In a town known where capriciousness is ingrained into business more than nearly anywhere else, it’s rather remarkable to see something last several years, let alone 47 of them. Unfortunately, the 47th will mark the last for Lionel Sawyer & Collins, which predates most Las Vegas casinos.
Sam Lionel, 95, and former Nevada Governor Grant Sawyer co-founded the powerful and politically connected firm, which was among the first Las Vegas law firms to open an office in Reno. At one time, the firm had 50 lawyers, the most in the state, spread out over Las Vegas, Reno, and Carson City, has seen its roster shrink to just 35 lawyers.
Dennis Kennedy, a former Las Vegas lawyer who was with the law firm from 1975 to 2006 said, “if there ever was a Nevada legacy law firm, this is it.” He went on to say, “It’s the end of an era. We’re passing into a new era of the legal business.”
Since 1967, Lionel parked his car in the same law office space, and has been a member of the Nevada Bar since 1954. After the firm is dissolved in January, he, along with eight others will join Fennemore Craig’s Las Vegas office. One of the eight happens to be former U.S. Senator and Nevada Governor Richard Bryan, who along with Lionel, will find solace in the fact they only have to move three floors down to their new office, located in the Bank of America building at 300 S. Fourth St. in downtown Las Vegas.
John Mowbray, who serves as the Las Vegas office managing partner for Fennemore, spoke about Lionel, calling him “sharp as a tack.” He went on to say, “I felt I was sitting at the feet of a master… never did I imagine in my wildest dreams did I think I would be practicing law with Sam Lionel.” The two recently waxed nostalgic, which included a story about Lionel appearing before Mowbray’s father, John C. Mowbray, who served as a Nevada Supreme Court justice for more than 25 years. Lionel said, “I argued in front of him at District Court and Supreme Court.” He continued, “I didn’t always agree with him, and he didn’t always agree with me… and that had more meaning.”
In addition to Lionel and Bryan, several other prominent lawyers will follow along. One of them includes Jeffrey Zucker, who started as a “runner” a few decades ago and currently sits atop Lionel Sawyer & Collins’ business law department, where he specializes in real estate and corporate transactions. Many partners left the firm over the past year, to other law firms and businesses, and some who will not follow along to Fennemore Craig will be starting their own practices. Fennemore Craig is one of the largest law firms in Nevada, with over 200 attorneys spread out throughout the Southwest.
