickersham & Taft
- Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton
- Davis Polk & Wardwell
- Debevoise & Plimpton
- Milbank, Tweed, Hadley & McCloy
- Shearman & Sterling
- Simpson Thacher & Bartlett
- Sullivan & Cromwell
Notes and references
- ^ William Safire, No Uncertain Terms: More Writing from the Popular "On Language" Column in The New York Times Magazine, 2003
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