Lawrence Wien

Lawrence Wien
Born	Lawrence Arthur Wien 1905 New York City
Died	1988 (aged 82–83) Westport, Connecticut
Residence	Westport, Conn
Nationality	United States
Education	B.A. Columbia College J.D. Columbia Law School
Occupation	attorney real estate investor
Known for	co-founder of Wien & Malkin
Spouse(s)	Mae Levy (until her death) Ruth Kupper
Children	Enid W. Morse Isabel W. Malkin

Lawrence A. Wien (1905–1988) was an American lawyer, philanthropist, and real estate investor.

Wien was born to a Jewish family in New York City. He had three siblings: Mortimer E Wien, Leonard Wien, and Ms. Bernard T. Hein. In 1925, Wien graduated with a B.A. from Columbia College and in 1927, he graduated with a J.D. from Columbia Law School. In 1928, he co-founded the law firm, Wien Malkin & Bettex which became a leading national law firm specializing in real estate law. In 1931, he ventured into real estate and, along with three partners who invested $2,000 apiece, bought a small apartment house in Harlem. In the 1930s, using his legal background, Wien pioneered the concept of real estate syndicates making direct ownership of income property accessible to groups of individual investors for the first time. In 1958, his son in law Peter L. Malkin joined the firm as a partner (renamed Wien & Malkin LLP). His syndicates purchased or controlled through long term ground leases many of New York City's most prominent landmarks including the Empire State Building (which he bought with partner Harry Helmsley in 1961 from Henry Crown), the Equitable Building, the Graybar Building, the Fisk Building, the Garment Centre Capitol Building, the Fifth Avenue Building, the Lincoln Building as well as many prominent hotels including the Plaza Hotel, the Taft Hotel, Hotel St. Moritz, the Lexington Hotel, and the Hotel Governor Clinton. He also participated in transactions in Newark, Palm Beach, Philadelphia, Los Angeles, Minneapolis, and Las Vegas.

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