History
On May 1, 1901, two Wall Street lawyers, Justin DuPratt White, 31, and George B. Case, 28, contributed US$250 each to launch White & Case.
White had only apprenticed at a law firm and never attended law school. Case had graduated from Columbia Law School four years earlier. The firm benefited from the founders' relationship with J.P. Morgan & Co. financier, Henry "Harry" Davison.
Davison hired White & Case to organize Bankers Trust Company. Davison retained White & Case to represent a series of banking ventures and provide legal services to many of the companies financed by J.P. Morgan, including U.S. Steel.
During World War I, the British and French governments hired J.P. Morgan & Co. to purchase war materials in the United States on their behalf. White & Case handled the legal work, writing contracts with nearly 1,000 US suppliers. This resulted in a high volume of legal work for the firm. In recognition of the firm's efforts, the French government made DuPratt White a Chevalier of the Legion of Honor.
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