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Label Element Value
Risk/Return: rr_RiskReturnAbstract  
Risk/Return [Heading] rr_RiskReturnHeading Lazard International Small Cap Equity Portfolio
Objective [Heading] rr_ObjectiveHeading Investment Objective
Objective, Primary [Text Block] rr_ObjectivePrimaryTextBlock

The Portfolio seeks long-term capital appreciation.

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 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 2015-04-30
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 58% of the average value of its portfolio.

Portfolio Turnover, Rate rr_PortfolioTurnoverRate 58.00%
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 and expense reimbursement arrangement 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 equity securities, principally common stocks, of relatively small non-US companies that the Investment Manager believes are undervalued based on their earnings, cash flow or asset values. The Investment Manager considers “small non-US companies” to be those non-US companies with market capitalizations, at the time of initial purchase by the Portfolio, below $5 billion or in the range of the smallest 10% of companies included in the MSCI EAFE Index (based on market capitalization of the Index as a whole, which ranged from approximately $1.5 billion to $245.1 billion as of April 4, 2014).


In choosing stocks for the Portfolio, the Investment Manager looks for smaller, well-managed non-US companies that the Investment Manager believes have the potential for growth. Under normal circumstances, the Portfolio invests at least 80% of its assets in equity securities of small cap companies.


The Portfolio may invest up to 25% of its assets in securities of companies whose principal business activities are located in emerging market countries, although the allocation of the Portfolio’s assets to emerging market countries may vary from time to time.


When the Investment Manager determines that adverse market conditions exist, the Portfolio may adopt a temporary defensive position and invest some or all of its assets in money market instruments. In pursuing a temporary defensive strategy, the Portfolio may forgo potentially more profitable investment strategies and, as a result, may not achieve its stated investment objective.

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 or factors unrelated to the issuer’s value, such as investor perception.


Small Cap Companies Risk. Small cap companies carry additional risks because their earnings tend to be less predictable, their share prices more volatile and their securities less liquid than larger, more established companies. The shares of small cap companies tend to trade less frequently than those of larger companies, which can have an adverse effect on the pricing of these securities and on the ability to sell these securities when the Investment Manager deems it appropriate.


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 less developed or less efficient trading markets, political instability, a lack of company information, differing auditing and legal standards, and, potentially, less liquidity.


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, capital markets worldwide have experienced unprecedented volatility in recent years, causing significant declines in valuation and liquidity in certain emerging markets. 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. The Portfolio’s investments could be adversely affected by delays in, or a refusal to grant, repatriation of funds or conversion of emerging market currencies.


Foreign Currency Risk. Investments denominated in currencies other than US dollars may experience a decline in value, in US dollar terms, due solely to fluctuations in currency exchange rates. The Investment Manager does not intend to actively hedge the Portfolio’s foreign currency exposure.


Value Investing Risk. The Portfolio invests in stocks believed by the Investment Manager to be undervalued, but that may not realize their perceived value for extended periods of time or may never realize their perceived value. The stocks in which the Portfolio invests may respond differently to market and other developments than other types of stocks.

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 International Small Cap Equity 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 International Small Cap Equity 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  31.53%
 
Worst Quarter:
12/31/08  -27.07%

Highest Quarterly Return, Label rr_HighestQuarterlyReturnLabel Best Quarter:
Highest Quarterly Return, Date rr_BarChartHighestQuarterlyReturnDate Jun. 30, 2009
Highest Quarterly Return rr_BarChartHighestQuarterlyReturn 31.53%
Lowest Quarterly Return, Label rr_LowestQuarterlyReturnLabel Worst Quarter:
Lowest Quarterly Return, Date rr_BarChartLowestQuarterlyReturnDate Dec. 31, 2008
Lowest Quarterly Return rr_BarChartLowestQuarterlyReturn (27.07%)
Performance Table Heading rr_PerformanceTableHeading Average Annual Total Returns (for the periods ended December 31, 2013)
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 One Class of after Tax Shown [Text] rr_PerformanceTableOneClassOfAfterTaxShown After-tax returns are shown only for Institutional Shares. After-tax returns of the Portfolio's other share classes will vary.
Performance Table Narrative rr_PerformanceTableNarrativeTextBlock

After-tax returns are shown only for Institutional Shares. After-tax returns of the Portfolio’s other share classes will vary. 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. Returns shown below for the Portfolio’s R6 Shares (which were not operational as of December 31, 2013) reflect the performance of the Portfolio’s Institutional Shares. R6 Shares would have had substantially similar returns as Institutional Shares because the share classes are invested in the same portfolio of securities, and the returns would differ only to the extent that the classes do not have the same expenses.

MSCI EAFE Small Cap Index (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes) (Institutional)
  
Risk/Return: rr_RiskReturnAbstract  
1 Year rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear01 29.30%
5 Years rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear05 18.50%
10 Years rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear10 9.48%
Life of Portfolio rr_AverageAnnualReturnSinceInception 5.86%
MSCI EAFE Small Cap Index (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes) (Open)
  
Risk/Return: rr_RiskReturnAbstract  
1 Year rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear01 29.30%
5 Years rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear05 18.50%
10 Years rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear10 9.48%
Life of Portfolio rr_AverageAnnualReturnSinceInception 6.29%
Institutional Shares
  
