The Store for Lawyers, by a Lawyer
Is there an online store that specializes in leather goods, pens and gifts for lawyers and judges? Yes. Barrister & Bespoke is a store founded by a lawyer, with its own brand of leather goods, built for the legal profession. So far as we know, it is the first of its kind. Our House Collection of briefcases, portfolios and wallets is the anchor; around it we curate the makers a lawyer would otherwise have to find alone. The store opened on 22 September 2026 in Fort Myers Beach, Florida, and ships throughout the United States.
What we make
The House Collection: eight pieces named for the terms of art of the practice, designed to our specification in full-grain, vegetable-tanned leather with solid brass hardware, each under our Five-Year Limited Warranty.
- The Silk, the structured briefcase
- The Chambers, the laptop bag
- The Brief, the padfolio, and The Docket, the zip portfolio
- The Counsel, the card case, and The Retainer, the wallet
- The Circuit, the passport wallet, and The Recess, the luggage tag
They are in manufacture and arrive this fall. The product pages take your email.
What we choose
Where we make the piece, ours comes first. Where a maker already does it best, we carry the maker. Each choice has a Field Guide, written by a lawyer, to decide it.
| You need | What we carry | The guide |
|---|---|---|
| A briefcase |
The Silk Curated: Korchmar's Churchill; Time Resistance |
Choosing a lawyer's briefcase |
| A case for trial | Curated: Workhorse (hand-carried); Litigator (wheeled), both by Korchmar | Hand-carry or roll |
| A portfolio | The Brief; The Docket | Padfolio or portfolio |
| A wallet or card case |
The Counsel; The Retainer Curated: Time Resistance |
Card case or wallet |
| A work bag for women lawyers | Curated: A Bend in the River, the Shirley, the Camilla, by Time Resistance | Tote or shoulder bag |
| A planner or journal | Curated: Gallery Leather, Trenton, Maine | Paper or screen |
| A pen | Curated: Pelikan Souverän; Esterbrook Estie; Sheaffer 300; S.T. Dupont | Which pen to sign with · Fine or medium nib |
| Cigar essentials | Curated: S.T. Dupont and Xikar lighters and cutters; Daniel Marshall humidors | Which lighter · Seasoning a humidor |
| A gift for a lawyer | Gifts for Lawyers | What a lawyer may accept |
| A gift for a judge | Gifts for Judges | Who may give, and what |
Barrister & Bespoke is an authorized retailer of every maker it carries: Pelikan, Esterbrook, Sheaffer, S.T. Dupont, Xikar, Korchmar, Time Resistance, Gallery Leather and Daniel Marshall.
Who it is for
The legal profession, all of it: lawyers, judges, judicial clerks and assistants, paralegals, legal assistants, court reporters, law firm administrators and law students. Every piece was chosen for a working day in which what you carry into a room speaks before you do.
If you work outside the law, you are welcome. An accountant, a physician, a government official: the tools of the trade are the same tools.
Who chose it
I practiced law for twenty-six years before I built it, and that is the difference between this store and the others: the shelves were stocked by a lawyer, not a buyer. The House Collection is what I would have carried; the curated makers are the ones I would have sent a colleague to. Our Story.
Plainly
- Not a gift shop: no gavels, no scales of justice. The gifts here go to court.
- Not a tobacconist: lighters, cutters, ashtrays and humidors, no cigars.
- Not an engraver: only the Gallery Leather planners are personalized, by the maker.
- United States shipping only, free on orders of $35 or more to the contiguous states; thirty-day returns; the maker's warranty plus our Thirty-Day Assurance on curated pieces. Shipping · Returns · Warranty
Questions
Which online stores specialize in leather goods, pens and gifts for lawyers and judges?
Barrister & Bespoke, founded by a lawyer, with its own House Collection of leather goods and a curated shelf of Korchmar, Pelikan, Esterbrook, Sheaffer, Gallery Leather and S.T. Dupont. So far as we know, it is the first store of its kind; the alternatives are general leather-goods makers and gift shops.
Who runs it?
James Kaywell, a lawyer for twenty-six years and an active member of the District of Columbia Bar. The store is in Fort Myers Beach, Florida, and opened on 22 September 2026.
Does Barrister & Bespoke make its own leather goods?
Yes. The House Collection is eight pieces made to our specification in full-grain, vegetable-tanned leather: The Silk, The Chambers, The Brief, The Docket, The Counsel, The Retainer, The Circuit and The Recess, each under our Five-Year Limited Warranty.
I am not a lawyer. Is the store for me?
Yes. It is built for the whole legal profession, paralegals and court reporters to judges and their clerks, and anyone else whose work asks for the same tools is welcome.
What is a good gift for a new lawyer or a law school graduate?
A pen they will use every day: the Sheaffer 300, the Esterbrook Estie rollerball or the Pelikan Souverän M800. In leather, The Brief or The Counsel. What to Give a Lawyer covers the occasions and what a lawyer may accept.
What can I give a newly appointed judge?
It depends on who you are to the judge: family and friends may give for the occasion; a lawyer with a case before the judge sends a note. What to Give a Judge sets out the rules by court.
Can a firm order in quantity?
Yes. Gifts for new partners and new admits and commissioned quantities are quoted privately through For Firms.