From the December issue: Just two years ago, during the onset of the fiscal meltdown, experts were bemoaning the flight of the New York City legal industry. One report suggested that law firm profits per partner were set to drop by up to 15 percent in the city, while decades-old mainstays like Heller Ehrman dissolved and left their offices. But now, with legal hiring on the rise, more than a few noteworthy leases are being signed, in what could perhaps be a legal leasing rebound. [more]

Some large direct leases have recently been signed in Manhattan, a shift in a commercial market that has been slow so far this year, the New York Post reported. Syska Hennessy Group, an engineering firm specializing in technology, construction and specialized consulting, has leased 64,788 square feet on the 14th and 15th floors of 1515 Broadway. The asking rent was $58 per square foot. In the 1.8 million-square-foot tower, only 34,000 square feet is now vacant. Syska Hennessy is moving from 11 West 42nd Street and will have 15,000 square feet more at 1515 Broadway than it had at its previous location. AlixPartners, an advisory firm that focuses on corporate financial performance, has also signed a lease for 63,000 square feet at 40 West 57th Street.