DELAND - Not many businesses in the Volusia/Flagler market can put 100 candles on their birthday cakes.

    Such longevity is even more unusual when the business is a group of professionals, an area where widespread development only dates back to the late 1800s.

    Yet, the law firm of Landis Graham French, P.A. -- a recently shortened sobriquet so it's easier to remember -- is marking its centennial this year.

    Since 1902, when Cary D. Landis and Bert Fish became partners, the firm has produced numerous judges, state lawmakers, government officials and law school faculty members.

    "In the beginning, the firm was involved in the development of Florida and Florida's government," said current partner Bill Sherman, noting the firm has been associated with Democrats and Republicans alike from its inception.

    Unlike many long-lived firms, Landis Graham French hasn't become a behemoth. Only 10 attorneys are shareholders or associates in the corporation.

    Most law firms tend to grow, become specialized or break up over the years, said Marc Galanter, a professor at the University of Wisconsin Law School and chairman of its Institute for Legal Studies. "It's interesting that it has lasted that long and still is of modest size.

    "Most lawyers tend to represent a particular type of client, so the extent that (Landis Graham French) has a varied and rounded practice is very unusual," Galanter continued. "It sounds like the kind of place many lawyers say they'd like to be in."

    Landis Graham French has remained a general practice law firm, although individual attorneys do have their areas of expertise. It has kept the number of partners down to a manageable few scattered among three offices, the home office here and offices in Daytona Beach and Deltona.

    "One of the reasons is that a lot of thought goes into deciding who becomes a full member of the firm," firm member Joe Dykes said. "It requires unanimous support of all the members, so no one becomes a full member without a lot of compatibility with the others.

    "Second, a lot of law firms lack collegiality among their members," he said. "Not only are the people I practice law with my colleagues, but they're also my friends."

    The firm's attorneys have been active through the years with both major political parties at the state and local levels. They've also served as board members for charitable organizations, and have been involved in a number of state and local bar activities.

    The standard was set by the founders. Early in the 20th century, Landis was an assistant professor of law at Stetson College of Law. He was elected state attorney in 1911 and two decades later became Florida's attorney general.

    After serving as superintendent of Volusia County schools, Fish twice was appointed criminal court judge of Volusia County. In the 1930s, President Franklin Roosevelt appointed him a minister to Egypt and Saudi Arabia, and later ambassador to Portugal.

    But the firm's leaders were criticized for using their influence to control politics as well, according to news accounts from the era.

    A political network known as "The Ring" controlled nearly every aspect of public life, political old, states a 1999 retrospective in The Daytona Beach News-Journal. The Ring was headed by Francis P. Whitehair, a senior member of the law firm. At one time, he controlled most of the courts, the sheriff, tax assessor, most of the banks, most of the county commissioners and most of the legislators from the district. He was powerful in local business as well, with extensive holdings in citrus and real estate.

    Longtime political observers say Whitehair, who died in 1977 at age 76, inherited the mantle of political boss from fellow law firm member Fish.

    Between the 1920s and 1940s, it was nearly impossible to get elected to any county office without The Ring's support, old-timers say.  Whitehair's influence extended into small-town politics and lawyers from his firm frequently were municipal employees.

    Members of the firm continue to serve in public positions, but not in as controversial a manner.  At least four alumni of the firm are sitting on the bench. Other partners serve in civic groups and with local governments.

    "We continue to be involved in local and state politics," Dykes said. "I can't conceive of a time when we won't."

    When Landis and French became partners, the population of DeLand was "probably only a thousand people at most," said local historian Bill Dreggors. The 1909 telephone book has only five pages of listings, he noted, at a time when about half the population had telephones.

    For most of its history, the firm operated out of a building at 110 W. Indiana Ave.  Originally a one-story building, it was expanded with the addition of a second floor in 1925 as the town's population grew.

    "During the '20s, the town really boomed," Dreggors said.

    The population stagnated during the Great Depression, he said, but surged again after World War II.

When the firm moved to a renovated supermarket building at 145 E. Rich Ave. in 1985, many of the original office furnishings -- roll-top desks, oak filing cabinets and chairs, and a safe -- moved with it and are in use today. The original Landis Building remains one of the few vacant structures in downtown DeLand.

