Murchison Finds Time Is Right to Move to San Francisco

January 31, 2011

Daily Journal

By Carla Pineda

The time was right for the Northern California office of Murchison & Cumming LLP to relocate from San Ramon to a prime San Francisco location, according to managing partner Jean M. Lawler.

The civil litigation firm's plan to expand its presence in the region was coupled with the expiration of the office's existing lease and a drop in San Francisco's rental rates.

"[The new location] helps us attract and add attorneys who have specialized areas of practice who work in the city [and] don't want to work anywhere else," Lawler said.

After bouncing around locations along Interstate 680 to accommodate its rapid growth since the office's inception in 2002, the firm leased about 7,000 square feet in the city's Financial District. The Embarcadero Center West Building at 275 Battery St. also is home to several other law firms.

With space for 12 lawyers, the new location accommodates Murchison attorneys who are moving from the Los Angeles office, and leaves room for additional growth. The five-year lease has an option for expansion into the office next door, which Lawler said she expects to call on within two years.

When real estate broker Jon Faller of Jones Lang LaSalle met Lawler for tours of potential locations, she knew immediately that the fifth floor of the Embarcadero Center West building met the firm's price, size and location needs, she said.

Michael B. Lawler, who co-founded the office with partner-in-charge Kasey C. Townsend, said San Francisco was not an option previously.

"The rates and rents were so expensive that it wasn't feasible for us until recently," he said. "The cost of doing business was a lot higher for our book of business."

Office rental rates doubled from 2003 to 2007, said Steve Barker, executive vice president and branch manager of real estate services firm Studley. A space comparable to Murchison's new office was going for about $45 per square foot during the peak of the economic cycle. Now, the average rate per square foot is in the low $30s, he said.

"A lot of law firms and other professional services firms can't afford to pay San Francisco rates when the market's up," Barker said.

In addition to adding attorneys, the new location will help the firm add clients, especially international companies that find the San Francisco location more accessible.

"We talked to a lot of our clients who are enthusiastic and think it's a perfect opportunity for us," Michael Lawler said.