Herbert Smith Freehills will open a new office in Canary Wharf, transitioning part of its London workforce to a new hub in the business district.
The move will see around 495 members of staff relocate to the new office, on Bank Street, in September 2018.
The new hub will be the primary workplace for the majority of the firm’s London Business Services staff and the firm's London Alternative Legal Services (ALT) team. The space will be designed to encourage agile working and collaboration and the new office will also be able to be utilised by lawyers, clients and colleagues from other offices.
Herbert Smith Freehills Chief Executive Officer Mark Rigotti believes the new space will, "empower people to move away from traditional office-based ways of working, shaping the business for the future."
Late last year, the firm announced that it would be transitioning part of its Sydney workforce to a new office in Macquarie Park. The office opened in April 2018.
Herbert Smith Freehills’ Chief Executive Officer Mark Rigotti said:
“This initiative supports our service delivery strategy, in how we innovate and adapt to a changing world and how we deliver services. We are committed to creating a workplace – and a workforce – for the future, empowering our staff to work how they want to work. The choice of Canary Wharf was also heavily influenced by our desire to be close to our clients, with many of our major clients based in Canary Wharf."
Chief Operating Officer Nicole Bamforth said:
"Canary Wharf is a great fit for our business. Not only were we able to find a space that helped us to realise our vision for a more collaborative workspace, but we are able to retain our valued workforce. The quality of our people is very high, and we were concerned we would lose a number of them if we moved further afield."
The move will see the firm close its existing office space in Finsbury Square. Herbert Smith Freehills will retain its main London Headquarters, Exchange House, on Primrose Street.