International law firm Freshfields linked with city move
ANOTHER of the world’s largest law firms is said to be heading to Manchester.
Freshfields Bruckgaus Deringer, one of the so-called Magic Circle law firms based in the City of London, is reported to be looking for 100,000 sq ft in the city centre.
The firm, which has its HQ on Fleet Street, has 1,300 staff and is, according to Estates Gazette, looking at Manchester as a lower cost alternative to London, where rents are among the highest in the world.
Potential targets are One and Two St Peter’s Square, Allied London’s Cotton Building, Ask Developments’ 101 Embankment, English Cities Fund’s One New Bailey and NOMA’s Hanover Building.
Estates Gazette says the firm will save by moving north because at £32 per sq ft, prime rents in Manchester are half the £65 per sq ft charged around Fleet Street.
A source told the property title: “This is something that people are increasingly looking at because rents are nearing record highs across most London submarkets and they are likely to grow further over the next three years.”
Staff could be moved in phases, starting next year and completing in 2018. It is understood that initially back-office employees will be moved, but other departments may follow later.
Freshfields would not be the first major London firm to choose Manchester if these reports are true. Last year Berwin Leighton Paisner (BLP) opened a back office function on King Street in the city centre which could be up to 100 strong in the next year.
In January US firm Latham & Watkins announced it would be opening a business services office in the city too.
