The story
Hogan & Hartson
Hogan & Hartson was founded by Frank J. Hogan in 1904. In 1925, Hogan was joined by Nelson T. Hartson, a former Internal Revenue Service attorney, and John William Guider. Hogan & Hartson then went into partnership in 1938 with Guider
as a silent partner.
In 1970, Hogan & Hartson became the first major firm to establish a separate practice group devoted exclusively to providing pro bono legal services. The Community Services Department (CSD) dealt with civil rights, environmental, homeless and other public interest groups. In 1990, Hogan & Hartson opened an office in London, their first outside the U.S.
In 1972, the firm gained its first black law partner, trial lawyer Vincent H. Cohen (April 7, 1936 – December 25, 2011), who was of Jamaican heritage; had joined the firm in 1969; and had previously held positions at the U.S. Department of Justice, and at the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. Cohen's clients included Bell Atlantic, Pepco, and The Washington Post. His son, Vincent Cohen, Jr., served as an interim U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia.
The firm expanded its presence in New York and Los Angeles, in 2002, when it acquired mid-sized law firm Squadron, Ellenoff, Plesent & Sheinfeld, a New York City–based general practice firm.
Lovells
Lovells traced its history in the UK back to 1899, when John Lovell set up on his own account at Snow Hill, between St Paul's and Smithfield. He was later joined by Reginald White, a clerk in his previous firm, to whom he gave articles. In 1924, they were joined by Charles King, forming Lovell, White & King. Soon after formation, the firm moved to Thavies Inn at Holborn Circus and later to Serjeant's Inn, Fleet Street, before moving to 21 Holborn Viaduct in October 1977.
Lovells was formed as a result of a number of earlier mergers. In 1966, Lovell, White & King merged with Haslewoods, a firm with a much longer history of private client work. Haslewoods diverse clients included the Treasury Solicitor. In 1988, Lovell, White & King, which by then had a large international commercial practice, merged with Durrant Piesse, known, in particular, for its specialism in commercial banking and financial services, forming Lovell White Durrant. It then changed to Lovells in 2000 when the firm merged with German law firm Boesebeck Droste.
Hogan Lovells
Hogan & Hartson and Lovells announced their agreement to merge on 15 December 2009. Hogan Lovells was officially formed on May 1, 2010.
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In December 2011 it was reported that the firm would be moving to a single chairman model following the retirement of John Young.
In December 2013, Hogan Lovells merged with South African firm Routledge Modise. The addition of about 120 lawyers in the Johannesburg office make up the first physical location for Hogan Lovells in Africa although the firm maintains a presence in Francophone Africa through its Paris office.
In July 2020, Hogan Lovells announced Miguel Zaldivar, former Asia Pacific and Middle East regional chief executive as the new global CEO. In 2021, the firm appointed Paris-based Marie-Aimée de Dampierre as its chair, later reappointing her to a second two-year term, effective May 2024.
Hogan Lovells Cadwalader
In December 2025, Hogan Lovells announced that they would merge with Cadwalader, Wickersham & Taft LLP to form Hogan Lovells Cadwalader and become the fifth-largest law firm in the world. The merger was approved by partners in April 2026 and was scheduled to take effect on July 1, 2026. It was announced that Miguel Zaldivar, the current CEO of Hogan Lovells, would continue to serve as CEO of the combined firm.
From Wikipedia’s article on Hogan Lovells, shared under CC BY-SA 4.0.4