Sorry to hear, Denis. He was an amazing person. He was one of the architects who who built the huge superfirms we know today. The Dorsey firm was always known as the blue chip firm in Minnesota, but as late as the 60s they had about 12 attorneys and as late as the 1980s they had fewer than 50. Probably fewer than 40. By the time Peter Dorsey retired they had 500 attorneys and offices in every major US City, several in Europe and one of the first US firms in China. At about that time Dorsey was one of the country's largest firms. Now they're not in the top 100 because big firms have gotten so massive, but Peter was the one who put them on the path to such growth. And to his credit, they never went through a fiscal crisis after such explosive growth, as did many other firms of its size and era.
To put Peter Dorsey's success in perspective, Minneapolis has an oversized Fortune 500 presence and has always had some outstanding law firms. Through the 80s and 90s there were perhaps ten local firms that were considered Dorsey's peers. None exist any longer. Some imploded and all the others were purchased by larger national firms who needed a Minneapolis presence. What was Faegre & Benson is the only one arguably standing. It grew on a similar arch as Dorsey, and eventually merged with another national firm to become Faegre Baker Daniels. They are solidly in the AmLaw 100, but they really aren't the firm that competed with Peter Dorsey's firm. Of all of them, only the Dorsey firm remains the same entity that it always was, now with an international presence. That is certainly a testament to Peter Dorsey's vision and guidance.
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