Ballard Spahr LLP is an
AmLaw 100 law firm practicing throughout the
United States
The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...
. Founded in 1885, the law firm focuses on litigation, securities and regulatory enforcement, business and finance, intellectual property, public finance, and real estate matters. The firm is headquartered at
1735 Market Street in
Philadelphia
Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...
.
History
Ballard Spahr originated in
Philadelphia
Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...
in 1885 and became known as 'Ballard and Spahr' in the early 1900s when
University of Pennsylvania
The University of Pennsylvania (Penn or UPenn) is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. One of nine colonial colleges, it was chartered in 1755 through the efforts of f ...
alumni Ellis Ames Ballard and Boyd Lee Spahr began practicing law together. The firm has continually grown by number of attorneys, practices, and offices throughout the United States since inception.
The firm opened its first office outside of
Philadelphia
Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...
in 1978, with the opening of its
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...
office. Ballard opened its
Denver
Denver ( ) is a List of municipalities in Colorado#Consolidated city and county, consolidated city and county, the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Colorado, most populous city of the U.S. state of ...
office in 1981, beginning the firm's growth in the Rocky Mountain and Southwest regions. The firm opened offices in
Salt Lake City
Salt Lake City, often shortened to Salt Lake or SLC, is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Utah. It is the county seat of Salt Lake County, the most populous county in the state. The city is the core of the Salt Lake Ci ...
in 1987,
Baltimore
Baltimore is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland. With a population of 585,708 at the 2020 census and estimated at 568,271 in 2024, it is the 30th-most populous U.S. city. The Baltimore metropolitan area is the 20th-large ...
and
New Jersey
New Jersey is a U.S. state, state located in both the Mid-Atlantic States, Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern United States, Northeastern regions of the United States. Located at the geographic hub of the urban area, heavily urbanized Northeas ...
in 1992, and
Delaware
Delaware ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic and South Atlantic states, South Atlantic regions of the United States. It borders Maryland to its south and west, Pennsylvania to its north, New Jersey ...
in 2002.
Ballard Spahr acquired Needle & Rosenberg, P.C., an intellectual property boutique firm in Atlanta in 2008, expanding the firm's IP services and expanding to the Southeast. The firm opened an office in New York City in 2013, joining with Stillman & Friedman, a white collar defense and securities litigation and enforcement boutique.
It has also acquired First Amendment litigation boutique Levine Sullivan Koch & Schulz in 2017, bolstering Ballard's national media and entertainment law practice, as well as Lindquist & Vennum, a firm that focuses on middle-market deal making.
On January 1, 2025, Ballard Spahr completed its merger with another law firm
Lane Powell.
Practice areas
Ballard Spahr is a general practice law firm with 51 practice groups and departments focusing on business and transactions, finance, intellectual property, litigation, and real estate. Litigators at the firm advise market players in securities and antitrust class actions, patent infringement cases, white collar defense matters, and federal and state appeals.
The firm has a large
real estate practice in the United States, encompassing real estate finance,
conveyancing
In law, conveyancing is the transfer of legal title of real property from one person to another, or the granting of an encumbrance such as a mortgage or a lien. A typical conveyancing transaction has two major phases: the exchange of contract ...
,
construction
Construction are processes involved in delivering buildings, infrastructure, industrial facilities, and associated activities through to the end of their life. It typically starts with planning, financing, and design that continues until the a ...
,
development
Development or developing may refer to:
Arts
*Development (music), the process by which thematic material is reshaped
* Photographic development
*Filmmaking, development phase, including finance and budgeting
* Development hell, when a proje ...
, and distressed assets. It also has a significant presence in
mergers and acquisitions
Mergers and acquisitions (M&A) are business transactions in which the ownership of a company, business organization, or one of their operating units is transferred to or consolidated with another entity. They may happen through direct absorpt ...
,
securities
A security is a tradable financial asset. The term commonly refers to any form of financial instrument, but its legal definition varies by jurisdiction. In some countries and languages people commonly use the term "security" to refer to any for ...
and securities enforcement, and other areas of
corporate law
Corporate law (also known as company law or enterprise law) is the body of law governing the rights, relations, and conduct of persons, companies, organizations and businesses. The term refers to the legal practice of law relating to corpora ...
.
The company has also represented government entities in the issuance of
municipal bonds and other
tax-exempt
Tax exemption is the reduction or removal of a liability to make a compulsory payment that would otherwise be imposed by a ruling power upon persons, property, income, or transactions. Tax-exempt status may provide complete relief from taxes, redu ...
instruments. It also practices in the areas of
labor & employment,
insurance law,
environmental law
Environmental laws are laws that protect the environment. The term "environmental law" encompasses treaties, statutes, regulations, conventions, and policies designed to protect the natural environment and manage the impact of human activitie ...
,
tax law
Tax law or revenue law is an area of legal study in which public or sanctioned authorities, such as federal, state and municipal governments (as in the case of the US) use a body of rules and procedures (laws) to assess and collect taxes in a ...
and other related sub-disciplines.
[http://www.ballardspahr.com/about/practice.asp Full list of practice areas]
See also
*
White-shoe firms
References
External links
*
{{Philadelphia Corporations
Law firms established in 1886
Law firms based in Philadelphia
1886 establishments in Pennsylvania
2025 mergers and acquisitions