19 ғасырдағы Нью-Йорк заң фирмасы: Сыбайлас жемқорлық пен қылмыс шебері

Nineteenth century New York City law firm

Howe and Hummel was a New York City law firm, celebrated in the latter half of the nineteenth century and principally renowned for its active involvement in the world of crime and corruption.

The senior partner in the firm was William F. Howe (1828 – September 2, 1902), a corpulent UK born and later naturalized American trial lawyer who had served 18 months in jail in Britain for false representation, and who was strongly suspected of possessing a more extensive criminal background. Prosecuted in 1874 by a pair of white slavers, William and Adelaide Beaumont, "who maintained that they had in some fashion been cheated by the partners",

In 1869, Howe made a partner of Abraham Hummel (July 27, 1850 – January 21, 1926), his former clerk and physical opposite, a runtish, rake thin genius renowned for his ability to spot loopholes in the law.

The final collapse of the firm came in 1907, five years after Howe's death, when Hummel was convicted in New York of suborning perjury, disbarred, and sentenced to a year in jail. After his release, Hummel left the United States and lived chiefly in Paris. Howe and Hummel kept no records (the partners reportedly met at the end of each day and emptied their respective pockets onto the table and evenly divided the total pile), actively courted publicity (despite bar rules against lawyers advertising (which did not begin to be relaxed until the late 1960s), they maintained a full sized billboard atop their offices), and were much discussed in their day among the members of the legal profession. As such, many of the stories told about them have the aura of tall tales. Nevertheless, their decades of effective practice suggest that the partners were among the most effective and innovative attorneys to practice in the United States during the nineteenth century. Although nobody can deny a strong element of "sharp practice", including using suspect surprise witnesses in some trials, or suppressing adverse witness testimony by sending them out of state, all expenses paid, until the trial was over, there was genuine talent in the team, especially in the abilities of William Howe in court. A recent study of the 1897 murder of Willie Guldensuppe, and the 1898 trial of his killer Martin Thorne, gives clear proof of Howe's mastery of cross examination. At the first trial of Thorne, his co conspirator, Mrs. Augusta Nack, testified against Thorne. Howe's simple and direct cross examination ripped her testimony apart on the stand, which led to the prosecution deciding not to use her again in a retrial. Nonetheless, even with Howe's efforts and skill, in the second trial Thorne was convicted and sentenced to be executed. Despite Howe's courtroom skills and Hummel's mastery of legal intricacies, it was ultimately the (mis)use of their talents that ultimately brought down the firm.

"William F. Howe, Dean of Criminal Bar, Dead". The New York Times September 3, 1902, p. 9. "Decadence of New York's Criminal Bar". The New York Times, September 7, 1902, p. 34. [Accounts of Ella Nelson trial]. New York Herald, June 19, 1891, p. 3 & June 20, p. 4.