Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman Mourns Founder Steuart Pittman

“Steuart Pittman was a scholar and an American hero,” said James Rishwain, firm chair. “We are fortunate to have had such an outstanding leader and his legacy will live on and through the culture and progress of our firm for years to come. He will be sorely missed.”

Mr. Pittman proved his leadership with his service in World War II, more than 40 years of private practice and exemplary government service. He initially served in World War II as a civilian, running an airline under Pan Am in Africa, and he later carried out similar duties in India with the China National Aviation Co. He later enlisted in the Marines, going to China, where he led local guerrillas in harassing raids on the occupying Japanese forces. On August 20, 1945, six days after the war ended, Lt. Pittman fought in what is believed to have been its last naval battle when a Japanese ship attacked a junk he was commanding. He and other American and guerrilla forces overwhelmed and captured the ship, for which he was awarded the Silver Star medal.

Mr. Pittman graduated from St. Paul’s School in Concord, NH in 1937 and completed his undergraduate degree at Yale University in 1941. After graduating from Yale University Law School, LLB., in 1948 he worked at Cravath, Swaine & Moore in New York. His practice focused on international investment and finance, representing national and international clients. Always a troubleshooter, he served as Assistant General Counsel for various Marshall Plan agencies responsible for investment guaranty and lending programs and other methods of bringing capital and technology to foreign-aid-recipient countries. He believed the fate of the world rested on the Marshall plan, so he set out to create ways to privatize the government’s management of European markets. He was an architect of investment guaranty and lending programs.

He founded Shaw Pittman in 1954, later Shaw Pittman Potts & Trowbridge, in Washington, D.C., and in addition to practicing international investment finance and trade law, he held many consultancies at this time: with the Second Hoover Commission; with the State Department negotiating investment guaranty agreements in seven Latin American countries; and with the Development Loan Fund establishing precedents for mixed public and private financing methods for third-world projects.

In 1961, President John F. Kennedy named him Assistant Secretary of Defense for Civil Defense. In that role, he was responsible for establishing the nationwide system of fallout shelters. Mr. Pittman returned to Shaw Pittman in 1964 to continue his international banking and corporate practice. Throughout his career in Washington, he served in an advisory capacity to various government agencies and served on various boards, including the Hudson Institute, the Center for Naval Analyses, Royal Ordnance, Inc., Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and the Chesapeake Environmental Protection Association.

Mr. Pittman is survived by his wife, Barbara (Bobby), and his children, Andrew Pinchot Pittman, Nancy Steuart Pittman, Rosamond Pinchot Pittman Casey, Tamara Pickering Pittman, Patricia Milburn Pittman, Steuart Lansing Pittman, Jr. and Anne Romeyn Pittman.

About Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman LLP

Pillsbury is a full-service law firm with a keen industry focus on energy & natural resources, financial services, real estate & construction, and technology. Based in the world’s major financial, technology and energy centers, Pillsbury counsels clients on global regulatory, litigation and corporate matters. We work in multidisciplinary teams that allow us to anticipate trends and bring a 360-degree perspective to complex business and legal issues—helping clients to take greater advantage of new opportunities and better mitigate risk. This collaborative work style helps produce the results our clients seek.