F. Daniel Frost and the Rise of the Modern American Law Firm

Book excerpt: This biography of F. Daniel Frost, whose life and work are most closely associated with the expansion of the Los Angeles law firm of Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher from the 1960s through the 1980s, is also a tale of the transformation of the American legal profession during that era. Macro histories offer one important window into this rich chapter of the profession’s history, and personal narratives of the most ambitious and high-profile leaders offer still another. This book is written from Dan Frost’s viewpoint as an exceptionally influential private lawyer who shaped a major California firm throughout the second half of the last century. During this dynamic time in the saga of the profession, the rise of California’s law firms was a crucial component. Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher today is a global entity, with offices and influence in every major economic hub in the world, but when Frost joined the firm it still was a small, essentially regional institution. He was a witness to, and became a central architect of, the firm’s dramatic evolution thereafter. The foundations of Frost’s success included his family, education, and public service background, as well as the historical, economic, and geographical context in which he lived. During this time, California’s major industries, universities, cultural centers, and sheer geographic expanse and natural beauty established her as the nation’s other coast—rivaling, and in some respects defeating, the venerable East Coast in influence, affluence, and dynamism. Frost’s career holds valuable lessons for legal historians, California historians, and lawyers of any era. His life also offers insights for his professional and personal descendants, as Frost respected and sought to preserve the firm’s history and became a student of western history, spending many years capturing the history of his pioneer ancestors. This account is aimed at illuminating Dan Frost’s role in the evolving firm and family history and will enable his professional and personal descendants to find themselves in the ongoing evolution of a pioneer law firm and a pioneer family. They may glimpse their own trajectory as they reflect on the life of this western lawyer, professional leader, entrepreneur, and philanthropist—a journey that continues today.