Century of legal synergy continues with merger of two NH firms

LACONIA — The merger between Martin, Lord & Osman and Upton & Hatfield is a clear representation of the two firms' forward-thinking approach to law, and one thing is for certain: High-quality client service is consistently at the forefront.

Formed in the early 1900s, two of the Granite State’s oldest firms shared striking similarities in their approach to law, and the synergy was palpable when they came together in November 2025.

It’s all in the “secret sauce,” said Todd Fahey, new managing partner for the law firm, which will retain the Upton & Hatfield name.

“Obviously, both of us have done something different,” for the past 100 years, Fahey said. “So, there's been some secret sauce. Now, there's twice as much secret sauce.”

The Laconia Daily Sun sat down with representatives from the two firms — including Margaret Demos and Steve Goss alongside Fahey — at their Laconia location, at One Mill Plaza, for a conversation about the future of the company.

The firm, with locations around the Granite State, including Laconia and Concord, has an expanded comprehensive list of services offered, and a healthy team of 22 lawyers. Many familiar faces to long-term clients will remain the same.

The firm has expertise in estate planning and probate law, real estate and corporate law, municipal and school law, general counsel for small businesses and nonprofits, and litigation, as well as family law and professional defense. The diversified list leaves clients in good hands.

“We represent a lot of employees and we represent employers, as well. We have a very robust business practice. We do transactions helping people buy and sell businesses, and everything in between. We act, essentially as we call it, as general counsel to companies. Most small businesses can't have their own in-house lawyer. It's too expensive. So they'll call us, and we love that role,” Fahey said. “We do a lot of work with nonprofit organizations.”

Expanding their services repertoire represents their shared values, too.

“Everything is expensive today. Lawyers are not inexpensive, but neither are plumbers,” Fahey said. Legal representation is “not cheap. We're trying to deliver value, and really honor the clients, by doing excellent legal work.”

As the lawyers age at different stages, the firms’ merger ensures there’s always high-quality legal representation for their legacy clients thanks to their succession plan.

“I was worrying. I mean, we were worrying if anything happened to us, you know, where are clients going to go, because we wanted the best representation, the best lawyers,” said Demos, who counsels individuals and families on estate planning, trusts and estates, probate administration, tax matters and real estate. “We wanted them to be in a good place.”

Today, the company is poised for the future of legal representation, and is ready to embrace new technology as it's developed. While the firm has acknowledged AI will accelerate their work, it will never replace the human touch.

“It's not going to replace the judgment of lawyers, I think it's going to accelerate and expand our ability to do work as guided by the judgment of lawyers,” Fahey said, adding serving as legal representation is an honor.

“It's about doing something noble every day.”

For more information, visit uptonhatfield.com.

Editor's note: This story has been updated to correct the name of the one of the merging law firms: Martin, Lord & Osman.

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Katlyn Proctor can be reached at katlyn@laconiadailysun.com or by calling 603-524-0150.