Two law firms were this week eyeing regional lettings totalling 175,000 sq ft.
Slater & Gordon is under offer for 114,000 sq ft at the Bank of Ireland’s 56-58 Mosley Street in Manchester, filling the eight-storey block on a 10-15-year lease at £22.50 per sq ft.
The letting, which would be the largest in the North West city since RBS took a 500,000 sq ft prelet at Allied London’s Spinningfields in 2001, comes after the Australian legal giant bought Manchester-based Pannone, Russell Jones & Walker and Fentons Solicitors over the past two years.
Slater & Gordon has ambitions to become a major player in the UK consumer legal services market.
It plans to move all its staff into the new office – which was formerly the home of failed law firm Cobbetts, which was rescued from administration in a pre-pack by DWF in 2012.
Meanwhile, Scotland’s largest law firm, Brodies, is eyeing major office schemes in Edinburgh, as it plans to consolidate its presence in the Scottish capital ahead of lease events in 2017-18 on its existing offices at 15 Atholl Crescent and Clydesdale Bank Plaza.
The company is searching for a new HQ of as much as 60,000 sq ft and is understood to be in talks with Standard Life and Peveril Securities about taking space at 3-8 St Andrews Square, which includes 100,000 sq ft of offices being developed speculatively, as well as Interserve’s Haymarket, Moorfield’s Quartermile and Artisan Real Estate’s Caltongate.
OBI Property is advising Slater & Gordon; Cushman & Wakefield is acting for the Bank of Ireland; Savills is letting agent on 3-8 St Andrews Square.
chris.berkin@estatesgazette.com
