Foster Swift

History of Success

For over 120 years, Foster Swift Collins & Smith has been dedicated to delivering exceptional client service and legal excellence. Our firm offers a comprehensive range of services tailored to businesses, organizations, municipalities, families, and individuals across Michigan, the nation, and beyond. 

Foster Swift’s 100-plus attorneys across Michigan provide a results-minded attitude and across-the-board legal excellence.  We are committed to understanding your unique needs and providing solutions that drive success.

To facilite serving our clients, Foster Swift's practice groups are organized as follows:

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Our History

Foster Swift Collins & Smith traces its origins to 1902. That was when Walter S. Foster established a law office in downtown Lansing.

The recent law school grad was already a rising star in the Lansing business community. Foster would later make a name for himself as a leader in the county and state bar associations and as a respected prosecuting attorney. In 1912, for example, Foster was special counsel in a sensational case that resulted with the Michigan State Treasurer convicted of embezzlement.

Walter Foster’s reputation in the courtroom set the tone in the early days of the firm. The firm eventually became home to generations of successful litigators known and respected for their skill and civility. Our lawyers remember this legacy every time they step into a courtroom.

Early Growth

The timing was right for Foster’s young firm. Michigan’s auto industry was in its ascendancy, and one of the firm’s first clients was a car-making pioneer, Ransom E. Olds, the founder of the Oldsmobile marque.

The state’s economy thrived throughout the first half of the 20^th Century and into the post-World War II era. Foster Swift grew with it, adding business and institutional clients, of every size.

The firm also started adding names to its letterhead: Walter S. Foster’s son, Richard B. Foster, joined the firm in 1932, and, like his father, Dick Foster served as county prosecuting attorney.

Sustained Growth

In 1955, Theodore W. Swift and John L. Collins joined the firm. In 1963, Webb A. Smith was added to the masthead, giving the firm the name by which it is known today.

Several decades of steady growth followed. By the 1990s, the firm was adding offices to accommodate client needs and opportunities throughout the state. Foster Swift expanded into Southeastern Michigan and downtown Detroit, followed a few years later by the establishment of a Grand Rapids office in Western Michigan. The firm established its Holland office in 2010, offering Foster Swift’s clients border-to-border coverage. Supporting new capacity and growth, the firm's Farmington Hills relocated to Southfield in 2016.

Timeless Values

Some things, however, will never change. For more than 120 years, the firm has never wavered from the values of ethics, integrity and exemplary service to the clients who depend on us. In return, clients have rewarded Foster Swift with their trust and loyalty.

While the firm's name has evolved over the years, like founder Walter S. Foster over a century ago, the firm remains committed to legal excellence, client service, professionalism, civility and community.

Leaders in the Law

Julie Fershtman served as the President of the State Bar of Michigan 2011-2012.  Julie represents clients in a broad range of business, contract, personal injury, and insurance coverage litigation pertaining to several industries.  She is also widely considered one of the nation's leading practitioners in equine law Remarkable Leaders: Women Presidents of the SBM