History

If you want to understand Foley Hoag and our personality, take a look at our history. We were started in 1943 by two extraordinarily diverse individuals. Henry Foley and Garrett Hoag sought to establish a different kind of law firm. They were determined to hire the very best lawyers based entirely on individual merit, a departure from the exclusionary practices common in that era. Today, nearly 225 Foley Hoag lawyers practice law at the highest level in business transactions and litigation matters throughout the United States and around the world.

Our distinguished alumni include global business leaders, general counsel of leading companies, U.S. Senators, accomplished state policy leaders, university presidents, and the first African-American partner to be named to a Boston law firm.

Yet the firm’s evolving history, perhaps, can best be measured in the accolades afforded us by the marketplace that we serve and as a result of our commitment to the communities in which we live and work. Here are some of the recent accolades of which we are especially proud:

  • Chambers USA: The Client’s Guide has again ranked Foley Hoag’s leading practice areas in Massachusetts. The 2010 guide includes Foley Hoag in the areas of Antitrust, Banking & Finance, Bankrupcty/Restructuring, Corporate/M&A, Environment, Health Care, Hedge & Mutual Funds, Intellectual Property, Labor & Employment, Litigation: General Commercial, Litigation: White Collar Crime & Government Investigations, Private Equity: Venture Capital Investment.  International Arbitration practice is noted nationally. Chambers cited 26 individual lawyers and 13 Foley Hoag practices in 2010.
  • The Legal 500 2009 U.S. Guide has recognized Foley Hoag’s M&A, Venture Capital and Antitrust groups as leading practices in the northeast. Several individual lawyers were also recognized including Peter Rosenblum, Chair of the Business Department, for M&A; Peter Coogan, John Hancock, William Kolb, John Patterson and Carol Pratt all within the M&A practice area; David Pierson for Venture Capital; and Bruce Parker and Lisa Wood for Antitrust. 
  • Best Lawyers in America® included 27 lawyers from Foley Hoag LLP in its 2010 guide. The ranking represents just over 27% of partners at Foley Hoag included in the rankings, one of the oldest peer-review publications in the legal profession. Six of the Foley Hoag lawyers have been listed in the guide for at least 10 years.
  • Working Mother magazine named Foley Hoag among 50 firms to its prestigious 2009 Top Law Firms list for the second consecutive year, citing such firm attributes as advancement opportunity, recruitment and retention policies, quality of life, and professional development. 
  • Foley Hoag is ranked 12th on Vault's "Best 20 Law Firms for Diversity" list, 12th on its "Diversity for Minorities" list, and 10th on its "Diversity for Gays & Lesbians" list for 2009.
  • The highly regarded publisher of referral guides, The Best Lawyers in America, named 29 lawyers from Foley Hoag in its 2008 edition. Individual lawyers practicing across many Foley Hoag service areas have also been ranked by leading publications such as PLC: Which Lawyer? and The Legal 500.
  • In its inaugural "AmLaw Pro Bono 100" report in 2009, The American Lawyer ranked Foley Hoag #25 in its evaluation of the pro bono efforts of the top 200 firms identified in its annual "AmLaw 200" listing.
  • Foley Hoag was named to The American Lawyer’s “A-List 2008” of the top 50 law firms in America, a prestigious grouping of firms based on diversity, pro bono, associate satisfaction, and revenues per lawyer.
  • Greater Boston Legal Services (GBLS) has honored Foley Hoag three years running with the top honor of “Largest Donation” in its annual Associates Drive. Many of the firm’s approximately 20,000 hours of pro bono legal work annually are devoted to matters stemming from our close relationship with GBLS.
  • Foley Hoag’s clients named the firm a “Go-To-Firm” in both Intellectual Property and Technology recently, as reported in Corporate Counsel magazine.
  • The Human Rights Campaign Foundation, the educational arm of the nation’s largest advocacy group for gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender Americans, has honored Foley Hoag with a perfect score in its 2009 Corporate Equality Index and Best Places to Work Survey.
  • Multicultural Law magazine regularly cites Foley Hoag among its Top 100 firms for diversity.
  • The publication “Presumed Equal: What America’s Top Women Lawyers Really Think About Their Firms” ranked Foley Hoag 24th in the nation on the satisfaction of women lawyers on the issues of advancement, firm attitudes and atmosphere, and balancing work and family life.  

On the firm's recent "A-List" ranking, our former Co-Managing Partner Robby Sanoff said it best: "For Foley Hoag, being included in the 'A-List' is a special honor because it acknowledges the values that are most important to the firm. We are proud of the strong economic growth Foley Hoag has enjoyed over the past few years, but great firms are more than engines of economic production. Great firms require an unstinting commitment to professional excellence, client service, and community. Those are the values upon which Foley Hoag's culture has been built."