Corporate legend Wachtell Lipton has defined individualism and innovation in Manhattan’s legal community for two decades. James Illman asks what the future holds as the architect of its rise nears retirement

Revolution comes in many forms. While cultural upheaval was sweeping the Western world in the 1960s, Manhattan’s clubby and conservative legal community was witnessing a little revolution of its own, even if its effects would not be clear for 20 years.