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Label Element Value
Risk/Return: rr_RiskReturnAbstract  
Risk/Return [Heading] rr_RiskReturnHeading Lazard U.S. High Yield Portfolio
Objective [Heading] rr_ObjectiveHeading Investment Objective
Objective, Primary [Text Block] rr_ObjectivePrimaryTextBlock

The Portfolio seeks maximum total return from a combination of capital appreciation and current income.

Expense [Heading] rr_ExpenseHeading Fees and Expenses
Expense Narrative [Text Block] rr_ExpenseNarrativeTextBlock

This table describes the fees and expenses that you may pay if you buy and hold shares of the Portfolio.

Shareholder Fees Caption [Text] rr_ShareholderFeesCaption Shareholder Transaction Fees (fees paid directly from your investment)
Operating Expenses Caption [Text] rr_OperatingExpensesCaption Annual Portfolio Operating Expenses (expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your investment)
Fee Waiver or Reimbursement over Assets, Date of Termination rr_FeeWaiverOrReimbursementOverAssetsDateOfTermination 2014-04-30
Portfolio Turnover [Heading] rr_PortfolioTurnoverHeading Portfolio Turnover
Portfolio Turnover [Text Block] rr_PortfolioTurnoverTextBlock

The Portfolio pays transaction costs, such as commissions, when it buys and sells securities (or “turns over” its portfolio). A higher portfolio turnover rate may indicate higher transaction costs and may result in higher taxes when Portfolio shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in annual portfolio operating expenses or in the Example, affect the Portfolio’s performance. During the most recent fiscal year, the Portfolio’s portfolio turnover rate was 26% of the average value of its portfolio.

Portfolio Turnover, Rate rr_PortfolioTurnoverRate 26.00%
Expense Example [Heading] rr_ExpenseExampleHeading Example
Expense Example Narrative [Text Block] rr_ExpenseExampleNarrativeTextBlock

This Example is intended to help you compare the cost of investing in the Portfolio with the cost of investing in other mutual funds.


The Example assumes that you invest $10,000 in the Portfolio for the time periods indicated and then redeem all of your shares at the end of those periods. The Example also assumes that your investment has a 5% return each year and that the Portfolio’s operating expenses remain the same, giving effect to the fee waiver in year one only. Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions your costs would be:

Strategy [Heading] rr_StrategyHeading Principal Investment Strategies
Strategy Narrative [Text Block] rr_StrategyNarrativeTextBlock

The Portfolio invests primarily in high-yielding US corporate fixed-income securities which, at the time of purchase, are rated below investment grade (lower than Baa by Moody’s or lower than BBB by S&P (“junk bonds”)). The Portfolio may invest in securities of non-US companies, including, to a limited extent, in companies in, or governments of, emerging market countries.


Under normal circumstances, the Portfolio invests at least 80% of its assets in bonds and other fixed-income securities of US companies rated, at the time of purchase, below investment grade by S&P or Moody’s and as low as the lowest rating assigned by S&P or Moody’s, or the unrated equivalent as determined by the Investment Manager. The Portfolio focuses its investments in high-yielding securities that may be considered “better quality” (B+ or higher by Moody’s or S&P or the unrated equivalent as determined by the Investment Manager). Although the Portfolio may invest in fixed-income securities without regard to their maturity, the Portfolio’s average weighted maturity is expected to range between two and ten years.


Securities are evaluated based on their fundamental and structural characteristics. Valuation analysis is tailored to the specific asset class, but may include credit research, prepayment or call options, maturity, duration, coupon, currency and country risks. The Portfolio is constructed using a bottom-up discipline in which the Investment Manager follows a systematic process to seek out undervalued opportunities within each sector.

Risk [Heading] rr_RiskHeading Principal Investment Risks
Risk Narrative [Text Block] rr_RiskNarrativeTextBlock

The value of your investment in the Portfolio will fluctuate, which means you could lose money.


Market Risk. Market risks, including political, regulatory, market and economic developments, and developments that impact specific economic sectors, industries or segments of the market, can affect the value of the Portfolio’s investments. In addition, turbulence in financial markets and reduced liquidity in equity, credit and/or fixed income markets may negatively affect many issuers, which could adversely affect the Portfolio.


Issuer Risk. The value of a security may decline for a number of reasons which directly relate to the issuer, such as management performance, financial leverage and reduced demand for the issuer’s goods or services, as well as the historical and prospective earnings of the issuer and the value of its assets.


Fixed-Income Securities Risk. While fixed-income securities are designed to produce a stable stream of income, their prices move inversely with changes in interest rates. Interest rate risk, the risk that securities will decline in value because of changes in market interest rates, is usually greater for fixed-income securities with longer maturities or effective durations. The Portfolio’s investments in lower-rated, higher-yielding bonds are subject to greater credit risk than its higher-rated investments. Junk bonds tend to be more volatile, less liquid and are considered speculative.


