Established 1974 · New York

Hollingsworth & Vance

Considered counsel for matters that cannot be left to chance. For five decades we have advised families, founders, and institutions with discretion, rigour, and an unhurried attention to detail.

Request a Consultation Our practice areas
A narrow Lower Manhattan street framed by tall stone and glass buildings, looking up toward the sky
Lower Manhattan, where the firm has practised since 1974.
Five decades
Of continuous practice
Nine
Areas of practice
Chambers
Ranked, Band 1
Privately held
No outside interests

Practice Areas

A deliberately narrow remit

We decline more matters than we accept. What remains is work we can do exceptionally well, with partners who stay on the file from first meeting to final resolution.

  • Corporate & Securities

    Formation, governance, capital raises, and the quiet negotiation of terms that hold up years later.

  • Complex Litigation

    Commercial disputes tried and settled, with a strong preference for the outcome that avoids a courtroom.

  • Trusts & Estates

    Succession planning across generations, structured to endure changes in law, family, and fortune.

  • Real Property

    Acquisition, development, and landlord matters for owners who measure holdings in decades.

  • Regulatory & Compliance

    Counsel before the enquiry arrives — programme design, internal review, and measured response.

  • Private Client Advisory

    Confidential representation for individuals whose personal and commercial affairs are inseparable.

Looking up into the coffered stone vault of a classical arch, photographed in black and white

The Firm

Fifty years of the same standard

Eleanor Hollingsworth and Robert Vance opened two rooms above a bank on Pearl Street in 1974 with a single conviction: that a client is owed the partner's own judgement, not a summary of it. Every engagement since has been built on that arrangement.

We have stayed intentionally small. Eighteen attorneys, no satellite offices, and a caseload sized so that the person who takes your call is the person who argues your position. Growth has never been the point; continuity has.

Founded
1974, Lower Manhattan
Attorneys
Eighteen, six of them partners
Recognition
Chambers USA, Band 1 — Private Client
Engagement
Partner-led, without exception

They read the whole file before they said a word. In eleven years of working with counsel, I had not seen that before.

Chief Executive · Family holding company, client since 2013

Attorneys

Counsel you will actually speak to

  • Placeholder portrait: a person in profile, turned toward low afternoon light

    Margaret Hollingsworth

    Managing Partner

    Advises closely held companies through succession, sale, and the difficult years between. Joined the firm in 1996 and has led it since 2011.

    Corporate & Securities · Trusts & Estates

  • Placeholder portrait: a seated figure alone in a tall arched hall, photographed in black and white

    Julian Vance

    Senior Partner, Litigation

    Thirty-one years of commercial disputes, the majority resolved before trial. Former clerk to the Second Circuit and a persistent advocate of the quiet settlement.

    Complex Litigation · Regulatory

  • Placeholder portrait: a person in a collared shirt, framed from the shoulders down

    Adaeze Okonkwo

    Partner, Regulatory & Compliance

    Builds compliance programmes that survive scrutiny and represents clients when scrutiny arrives. Previously counsel to a state banking regulator.

    Regulatory · Private Client

Contact

Request a consultation

Initial consultations are without charge and held in confidence. A partner reviews every enquiry personally and will reply within two business days.

Office
118 Pearl Street, Suite 900
New York, NY 10004
Telephone
+1 (212) 555‑0147
Email
enquiries@hollingsworthvance.com
Hours
Monday to Friday, 8:30 – 18:00

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