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Kramer Levin Naftalis & Frankel
Kramer Levin Naftalis & Frankel LLP (known as Kramer Levin) was an American law firm headquartered in New York City with branch offices in Silicon Valley, California; Washington, D.C.; and Paris, France. In 2025 Kramer Levin merged with British silver circle law firm Herbert Smith Freehills to form Herbert Smith Freehills Kramer.
The firm was founded in New York City in 1968, as Kramer, Lowenstein, Nessen & Kamin. Founding members include Arthur Kramer, Louis Lowenstein, Maurice Nessen, and Sherwin Kamin. When Eugene Nickerson joined the firm in 1971, its name changed to Nickerson, Kramer, Lowenstein, Nessen & Kamin.
The firm's current name, Kramer Levin Naftalis & Frankel LLP, resulted from personnel changes over 1978–1983, including Nickerson leaving to join the federal bench of the Eastern District of New York, Lou Lowenstein leaving to join the faculty of Columbia Law School, and Ezra G. Levin and former Southern District of New York judge Marvin E. Frankel each becoming name partners, as did Gary P. Naftalis, a decade later.
From 2000–2007, Kramer Levin was the exclusive U.S. referral firm to U.K. firm Berwin Leighton Paisner (BLP), meaning BLP would exclusively refer its clients to Kramer Levin for U.S. cases. The alliance was then changed to "preferred firm" status, meaning that the two firms would still collaborate but without exclusive referrals.[citation needed] There was speculation that the referral relationship was intended to become a merger.
In April 2012, anti-Muslim author Robert Spencer was scheduled to speak at the Kramer Levin offices about his book Did Muhammad Exist? An Inquiry Into Islam's Obscure Origins, but the firm canceled the event in response to pressure by the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR).
In November 2024, Kramer Levin announced it would merge with Herbert Smith Freehills to form a fully-integrated firm. In April 2025, the firms announced that their partnerships had voted in favor of merger, and completion of the merger took place on 1 June 2025. The firm is now known as Herbert Smith Freehills Kramer.
Kramer Levin has an office in Paris, France, which it acquired in 1999 from the legacy U.S. firm Rogers & Wells which did not want to merge with the rest of the firm to London-based Clifford Chance. The firm maintains relationships with other firms throughout the world. There are 35 lawyers at the Paris office, which focuses on finance and corporate law. In September 2011, Kramer Levin opened its Silicon Valley office in Menlo Park, California, expanding its intellectual property practice.
Each department at Kramer Levin, according to a study of the firm by Chambers Associates, has an assigning partner. There is "no formal rotation through the different sub-practices", meaning that lawyers at the firm can choose their direction. The juniors that Chambers spoke to had opportunities to work directly for partners. While the firm has offices in Paris and Silicon Valley, 95% of its attorneys are based in New York. In 2019, first-year associates of the firm were scheduled for $205,000 annual base compensation, before bonus.
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Kramer Levin Naftalis & Frankel
Kramer Levin Naftalis & Frankel LLP (known as Kramer Levin) was an American law firm headquartered in New York City with branch offices in Silicon Valley, California; Washington, D.C.; and Paris, France. In 2025 Kramer Levin merged with British silver circle law firm Herbert Smith Freehills to form Herbert Smith Freehills Kramer.
The firm was founded in New York City in 1968, as Kramer, Lowenstein, Nessen & Kamin. Founding members include Arthur Kramer, Louis Lowenstein, Maurice Nessen, and Sherwin Kamin. When Eugene Nickerson joined the firm in 1971, its name changed to Nickerson, Kramer, Lowenstein, Nessen & Kamin.
The firm's current name, Kramer Levin Naftalis & Frankel LLP, resulted from personnel changes over 1978–1983, including Nickerson leaving to join the federal bench of the Eastern District of New York, Lou Lowenstein leaving to join the faculty of Columbia Law School, and Ezra G. Levin and former Southern District of New York judge Marvin E. Frankel each becoming name partners, as did Gary P. Naftalis, a decade later.
From 2000–2007, Kramer Levin was the exclusive U.S. referral firm to U.K. firm Berwin Leighton Paisner (BLP), meaning BLP would exclusively refer its clients to Kramer Levin for U.S. cases. The alliance was then changed to "preferred firm" status, meaning that the two firms would still collaborate but without exclusive referrals.[citation needed] There was speculation that the referral relationship was intended to become a merger.
In April 2012, anti-Muslim author Robert Spencer was scheduled to speak at the Kramer Levin offices about his book Did Muhammad Exist? An Inquiry Into Islam's Obscure Origins, but the firm canceled the event in response to pressure by the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR).
In November 2024, Kramer Levin announced it would merge with Herbert Smith Freehills to form a fully-integrated firm. In April 2025, the firms announced that their partnerships had voted in favor of merger, and completion of the merger took place on 1 June 2025. The firm is now known as Herbert Smith Freehills Kramer.
Kramer Levin has an office in Paris, France, which it acquired in 1999 from the legacy U.S. firm Rogers & Wells which did not want to merge with the rest of the firm to London-based Clifford Chance. The firm maintains relationships with other firms throughout the world. There are 35 lawyers at the Paris office, which focuses on finance and corporate law. In September 2011, Kramer Levin opened its Silicon Valley office in Menlo Park, California, expanding its intellectual property practice.
Each department at Kramer Levin, according to a study of the firm by Chambers Associates, has an assigning partner. There is "no formal rotation through the different sub-practices", meaning that lawyers at the firm can choose their direction. The juniors that Chambers spoke to had opportunities to work directly for partners. While the firm has offices in Paris and Silicon Valley, 95% of its attorneys are based in New York. In 2019, first-year associates of the firm were scheduled for $205,000 annual base compensation, before bonus.