Finalist: Neale and Newman LLP

For the past century, attorneys with the law firm of Neale & Newman LLP have worked to play key roles in the Springfield community. Founded in 1903, the firm now has 44 employees and 11 partners. The company is a finalist for the Springfield Area Chamber of Commerce's W. Curtis Strube Small Business of the Year Award.

Managing Partner Paul White said continuing changes and development in the legal field and the amount of competition among law firms are challenges that Neale & Newman deals with not only as a law firm, but also as a small business.

"We identify the upcoming challenges and then change our direction to meet the challenge," White said. "It's an always-changing environment in the law."

The firm's client list includes individuals and businesses, regional and national companies, charitable foundations and nonprofit organizations. The areas in which the firm provides service include general business and corporate law, business mergers and acquisitions, commercial litigation, family law, estate planning probate administration, workers' compensation, international law and Social Security disability.

When it comes to competition, White said that the fact that there are more large firms in Springfield than there used to be actually works to the benefit of Neale & Newman. He said the firm also finds that local companies want representation from a local firm.

"We're seeing some of the local companies wanting to turn back to deal with local (law) firms. When (other firms) came in, we knew that was going to be a challenge, but we just stayed with our people, and word-of-mouth gets things coming back home," he said. "We're finding that it has not had a negative impact on us yet. I don't anticipate it happening because (business) keeps improving."

In the past two years, the firm has replaced and upgraded all of its hardware and software systems to keep pace with technological advances. Aside from the challenges created by the practice of law, White said, the firm also deals with many of the same challenges faced by many different types of small businesses, including staffing issues and competitive pricing. However, he said, the firm's staff is helpful when it comes to handling those issues.

"We've gone to more committee-based management," he said.

White is proud of the firm's efforts in the local community, and he estimates that the majority of the firm's attorneys participate in community volunteer service in one way or another.

Founded in 1903 by Ben Neale and Charles Newman, the firm originally was located in Greenfield, moving to Springfield in the 1920s. While it spent 55 years in offices downtown at the Woodruff Center, the firm relocated in 1981 to its location at 1949 E. Sunshine St. in One Corporate Centre.

Through the years, as partners joined the firm and left the firm, its name changed several times to reflect those comings and goings. In 1997, though, the decision was made to shorten the name to Neale & Newman LLP, to reflect its history and tradition.