Law Firm Expands at Top of Oakland Office Tower

Cherian Harkins Dunham, a Washington, D.C.-based trial and intellectual property law firm, has doubled its Bay Area footprint with a move from Berkeley to downtown Oakland.

The litigation firm leased roughly 4,000 square feet on the top floor of 555 12th Street, also known as 555 City Center, a Class A office tower in Oakland’s central business district, the San Francisco Business Times reported. The new space is twice the size of its former Berkeley office at 2100 Addison Street and includes six offices, a conference room and a kitchenette.

The relocation positions CHD as Oakland’s only boutique firm specializing in high-stakes IP lawsuits, supporting its work in the Northern District of California and other regional courts.

CHD Managing Partner Robert Harkins said Oakland offers proximity to the federal courthouse and access to clients in technology, media and industrial enclaves. “Being steps from the federal courthouse is an additional advantage for a trial firm like ours,” he told the Business Times.

The firm handles complex IP disputes, including patent, copyright, trademark, trade secret and unfair competition cases and has additional offices in Houston and Washington, D.C.

The 485,000-square-foot tower at 555 12th Street was purchased by Principal Financial Group in 2016 for more than $200 million. The building has seen turnover in recent years — Matson Navigation listed its 50,000-square-foot office for sublease after relocating to Walnut Creek in late 2025.

Other legal firms have found Oakland’s lower rents attractive. Two years ago, Norton Law doubled its footprint with a lease at the Rotunda Building. Last year Goldfarb & Lipman took 16,000 square feet at 1330 Clay Street.

Oakland’s office market, long challenged by high vacancies, showed early signs of stabilization in late 2025. Colliers found net absorption improved dramatically, dropping to negative 132,968 square feet from negative 879,802 square feet the prior year, signaling fewer tenant move-outs. The city’s vacancy rate edged up slightly to 28.5 percent, suggesting that while challenges remain, leasing activity reflects renewed confidence in downtown Oakland’s recovery.

– Joel Russell