Law has always been among the most sartorially sophisticated professions. Its practitioners must always be representing not only themselves, but their firms, their clients, and even the dignity of the law itself. These imperatives, along with the generous means that are often a lawyer’s prerogative, have produced generations of well-appointed attorneys who appreciate good clothes and understand their power.
The relaxation of dress codes in even the most traditional law firms may have shifted the paradigm toward less imposing and more comfortable attire, but it hasn’t diminished the importance of presenting a professional impression. This can be difficult to pull off in the more subjective context of a casual workplace, and there’s nothing comfortable about finding oneself inappropriately attired. Alan recalls being stunned when one of the real estate lawyers handling the closing of his Fifth Avenue apartment showed up in khakis and a polo shirt — not because of any stylistic offense
Alan’s pale pink and rich brown ensemble is a model of understated elegance, with subtle details like a horizontally striped shirt and gauntlet suit cuffs marking him as a sartorialist, but not a dandy.
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It’s never a bad thing for a lawyer to be the most formally dressed person in a meeting — the grownup in the room, so to speak. While this once may have meant a dark three-piece suit, today it might mean a subtle sportcoat and well-chosen tie. Sartorial standards may shift, but lawyers benefit from maintaining a relative formality that helps them project the following timelessly essential professional qualities:
Trustworthiness - Whether being appraised by a judge, a jury, a client, or a senior partner, a lawyer’s attire should give an open and honest impression. This translates to well-tailored but simple, sober clothes that don’t attract attention to themselves, but rather serve the wearer by focusing attention on his or her face. The bolder patterns or brighter colors that an entrepreneur or an entertainer might favor with will tend to come across as flashy, distracting, and perhaps even suspicious when worn by counsel.
Thoroughness - Tailored clothing presents many opportunities to demonstrate one’s attention to detail. Nuances like a precise trouser break or a properly knotted necktie are subliminally impressive to even the least sartorially inclined among us; their mastery won’t come across as fussy or fogey, but rather refined and authoritative. A discrete pocket square is a polished touch, (especially in the increasingly common absence of a necktie) but it’s generally well-advised to steer clear of more fastidious or anachronistic details like collar pins and braces — at least until you’re more established in your career.
Mahatma Gandhi Lawyer In Suit Hi Res Stock Photography And Images
Gravitas - A lawyer’s attire should respect the seriousness of the law he or she practices, and the magnitude of the stakes for clients. A well-cut solid dark suit, a crisp white or light blue shirt, and an elegant tie is an admittedly formal but entirely appropriately ensemble to wear to what is essentially one of the highest ceremonies in secular society: a court of law. Not quite the white wig required in British courts, but the same idea: symbols of continuity that transcend whims of fashion.
There is certainly a long tradition of lawyers who enjoy deploying the full arsenal of menswear finery — e.g. double-breasted suits, waistcoats, watch chains — to make a statement and perhaps even a personal trademark, but such dandification is generally a prerogative of seniority at most firms, where high-style dressing is underwritten by proven professional records. If you’re not quite there yet, remember that more conservative dressing need not be dull. A restrained sartorial aesthetic can be highly elegant, emphasizing quality of material and perfection of cut over ostentatious flair or detail. Indeed, this was the mantra of the original dandy himself — the early 19th century English
Beau Brummell, credited with creating the modern suit as a masculine rejection of the baroque gorgeousness that had characterized fashionable male dress for centuries. “If John Bull turns around to look at you, ” he observed, “you are not well-dressed.”
Looking The Part: Lawyer
’s Atticus Finch, memorably portrayed by Gregory Peck in the 1962 film adaptation. Finch’s rumpled cotton three-piece suits might be better suited to a courtroom in Depression-era Alabama than one in Manhattan today, but their timeless appeal lies in their enobling
— the way in which simple, unpretentious, yet dignified clothing can serve a man serving the law. Finch’s personal style is hardly mentioned in the story, but no reader or viewer will ever forget it. It’s an object lesson in how good clothes work.
NOTE: Alan Flusser Custom will be exhibiting at the New York State Bar Association’s Annual Meeting at the New York Hilton Midtown from January 15th through the 17th.Some lawyers are sartorially challenged. The pages of Above the Law burst at the seams with tales of fashion mishaps. Yes, we know about the stylish Skadden lawyers featured in the New York Times — but they’re the exception, not the rule. When I profiled legendary New York lawyer Eddie Hayes, a member of Vanity Fair’s International Best-Dressed Hall of Fame, a few years ago, he offered this indictment of attorney attire: “There are some terrible dressers at big firms! They must go to a special school to learn how to dress that badly.”
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Could getting custom-made suits be the solution to this problem? Last year, my then-fiancé (now husband) treated himself to a bespoke suit. It turned out beautifully, garnering him constant compliments — so I decided to investigate for myself. (And for ATL readers; when I mentioned on Twitter that I was looking into custom suiting, several readers asked me to write about the process.)
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In late May, I walked a few blocks north from the Above the Law offices in Manhattan’s NoHo neighborhood for my appointment at Michael Andrews Bespoke (“MAB”), where my fiancé had his suit made (after being referred there by a friend who’s an editor at GQ, which has previously covered MAB). The Michael Andrews showroom is located in Great Jones Alley, a little byway running parallel to Lafayette Street that was named after Samuel Jones, a prominent lawyer regarded by some as “The Father of the New York Bar” for his work in revising New York State’s statutes in the late 18th century. You press a buzzer to be admitted to the gate-protected alley:
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The Michael Andrews showroom is less retail store and more gentlemen’s lounge. Young people today are more into experiences over things, and MAB makes buying a custom suit into a bit of both. The open floor plan features a sitting area in front, a fully stocked bar on the right as you enter, and marble-inlaid tables in the center, where well-dressed salespeople conduct consultations with clients — asking them questions, entering the responses into laptops, and showing them swatches of fabric.
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I passed on the offer of an alcoholic beverage, wanting to be sober for my reporting, and met with Cory Sylvester, MAB’s vice president of operations, who looks like a younger Ethan Hawke. Cory asked me a number of questions so he could understand how Michael Andrews could best cater to my needs, such as why I was interested in getting a bespoke suit, how often I expected to wear it, and for what types of occasions. A client’s answers to these questions will affect such things as the cut of the suit, the weight and durability of the fabric, and the lining, all of which lie within your control when you get a bespoke suit.
I came with a specific purpose: to get a suit for my upcoming wedding. My fiancé already had his blue bespoke suit from Michael Andrews that he was planning to wear for the occasion, so I wanted the exact same suit, just in grey (our wedding colors were blue and grey). But I also wanted the suit to be versatile enough to wear after the wedding, for business purposes such as meetings, conferences, and speaking engagements.
Because I wanted to replicate a suit whose details MAB already had on file, all I needed to say was, in essence, “I’ll have what he’s having.” But Cory still walked me through all the choices a client gets to make. For example, on the hot-button issue of lapels, did I want peak lapels or notch lapels (or various other options I’d never even heard of)? How wide did I want the lapels to be? Or consider the lining — did I want a full lining, half lining, quarter lining, or no lining? Or take something I never think about, like buttons — what shape and color did I want, and what material (e.g., black horn, natural horn, gun metal, mother of pearl)?
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Making these selections, which
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