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Risk/Return:

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Risk/Return [Heading]

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Lazard US Mid Cap Equity Portfolio

Objective [Heading]

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Investment Objective

Objective, Primary [Text Block]

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The Portfolio seeks long-term capital appreciation.

Expense [Heading]

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Fees and Expenses

Expense Narrative [Text Block]

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

Shareholder Fees Caption [Text]

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Shareholder Fees (fees paid directly from your investment)

Operating Expenses Caption [Text]

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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

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2016-05-01

Portfolio Turnover [Heading]

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Portfolio Turnover

Portfolio Turnover [Text Block]

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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 95% of the average value of its portfolio.

Portfolio Turnover, Rate

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Expense Example [Heading]

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Example

Expense Example Narrative [Text Block]

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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 hold or 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]

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Principal Investment Strategies

Strategy Narrative [Text Block]

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The Portfolio invests primarily in a focused portfolio of equity securities, principally common stocks, of mid cap US companies that the Investment Manager believes have strong and/or improving financial productivity and are undervalued based on their earnings, cash flow or asset values. The Investment Manager considers “mid cap companies” to be those companies that, at the time of initial purchase by the Portfolio, have market capitalizations within the range of companies included in the Russell Midcap^® Index (ranging from approximately $220.9 million to $37.8 billion as of April 9, 2015).

Under normal circumstances, the Portfolio invests at least 80% of its assets in equity securities of medium-size (mid cap) US companies. The Portfolio may invest up to 20% of its assets in equity securities of larger or smaller US or non-US companies.

Although the Portfolio is classified as “diversified” under the 1940 Act, it may invest in a smaller number of issuers than other, more diversified investment portfolios.

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Principal Investment Risks

Risk Narrative [Text Block]

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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 and Mid Cap Companies Risk. Small and mid 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 and mid 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.

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.

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. In addition, 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. 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.

Focused Investing Risk. The Portfolio’s NAV may be more vulnerable to changes in the market value of a single issuer or group of issuers and may be relatively more susceptible to adverse effects from any single corporate, industry, economic, market, political or regulatory occurrence than if the Portfolio’s investments consisted of securities issued by a larger number of issuers.

Risk Lose Money [Text]

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

Bar Chart and Performance Table [Heading]

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Performance Bar Chart and Table Year-by-Year Total Returns for Institutional Shares As of 12/31

Performance Narrative [Text Block]

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The accompanying bar chart and table provide some indication of the risks of investing in Lazard US Mid 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]

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The accompanying bar chart and table provide some indication of the risks of investing in Lazard US Mid 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]

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(800) 823-6300

Performance Availability Website Address [Text]

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www.LazardNet.com

Performance Past Does Not Indicate Future [Text]

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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]

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Best Quarter:
6/30/09 21.18%

Worst Quarter:
12/31/08 -26.54%

Highest Quarterly Return, Label

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Best Quarter:

Highest Quarterly Return, Date

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Jun. 30, 2009

Highest Quarterly Return

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Lowest Quarterly Return, Label

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Worst Quarter:

Lowest Quarterly Return, Date

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Dec. 31, 2008

Lowest Quarterly Return

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Performance Table Heading

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Average Annual Total Returns (for the periods ended December 31, 2014)

Index No Deduction for Fees, Expenses, Taxes [Text]

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(reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)

Performance Table Uses Highest Federal Rate

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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

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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]

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After-tax returns are shown only for Institutional Shares. After-tax returns of the Portfolio’s other share classes will vary.

Performance Table Narrative

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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, 2014) 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.

Russell Midcap Index (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)

Risk/Return:

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rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear01

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Life of Portfolio

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Institutional Shares

Risk/Return:

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Redemption Fee (as a percentage of Amount Redeemed)

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Management Fees

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Distribution and Service (12b-1) Fees

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none

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Total Annual Portfolio Operating Expenses

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Fee Waiver or Reimbursement

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^[1]

Total Annual Portfolio Operating Expenses After Fee Waiver and Expense Reimbursement

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^[1]

Expense Example, with Redemption, 1 Year

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Expense Example, with Redemption, 3 Years

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Expense Example, with Redemption, 5 Years

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Expense Example, with Redemption, 10 Years

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Annual Return 2005

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Annual Return 2006

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Annual Return 2007

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Annual Return 2008

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Annual Return 2009

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Annual Return 2010

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Annual Return 2011

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Annual Return 2012

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Annual Return 2013

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Annual Return 2014

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Life of Portfolio

rr_AverageAnnualReturnSinceInception

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Nov. 04, 1997

Institutional Shares | After Taxes on Distributions

Risk/Return:

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rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear01

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Life of Portfolio

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Institutional Shares | After Taxes on Distributions and Sale of Portfolio Shares

Risk/Return:

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rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear01

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Life of Portfolio

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Open Shares

Risk/Return:

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Redemption Fee (as a percentage of Amount Redeemed)

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Management Fees

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Distribution and Service (12b-1) Fees

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Total Annual Portfolio Operating Expenses

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Fee Waiver or Reimbursement

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^[1]

Total Annual Portfolio Operating Expenses After Fee Waiver and Expense Reimbursement

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^[1]

Expense Example, with Redemption, 1 Year

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Expense Example, with Redemption, 3 Years

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Expense Example, with Redemption, 5 Years

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Expense Example, with Redemption, 10 Years

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Life of Portfolio

rr_AverageAnnualReturnSinceInception

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Nov. 04, 1997

R6 Shares

Risk/Return:

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Redemption Fee (as a percentage of Amount Redeemed)

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Management Fees

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Distribution and Service (12b-1) Fees

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none

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^[2]

Total Annual Portfolio Operating Expenses

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Fee Waiver or Reimbursement

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^[1]

Total Annual Portfolio Operating Expenses After Fee Waiver and Expense Reimbursement

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^[1]

Other Expenses, New Fund, Based on Estimates [Text]

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“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

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Expense Example, with Redemption, 3 Years

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Expense Example, with Redemption, 5 Years

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Expense Example, with Redemption, 10 Years

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Life of Portfolio

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[1]

Reflects a contractual agreement by the Investment Manager to waive its fee and, if necessary, reimburse the Portfolio through May 1, 2016, to the extent Total Annual Portfolio Operating Expenses exceed 1.05%, 1.35% and 1.00% 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.