Dewey Ballantine to cash in by letting new office space

Dewey Ballantine stands to generate up to £500,000 in income as a result of the bumper deal it has just signed on new office space.

The firm negotiated a 31-month rent-free period on the 31,500sq ft it has signed at One London Wall, paying £43 per sq ft. The rent-free period means that not only will Dewey save £3.5m on rent over the next three years, but could also generate up to £500,000 income because it plans to sublet up to 5,000sq ft for the next couple of years. The lease is for 15 years.

The firm currently has an annual rent of around £1m, paying approximately £55 per sq ft for the 17,500sq ft it has in the Aviva building at 1 Undershaft.

Dewey has approximately 40 lawyers in London, but the new office will provide the firm with space for double that number.

London managing partner Fred Gander said: “Eventually, we hope to get between 80 and 90 lawyers, but that’s a two to five-year plan.”
Dewey has been just one of a number of firms on the hunt for new office space. French firm Gide Loyrette Nouel this week secured 12,000sq ft of permanent office space in CityPoint. Others expected to sign up to new space shortly include Norton Rose and SJ Berwin.