Powers of Attorney

Tales that take you behind the scenes of a powerful New York law firm, from the New York Times–bestselling author of The Partners.

Ambition, jealousy, desire, hatred, deceit—they’re all there inside the Wall Street law offices of Tower, Tilney & Webb, the setting for these interwoven stories set in the 1960s from Louis Auchincloss, who practiced law while also writing acclaimed and bestselling fiction. Senior partner Clitus Tilney is not about to let a detestable, hard-drinking partner make a mockery of all he’s worked for. Harry Reilley is a clerk who pines for Tilney’s daughter. Jake Platt is an associate willing to do whatever it takes to achieve his goals, including setting a rival up for failure. Rutherford Tower struggles with the fact that he owes his position with the firm to nepotism and not hard work. And then there’s Mrs. Abercrombie, who’s waiting for her sixty-fifth birthday, when she plans to retire—and get her revenge. These twelve linked stories capture the struggles, rivalries, victories, disappointments, and compromises in the day-to-day lives of lawyers, and a portrait of professional men and women in mid-century New York.

© 1980 Houghton Mifflin Harcourt (Ebook): 9780547994994

Release date

Ebook: September 19, 1980