    Mark Twain once said that news of his death had been greatly exaggerated.  Bill Sherman said in much the same way, the firm's long-rumored demise is far from imminent.

    "When I joined in 1959, rumors were that the firm would dissolve," he said. "But it has persisted."

    While all 10 active attorneys are informally referred to as partners, only six are shareholders in the professional association, which is incorporated with the state: Sherman, Ottinger, Dykes, Masters, Frank Ford and his son, Alex Ford.  The remaining four are associates: Channing Coolidge Jr., Janet Strickland, Steven Gosney and Basyle "Boz" Tchividjian.

    "It's a fine firm with a great reputation, and I congratulate them on their milestone," said Terry Russell, president of the Florida Bar. "They're all good, solid people."

    "It has been a well-known, well-respected firm for many years," Dreggors agreed. "It still is."

    Dykes believes the firm's future will be bright well into this century.  "I think if we continue to do things we've done in the past 100 years, we'll continue to play a strong part in Florida and Volusia County as well," he said.

All in the name
Landis Graham French has had nine different names as partners have come and gone over the years. Landis is the only name that has been there throughout. Here's a timeline of the firm's name:

1902: Landis & Fish. Cary D. Landis and Bert Fish are partners.

1914: Landis, Fish & Hull. Dossie C. Hull becomes a partner.

1926: Landis, Fish, Hull & Whitehair. Francis P. Whitehair joins.

1928: Hull, Landis & Whitehair. Bert Fish retires from law practice; J. "Ollie" Edmunds joins the firm.

1941: Hull, Landis, Whitehair, Graham & French. John L. Graham and J. Compton French join as partners.

1942: Hull, Landis, Graham & French. Whitehair resigns to join the U.S. Navy.

1967: Landis, Graham, French, Husfeld & Sherman. Husfeld and Sherman had been associated with the firm for 15 and 8 years, respectively.

1969: Landis, Graham, French, Husfeld, Sherman & Ford, P.A. Result of merger with Ford, Wren and Sanders.

2002: Landis Graham French, P.A. Name condensed for clarity.

Firm milestones
-- Francis Whitehair, a 1926 addition to the partnership, became a commissioned officer in the Navy during World War II and was appointed undersecretary of the Navy by President Truman after the war.

-- J. "Ollie" Edmunds joined in 1928 and later became president of Stetson University.

-- John L. Graham, who joined in 1941, helped establish the West Volusia Hospital Authority. J. Compton French also joined in 1941, and is the oldest surviving partner, although now semi-retired. Both were assistant attorney generals under Landis.

-- Thorwald "Ted" Husfeld was a 1952 addition to the partnership, gaining renown as a folksy champion for the underdog. William E. Sherman, who joined the firm in 1959, was the West Volusia Hospital Authority's first general counsel and served on the Volusia County Charter Study Commission. Sherman also devoted many years' service to the Florida Bar's real estate, probate and estate divisions, helping craft many documents and standards still in use today.

-- Frank Ford became a partner in 1969, after a merger with another law firm. Ford helped found the Florida Bar's section on oil and gas law.

-- The firm also launched the legal careers of later generations. Erskine W. Landis, son of the co-founder, joined the firm in the 1930s. His son, Cary E. Landis, was associated with the firm for a short while before joining the U.S. Navy after World War II. Richard S. Graham, John Graham's son who joined in 1971, was a state representative and twice served as attorney for the Volusia County School Board. Alex Ford, Frank's son, joined in 1983.

-- Later additions remain with the firm. William Ottinger joined in 1972 after leaving Gov. Claude Kirk's administration; Ottinger was municipal judge in DeLand and Orange City for several years. Joe Dykes, currently the firm's senior litigator, joined in 1978. Sam Masters, the newest partner, joined in 1989 after six years in the State Attorney's Office.

-- Richard Graham was appointed circuit judge in late 2001. Also in the judiciary are former members Edwin Sanders, a Volusia County circuit judge since 1983, and county judges Richard F. Conrad in Orange County since 1986, and John Roger Smith, in Volusia County since 1988.

 

This article originally appeared in the February 24, 2002 issue of  The News-Journal
and is printed with permission