In the great ‘my office is better than yours’ war, sometimes it’s necessary to bring in the heavy artillery. Norton Rose‘s real estate practice did just that the other week, hosting a check-out-our-new-digs party aboard HMS Belfast, moored in the Thames just opposite the firm’s new Southbank location.
Tulkinghorn refuses to draw comparisons between the firm and HMS Belfast, a once-great warship of many glorious campaigns from yesteryear that now is the bane of the British Navy, stagnant in the Thames, siphoning away fistfuls of money in a bid to stay afloat.
But Tulkinghorn’s scribe enjoyed the hospitality of Norton Rose’s go-getting real estate partners and associates, not least of enigmatic partner Robin Mitchell, who had his sea legs on after celebrating most of the afternoon on the successful completion of a deal for a FTSE100 client. The tales of real estate head Lindsay Morgan, who was part of the firm’s steering committee tasked with such important decisions as which colour carpet best hides the red wine stains, what artwork, what level of window tint and, importantly, which style of bog best suits the requirements of a firm like Norton Rose, were also worth the entry price on their own.
Showing the firm’s diversity, Morgan highlighted such issues as “what size shelf do you have for the make-up bag?” as high on partners’ minds as they spent several hours touring the lavatories of City buildings.
