When Andrew Blustein joined Garfunkel Wild 28 years ago, the firm had a dozen lawyers. Now it has grown to more than 80, but Blustein, who will become the firm chairman effective Oct. 1, is only the second person to hold that role in the firm’s history.

Robert Wild, who founded the firm more than 40 years ago in Great Neck, New York, will move into the role of chairman emeritus, and he does so following a growth spurt at Garfunkel Wild. In the last year, it has added 12 lawyers, doubled the size of its Connecticut office, and added a biotechnology, life science and medical device practice group.