Gordon Rees Scully Mansukhani has rejiggered its offices across San Francisco and the East Bay, shedding offices on each side of the water.
The San Francisco-based law firm is relocating its headquarters to a three-story building at 315 Pacific Avenue in Jackson Square, while vacating its Oakland office for an office at 100 Pringle Avenue in Walnut Creek, the San Francisco Business Times reported.
Gordon Rees is pulling up stakes from its three-decade old headquarters at 275 Battery Street, in the Financial District, where it occupied two floors. The move represents a 75 percent haircut in terms of square footage.
Its new office in Jackson Square includes a private roof deck, a virtual trial and presentation studio, event spaces and a 4,000-square-foot “living room” for employees, with 30 offices on the second and third floors.
During the dot-com boom, its roof deck was known for lively parties hosted by the Industry Standard, a tech publication that closed after the industry it covered went bust.
The landlord and terms of its lease or purchase were not disclosed by the Business Times.
The Jackson Square headquarters building is owned by a firm called 325 Pacific Avenue Partners LP Simon Teng, based in the city, according to a San Francisco Chronicle property database.
Across the Bay, Gordon Rees has moved out of 25,000 square feet at 1111 Broadway in Downtown Oakland to 100 Pringle Avenue in Walnut Creek, where it took up 18,500 square feet. The move marks a 26 percent reduction in its East Bay footprint.
Its new office at Walnut Creek Center, owned by Align Real Estate and PCCP, includes a terrace deck, with work and recreation areas. Terms of the lease were not disclosed.
Gordon Rees said Oakland’s crime was not a reason for the move. Rather, the offices within walking distance of a BART station were better for attorneys, staff and clients.
“Oakland was a wonderful home to GRSM for over a decade. However, Walnut Creek provides us with many new strategic growth opportunities and synergies with our growing Central Valley presence,” Adam Sugarman, managing partner of the firm’s Northern California offices, told the Business Times.
The law firm, founded in 1974, has offices for about 1,400 employees in 50 states, with 185 attorneys in the Bay Area.
Its real estate shuffle comes after other law firms inked deals for new offices across the Bay Area.
This week, Dallas-based Haynes and Boone announced the law firm will move its San Francisco office to One Post Street, taking up 12,000 square feet on the 28th floor.
Last month, Cleveland-based BakerHostetler announced a five-year renewal for 7,900 square feet on the 31st floor at 600 Montgomery Street, in San Francisco’s Transamerica Pyramid.
At the same time, Boston-based Goodwin Procter announced it would move from its long-time home on three floors at Three Embarcadero Center to nearly 60,000 square feet of offices at 525 Market Street.
In November, locally based BraunHagey & Borden moved its offices from the Financial District to Jackson Square, after signing a 10-year lease for up to 22,000 square feet at 747 Front Street.
Perhaps the largest shift by attorneys was in 2022, when locally based Farella Braun + Martel vacated 15 floors at its 125,000-square-foot headquarters at the century-old tower at 235 Montgomery Street during a pandemic shift to hybrid work. The then 60-year-old firm moved into 40,000 square feet of offices at 1 Bush Street, a 68 percent reduction in space.
— Dana Bartholomew