ORGANIZATION AND BASIS OF PRESENTATION (Policies)

9 Months Ended

Sep. 30, 2012

Organization

Lazard Ltd, a Bermuda holding company, and its subsidiaries (collectively referred to as “Lazard Ltd”, “Lazard”, “we” or the “Company”), including Lazard Ltd’s indirect investment in Lazard Group LLC, a Delaware limited liability company (collectively referred to, together with its subsidiaries, as “Lazard Group”), is one of the world’s preeminent financial advisory and asset management firms and has long specialized in crafting solutions to the complex financial and strategic challenges of our clients. We serve a diverse set of clients around the world, including corporations, partnerships, institutions, governments and individuals.

Lazard Ltd indirectly held approximately 94.9% and 94.8% of all outstanding Lazard Group common membership interests as of September 30, 2012 and December 31, 2011, respectively. Lazard Ltd, through its control of the managing members of Lazard Group, controls Lazard Group, which is governed by an Operating Agreement dated as of May 10, 2005, as amended (the “Operating Agreement”). LAZ-MD Holdings LLC (“LAZ-MD Holdings”), an entity owned by Lazard Group’s current and former managing directors, held approximately 5.1% and 5.2% of the outstanding Lazard Group common membership interests as of September 30, 2012 and December 31, 2011, respectively. Additionally, LAZ-MD Holdings was the sole owner of the one issued and outstanding share of Lazard Ltd’s Class B common stock (the “Class B common stock”) which provided LAZ-MD Holdings with approximately 5.1% and 5.2% of the voting power but no economic rights in the Company as of such respective dates. Subject to certain limitations, LAZ-MD Holdings’ interests in Lazard Group are exchangeable for Lazard Ltd Class A common stock, par value $0.01 per share (“Class A common stock”).

Our sole operating asset is our indirect ownership of common membership interests of Lazard Group and our managing member interest of Lazard Group, whose principal operating activities are included in two business segments:

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Financial Advisory, which offers corporate, partnership, institutional, government, sovereign and individual clients across the globe a wide array of financial advisory services regarding mergers and acquisitions (“M&A”) and other strategic matters, restructurings, capital structure, capital raising and various other financial matters, and

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Asset Management, which offers a broad range of investment solutions and investment management services in equity and fixed income strategies, alternative investments and private equity funds to corporations, public funds, sovereign entities, endowments and foundations, labor funds, financial intermediaries and private clients globally.

In addition, we record selected other activities in our Corporate segment, including management of cash, certain investments and the commercial banking activities of Lazard Group’s Paris-based Lazard Frères Banque SA (“LFB”). We also record outstanding indebtedness in our Corporate segment.

LFB is a registered bank regulated by the Autorité de Contrôle Prudentiel. It is engaged primarily in commercial and private banking services for clients and funds managed by Lazard Frères Gestion SAS (“LFG”) and other clients, investment banking activities, including participation in underwritten offerings of securities in France, asset-liability management and limited trading in securities and foreign exchange.

Basis of Presentation

Basis of Presentation

The accompanying condensed consolidated financial statements of Lazard Ltd have been prepared pursuant to the rules and regulations of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”) regarding interim financial reporting. Accordingly, they do not include all of the information and notes required by accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America (“U.S. GAAP”) for complete financial statements and should be read in conjunction with the audited consolidated financial statements and notes thereto included in Lazard Ltd’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2011 (the “Form 10-K”). The accompanying December 31, 2011 condensed consolidated statement of financial condition data was derived from audited consolidated financial statements, but does not include all disclosures required by U.S. GAAP for annual financial statement purposes. The accompanying condensed consolidated financial statements reflect all adjustments which are, in the opinion of management, necessary for a fair presentation of the financial position, results of operations and cash flows for the interim periods presented. Preparing financial statements requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the amounts that are reported in the financial statements and the accompanying disclosures. Although these estimates are based on management’s knowledge of current events and actions that Lazard may undertake in the future, actual results may differ materially from the estimates. The consolidated results of operations for the three month and nine month periods ended September 30, 2012 are not necessarily indicative of the results to be expected for any future interim or annual period.

The condensed consolidated financial statements include Lazard Ltd, Lazard Group and Lazard Group’s principal operating subsidiaries: Lazard Frères & Co. LLC (“LFNY”), a New York limited liability company, along with its subsidiaries, including Lazard Asset Management LLC and its subsidiaries (collectively referred to as “LAM”); the French limited liability companies Compagnie Financière Lazard Frères SAS (“CFLF”) along with its subsidiaries, LFB and LFG, and Maison Lazard SAS and its subsidiaries; and Lazard & Co., Limited (“LCL”), through Lazard & Co., Holdings Limited (“LCH”), an English private limited company, together with their jointly owned affiliates and subsidiaries.

The Company’s policy is to consolidate (i) entities in which it has a controlling financial interest, (ii) variable interest entities (“VIEs”) where the Company has a variable interest and is deemed to be the primary beneficiary and (iii) limited partnerships where the Company is the general partner, unless the presumption of control is overcome. When the Company does not have a controlling interest in an entity, but exerts significant influence over the entity’s operating and financial decisions, the Company applies the equity method of accounting in which it records in earnings its share of earnings or losses of the entity. Intercompany transactions and balances have been eliminated.

Fair Value Measurements

Fair Value Measurements—In the first quarter of 2012, the Company adopted the amended fair value measurement guidance issued by the Financial Accounting Standards Board (the “FASB”), which the FASB stated was designed to achieve common fair value measurement and disclosure requirements between U.S. GAAP and International Financial Reporting Standards (“IFRS”). Although many of the changes for U.S. GAAP purposes are clarifications of existing guidance or wording changes to align with IFRS, additional disclosures about fair value measurements are required, including (i) a quantitative disclosure of the unobservable inputs and assumptions used in the measurement, (ii) the valuation processes used and the sensitivity of fair value measurements related to investments categorized within Level 3 of the hierarchy of fair value measurements to changes in unobservable inputs and the interrelationships between those unobservable inputs, if any, and (iii) the categorization by level of the fair value hierarchy for items that are not measured at fair value in the statement of financial condition but for which the fair value is required to be disclosed. The amended fair value measurement guidance became effective for interim and annual periods beginning after December 15, 2011 and is applied prospectively. The adoption of the amended fair value measurement guidance did not have a material impact on the Company’s consolidated financial statements, primarily because substantially all Level 3 assets are carried at net asset value (“NAV”) or its equivalent.

Other Comprehensive Income

Other Comprehensive Income—In the first quarter of 2012, the Company adopted the FASB’s amended guidance regarding the presentation of comprehensive income, which the FASB stated was designed to improve comparability, consistency and transparency. The amendment required that all changes in comprehensive income be presented either in (i) a single continuous statement of comprehensive income or in (ii) two separate but consecutive statements. The amendment was to be applied retrospectively and is effective with interim and annual periods beginning after December 15, 2011, with early adoption permitted. The Company elected the two-statement method.