Other risk factors could have an effect on the Portfolio’s performance, including:


 

•

 

 

 

if an issuer fails to make timely interest or principal payments

 

•

 

 

 

if there is a decline in the credit quality of a bond, or a perceived decline, in the credit quality of a fixed-income security (or any guarantor of payment on such security) the security’s value could fall, potentially lowering the Portfolio’s share price

 

•

 

 

 

during unusual market conditions, the Portfolio may not be able to sell certain securities at the time and price it would like


Non-US Securities Risk. The Portfolio’s performance will be influenced by political, social and economic factors affecting the non-US countries and companies in which the Portfolio invests. Non-US securities carry special risks, such as exposure to currency fluctuations, less developed or less efficient trading markets, political instability, a lack of company information, differing auditing and legal standards, and, potentially, less liquidity. In addition, investments denominated in currencies other than US dollars carry the risk that such currencies will decline in value relative to the US dollar and affect the value of these investments held in the Portfolio.


Emerging Market Risk. Emerging market countries can generally have economic structures that are less diverse and mature, and political systems that are less stable, than those of developed countries. The securities markets of emerging market countries have historically been extremely volatile. However, the capital markets in the US and internationally have experienced unprecedented volatility in recent years, causing significant declines in the value and liquidity of many securities. These market conditions may continue or worsen. Significant devaluation of emerging market currencies against the US dollar may occur subsequent to acquisition of investments denominated in emerging market currencies.

Risk Lose Money [Text] rr_RiskLoseMoney The value of your investment in the Portfolio will fluctuate, which means you could lose money.
Bar Chart and Performance Table [Heading] rr_BarChartAndPerformanceTableHeading Performance Bar Chart and Table Year-by-Year Total Returns for Institutional Shares As of 12/31
Performance Narrative [Text Block] rr_PerformanceNarrativeTextBlock

The accompanying bar chart and table provide some indication of the risks of investing in Lazard US High Yield Portfolio by showing the Portfolio’s year-by-year performance and its average annual performance compared to that of a broad measure of market performance. The bar chart shows how the performance of the Portfolio’s Institutional Shares has varied from year to year over the past 10 calendar years. Updated performance information is available at www.LazardNet.com or by calling (800) 823-6300. The Portfolio’s past performance (before and after taxes) is not necessarily an indication of how the Portfolio will perform in the future.

Performance Information Illustrates Variability of Returns [Text] rr_PerformanceInformationIllustratesVariabilityOfReturns The accompanying bar chart and table provide some indication of the risks of investing in Lazard US High Yield Portfolio by showing the Portfolio's year-by-year performance and its average annual performance compared to that of a broad measure of market performance.
Performance Availability Phone [Text] rr_PerformanceAvailabilityPhone (800) 823-6300
Performance Availability Website Address [Text] rr_PerformanceAvailabilityWebSiteAddress www.LazardNet.com
Performance Past Does Not Indicate Future [Text] rr_PerformancePastDoesNotIndicateFuture The Portfolio's past performance (before and after taxes) is not necessarily an indication of how the Portfolio will perform in the future.
Bar Chart Closing [Text Block] rr_BarChartClosingTextBlock

Best Quarter:
6/30/09 13.08%

Worst Quarter:
12/31/08 -15.96%

Highest Quarterly Return, Label rr_HighestQuarterlyReturnLabel Best Quarter:
Highest Quarterly Return, Date rr_BarChartHighestQuarterlyReturnDate Jun. 30, 2009
Highest Quarterly Return rr_BarChartHighestQuarterlyReturn 13.08%
Lowest Quarterly Return, Label rr_LowestQuarterlyReturnLabel Worst Quarter:
Lowest Quarterly Return, Date rr_BarChartLowestQuarterlyReturnDate Dec. 31, 2008
Lowest Quarterly Return rr_BarChartLowestQuarterlyReturn (15.96%)
Performance Table Heading rr_PerformanceTableHeading Average Annual Total Returns (for the periods ended December 31, 2012)
Index No Deduction for Fees, Expenses, Taxes [Text] rr_IndexNoDeductionForFeesExpensesTaxes (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)
Performance Table Uses Highest Federal Rate rr_PerformanceTableUsesHighestFederalRate After-tax returns are calculated using the historical highest individual marginal income tax rates and do not reflect the impact of state and local taxes.
Performance Table Not Relevant to Tax Deferred rr_PerformanceTableNotRelevantToTaxDeferred The after-tax returns shown are not relevant to investors who hold their shares through tax-deferred arrangements such as 401(k) plans or individual retirement accounts.
Performance Table Narrative rr_PerformanceTableNarrativeTextBlock

After-tax returns for the Open Shares vary from those of Institutional Shares. After-tax returns are calculated using the historical highest individual marginal income tax rates and do not reflect the impact of state and local taxes. Actual after-tax returns depend on the investor’s tax situation and may differ from those shown. The after-tax returns shown are not relevant to investors who hold their shares through tax-deferred arrangements such as 401(k) plans or individual retirement accounts.

