Whitfield & Eddy

Today's Whitfield & Eddy is a product of its experience. The firm was formed on August 6, 1928, when Allen Whitfield and Joseph H. Allen began sharing offices. During its early years, the firm of Whitfield & Allen employed two lawyers and one secretary. Edgar Musgrave joined the firm in 1932. In 1936 Allen ceased his active involvement in the firm and the name was changed to Whitfield & Musgrave.

During World War II, most of the attorneys in the office went on active duty in the armed forces. Walter W. Selvy joined the firm from the Polk County Attorney's Office, and he managed the office through the World War II years under the name of Whitfield, Musgrave & Selvy.

With the end of the war and the veterans' return, the firm once again began to grow with an emphasis on litigation and a particular emphasis on insurance defense and product liability. By 1969, the firm was known as Whitfield, Musgrave, Selvy, Kelly & Eddy. The firm has continued to expand to its current size of more than 50 attorneys. The firm's expansion is due in part to multiple mergers, including a merger with Bridges & Frampton, a Des Moines firm with roots dating back to 1924 when Wilbur Bridges opened that practice; Adams & Rice, P.L.C.; Reavely Law Firm; Mark R. Gray, Esq.; the construction law group from the former Pingel & Templer, P.C.

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