Helen Lehman Buttenwieser

Helen Lehman Buttenwieser (October 8, 1905 – November 22, 1989) was a 20th-century American lawyer, philanthropist, and later-life legal counselor of Alger Hiss.

Background

Helen Lehman was born on October 8, 1905, to Arthur Lehman and Adele Lewisohn, members of the Jewish Lehman family. Her grandfather, Mayer Lehman, was a co-founder of Lehman Brothers and her uncle was New York State Governor Herbert H. Lehman. She was also a granddaughter of Adolph Lewisohn. Harold Rosenwald (one of the first lawyers to join the Alger Hiss defense team) was a member of the firm.

During the 1950s, other clients were the Leake and Watts Children's Home, Graham Home for Children, and Abbott House. In 1962, she represented alleged Soviet spy Alger Hiss and convicted Soviet spy Robert Soblen. In the 1960s, Martin Garbus in her law firm counseled comedian Lenny Bruce. In 1968, she was admitted to practice before the U.S. Supreme Court. Her legal work focused on aiding women and children (especially adoption, foster care, and child welfare) and preserving civil liberties. She was active in the New York Democratic State Committee, the New York City Bar Association, the New York chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union, and the Legal Defense Fund of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People.

Personal and death

In 1929, she married Benjamin Buttenwieser, a prominent banker and philanthropist and son of attorney Joseph L. Buttenwieser. She left Cravath after a year because of the impending birth of a child.

She died age 84 of heart failure at New York Hospital on November 22, 1989.

Awards

1980: Louis Dembitz Brandeis Medal for Distinguished Legal Service, Brandeis University 1983: Legal Aid Society Servant of Justice Award 1988: "Roasted" by Association of the Bar of the City of New York 1989: Horace Mann Alumni Association Award for Distinguished Service

Legacy

The Helen Lehman Buttenwieser Scholarship and Fellowship at Columbia University is named in her honor.