Bank of America Merrill Lynch High Yield Master II® Index (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes) (Institutional)
  
Risk/Return: rr_RiskReturnAbstract  
1 Year rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear01 15.58%
5 Years rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear05 10.01%
10 Years rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear10 10.39%
Life of Portfolio rr_AverageAnnualReturnSinceInception 7.00%
Bank of America Merrill Lynch High Yield Master II® Index (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes) (Open)
  
Risk/Return: rr_RiskReturnAbstract  
1 Year rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear01 15.58%
5 Years rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear05 10.01%
10 Years rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear10 10.39%
Life of Portfolio rr_AverageAnnualReturnSinceInception 6.91%
Open Shares
  
Risk/Return: rr_RiskReturnAbstract  
Redemption Fee (as a percentage of Amount Redeemed) rr_RedemptionFeeOverRedemption (1.00%)
Management Fees rr_ManagementFeesOverAssets 0.55%
Distribution and Service (12b-1) Fees rr_DistributionAndService12b1FeesOverAssets 0.25%
Other Expenses rr_OtherExpensesOverAssets 0.44%
Total Annual Portfolio Operating Expenses rr_ExpensesOverAssets 1.24%
Fee Waiver or Reimbursement rr_FeeWaiverOrReimbursementOverAssets (0.39%) [1]
Total Annual Portfolio Operating Expenses After Fee Waiver and Expense Reimbursement rr_NetExpensesOverAssets 0.85% [1]
Expense Example, with Redemption, 1 Year rr_ExpenseExampleYear01 87
Expense Example, with Redemption, 3 Years rr_ExpenseExampleYear03 355
Expense Example, with Redemption, 5 Years rr_ExpenseExampleYear05 643
Expense Example, with Redemption, 10 Years rr_ExpenseExampleYear10 1,466
1 Year rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear01 11.89%
5 Years rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear05 6.91%
10 Years rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear10 8.39%
Life of Portfolio rr_AverageAnnualReturnSinceInception 3.69%
Inception Date rr_AverageAnnualReturnInceptionDate Feb. 24, 1998
Institutional Shares
  
Risk/Return: rr_RiskReturnAbstract  
Redemption Fee (as a percentage of Amount Redeemed) rr_RedemptionFeeOverRedemption (1.00%)
Management Fees rr_ManagementFeesOverAssets 0.55%
Distribution and Service (12b-1) Fees rr_DistributionAndService12b1FeesOverAssets none
Other Expenses rr_OtherExpensesOverAssets 0.16%
Total Annual Portfolio Operating Expenses rr_ExpensesOverAssets 0.71%
Fee Waiver or Reimbursement rr_FeeWaiverOrReimbursementOverAssets (0.16%) [1]
Total Annual Portfolio Operating Expenses After Fee Waiver and Expense Reimbursement rr_NetExpensesOverAssets 0.55% [1]
Expense Example, with Redemption, 1 Year rr_ExpenseExampleYear01 56
Expense Example, with Redemption, 3 Years rr_ExpenseExampleYear03 211
Expense Example, with Redemption, 5 Years rr_ExpenseExampleYear05 379
Expense Example, with Redemption, 10 Years rr_ExpenseExampleYear10 867
Annual Return 2003 rr_AnnualReturn2003 24.58%
Annual Return 2004 rr_AnnualReturn2004 9.88%
Annual Return 2005 rr_AnnualReturn2005 4.33%
Annual Return 2006 rr_AnnualReturn2006 9.71%
Annual Return 2007 rr_AnnualReturn2007 3.63%
Annual Return 2008 rr_AnnualReturn2008 (20.24%)
Annual Return 2009 rr_AnnualReturn2009 34.66%
Annual Return 2010 rr_AnnualReturn2010 11.78%
Annual Return 2011 rr_AnnualReturn2011 5.17%
Annual Return 2012 rr_AnnualReturn2012 12.02%
1 Year rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear01 12.02%
5 Years rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear05 7.18%
10 Years rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear10 8.67%
Life of Portfolio rr_AverageAnnualReturnSinceInception 4.26%
Inception Date rr_AverageAnnualReturnInceptionDate Jan. 02, 1998
Institutional Shares | After Taxes on Distributions
  
Risk/Return: rr_RiskReturnAbstract  
1 Year rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear01 9.45%
5 Years rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear05 4.42%
10 Years rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear10 5.79%
Life of Portfolio rr_AverageAnnualReturnSinceInception 0.91%
Institutional Shares | After Taxes on Distributions and Sale of Portfolio Shares
  
Risk/Return: rr_RiskReturnAbstract  
1 Year rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear01 7.74%
5 Years rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear05 4.44%
10 Years rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear10 5.73%
Life of Portfolio rr_AverageAnnualReturnSinceInception 1.41%
[1] Reflects a contractual agreement by the Investment Manager to waive its fee and, if necessary, reimburse the Portfolio through April 30, 2014, to the extent Total Annual Portfolio Operating Expenses exceed .55% and .85% of the average daily net assets of the Portfolio's Institutional Shares and Open Shares, respectively, exclusive of taxes, brokerage, interest on borrowings, fees and expenses of "Acquired Funds" and extraordinary expenses, and excluding shareholder redemption fees or other transaction fees. This agreement can only be amended by agreement of the Fund, upon approval by the Board, and the Investment Manager to lower the net amount shown and will terminate automatically in the event of termination of the Investment Management Agreement between the Investment Manager and the Fund, on behalf of the Portfolio.