Mason Griffin & Pierson

The law firm of Mason, Griffin and Pierson had its beginnings at a YMCA camp on the Delaware, where Gordon D. Griffin and Ralph S. Mason met as camper and counselor in the early 1930s. Their professional relationship began in 1947 after the two men met again in Trenton. Ralph had just partnered with Seymour Montgomery in Princeton to form the firm of Montgomery and Mason, and had asked Gordon Griffin to join the practice upon graduating law school. In 1948, Gordon Griffin became Montgomery and Mason’s first and only associate at their office in the First National Bank building at the corner of Witherspoon and Nassau Streets. The firm of Montgomery and Mason was dissolved in 1952. Ralph Mason and Gordon Griffin continued to share office space, but were not partners. On January 1, 1955, the partnership of Mason & Griffin was formed. In addition to Ralph's many contacts, clients then included the Township of Princeton and the Board of Education of the Township of Princeton. The firm’s municipal clientele later expanded and included the Borough of Princeton, Montgomery Township and Hightstown Borough. The firm was also involved in an interesting process sometimes referred to as "creeping consolidation," whereby Princeton Township and Borough formed several joint agencies, including the Joint Recreation Commission, the Regional Planning Board, the Joint Library Commission, Joint Civil Rights Commission, and the Joint Board of Health. By and large, however, the firm’s practice was general, covering trials, real estate, wills and estates, and corporate matters. During this early period, Ralph Mason was working on a suit against a giant quarry company. One of the dividends of this experience was Ralph’s introduction to Hervey Moore, an attorney also involved in the quarry case. The first expansion in partners took place when Hervey Moore joined the firm just a few weeks after its formation. The firm then became Mason, Griffin & Moore. In June 1956, Kester R. Pierson graduated from the University of Pennsylvania Law School and began working as a law clerk with the firm. He took the bar exam in July 1957 and was admitted to practice in August 1957. In October of 1959, Kester took a leave of absence from the firm to work in the Office of the United States Attorney in Trenton, and returned in March 1961, at which time the firm consisted of the original principals, along with additional partner, Thomas P. Cook and several associates. Kester R. Pierson was made a partner of the firm in January 1965. After Hervey Moore became a judge in 1973, his name was replaced by that of Kester R. Pierson, who at that time had been a partner for several years. Thus, the firm name became what it remains today. The MGP offices settled at 101 Poor Farm Road in November, 1985. This two-building site with a connecting atrium proved ideal, for the firm wanted a rural setting close to downtown Princeton but with relatively light traffic, and Poor Farm Road fit the bill perfectly. Mason, Griffin & Pierson now has about twenty attorneys, including directors/shareholders (the current name for partners). The staff also includes approximately twenty secretaries, paralegals and administrative support staff. Through its members and associates, the firm has been active in several professional organizations over the years, including the New Jersey Institute of Municipal Attorneys, the Princeton Bar Association, the Mercer County Bar Association, the Mercer County Bar Foundation, the New Jersey State Bar Association, and the International Municipal Lawyers Association. Of course, the law has changed and expanded over the last 55-plus years, and the original general practice firm now consists of groups of practitioners concentrating in business & banking, employment law, estates & trusts, litigation, local government law, and real estate & land use.