Risk/Return: rr_RiskReturnAbstract  
Redemption Fee (as a percentage of Amount Redeemed) rr_RedemptionFeeOverRedemption (1.00%)
Management Fees rr_ManagementFeesOverAssets 0.75%
Distribution and Service (12b-1) Fees rr_DistributionAndService12b1FeesOverAssets none
Other Expenses rr_OtherExpensesOverAssets 0.44%
Total Annual Portfolio Operating Expenses rr_ExpensesOverAssets 1.19%
Fee Waiver or Reimbursement rr_FeeWaiverOrReimbursementOverAssets (0.06%) [1]
Total Annual Portfolio Operating Expenses After Fee Waiver and Expense Reimbursement rr_NetExpensesOverAssets 1.13% [1]
Expense Example, with Redemption, 1 Year rr_ExpenseExampleYear01 $ 115
Expense Example, with Redemption, 3 Years rr_ExpenseExampleYear03 372
Expense Example, with Redemption, 5 Years rr_ExpenseExampleYear05 649
Expense Example, with Redemption, 10 Years rr_ExpenseExampleYear10 1,438
Annual Return 2004 rr_AnnualReturn2004 32.28%
Annual Return 2005 rr_AnnualReturn2005 14.77%
Annual Return 2006 rr_AnnualReturn2006 26.31%
Annual Return 2007 rr_AnnualReturn2007 (4.61%)
Annual Return 2008 rr_AnnualReturn2008 (49.84%)
Annual Return 2009 rr_AnnualReturn2009 39.17%
Annual Return 2010 rr_AnnualReturn2010 23.55%
Annual Return 2011 rr_AnnualReturn2011 (14.11%)
Annual Return 2012 rr_AnnualReturn2012 22.28%
Annual Return 2013 rr_AnnualReturn2013 30.20%
1 Year rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear01 30.20%
5 Years rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear05 18.65%
10 Years rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear10 7.99%
Life of Portfolio rr_AverageAnnualReturnSinceInception 7.66%
Inception Date rr_AverageAnnualReturnInceptionDate Dec. 01, 1993
Institutional Shares | After Taxes on Distributions
  
Risk/Return: rr_RiskReturnAbstract  
1 Year rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear01 30.30%
5 Years rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear05 18.52%
10 Years rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear10 6.41%
Life of Portfolio rr_AverageAnnualReturnSinceInception 6.50%
Institutional Shares | After Taxes on Distributions and Sale of Portfolio Shares
  
Risk/Return: rr_RiskReturnAbstract  
1 Year rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear01 17.34%
5 Years rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear05 15.37%
10 Years rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear10 7.05%
Life of Portfolio rr_AverageAnnualReturnSinceInception 6.61%
Open Shares
  
Risk/Return: rr_RiskReturnAbstract  
Redemption Fee (as a percentage of Amount Redeemed) rr_RedemptionFeeOverRedemption (1.00%)
Management Fees rr_ManagementFeesOverAssets 0.75%
Distribution and Service (12b-1) Fees rr_DistributionAndService12b1FeesOverAssets 0.25%
Other Expenses rr_OtherExpensesOverAssets 0.48%
Total Annual Portfolio Operating Expenses rr_ExpensesOverAssets 1.48%
Fee Waiver or Reimbursement rr_FeeWaiverOrReimbursementOverAssets (0.05%) [1]
Total Annual Portfolio Operating Expenses After Fee Waiver and Expense Reimbursement rr_NetExpensesOverAssets 1.43% [1]
Expense Example, with Redemption, 1 Year rr_ExpenseExampleYear01 146
Expense Example, with Redemption, 3 Years rr_ExpenseExampleYear03 463
Expense Example, with Redemption, 5 Years rr_ExpenseExampleYear05 803
Expense Example, with Redemption, 10 Years rr_ExpenseExampleYear10 1,764
1 Year rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear01 29.65%
5 Years rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear05 18.31%
10 Years rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear10 7.69%
Life of Portfolio rr_AverageAnnualReturnSinceInception 7.31%
Inception Date rr_AverageAnnualReturnInceptionDate Feb. 13, 1997
R6 Shares
  
Risk/Return: rr_RiskReturnAbstract  
Redemption Fee (as a percentage of Amount Redeemed) rr_RedemptionFeeOverRedemption (1.00%)
Management Fees rr_ManagementFeesOverAssets 0.75%
Distribution and Service (12b-1) Fees rr_DistributionAndService12b1FeesOverAssets none
Other Expenses rr_OtherExpensesOverAssets 0.44% [2]
Total Annual Portfolio Operating Expenses rr_ExpensesOverAssets 1.19%
Fee Waiver or Reimbursement rr_FeeWaiverOrReimbursementOverAssets (0.11%) [1]
Total Annual Portfolio Operating Expenses After Fee Waiver and Expense Reimbursement rr_NetExpensesOverAssets 1.08% [1]
Other Expenses, New Fund, Based on Estimates [Text] rr_OtherExpensesNewFundBasedOnEstimates "Other Expenses" are based on estimated amounts for the current fiscal year, using "Other Expenses" for Institutional Shares from the last fiscal year.
Expense Example, with Redemption, 1 Year rr_ExpenseExampleYear01 110
Expense Example, with Redemption, 3 Years rr_ExpenseExampleYear03 367
Expense Example, with Redemption, 5 Years rr_ExpenseExampleYear05 644
Expense Example, with Redemption, 10 Years rr_ExpenseExampleYear10 $ 1,433
1 Year rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear01 30.20%
5 Years rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear05 18.65%
10 Years rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear10 7.99%
Life of Portfolio rr_AverageAnnualReturnSinceInception 7.66%
[1] Reflects a contractual agreement by the Investment Manager to waive its fee and, if necessary, reimburse the Portfolio through April 30, 2015, to the extent Total Annual Portfolio Operating Expenses exceed 1.13%, 1.43% and 1.08% of the average daily net assets of the Portfolio's Institutional Shares, Open Shares and R6 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.
[2] "Other Expenses" are based on estimated amounts for the current fiscal year, using "Other Expenses" for Institutional Shares from the last fiscal year.