News & Events | News

Wednesday 10th October 2007

Leading European law firm, SJ Berwin’s real estate division has advised British Land on its pre-letting agreement with top 15 law firm Reed Smith Richards Butler LLP, for the law firm to take 39 % of its 35-storey Broadgate Tower development in the City.  Reed Smith Richards Butler will take 155,000 sq ft arranged over 11 floors (the top office floors from level 23, plus level 3) at rents of £62.50 per sq ft for the top floors and an average initial rent overall of £58 per sq ft for a lease term of 15.5 years.  It is the first pre-letting for the developer-led tower which rises to 540 ft, and is on track for completion summer 2008.

The Broadgate Tower and now fully-let adjoining 201 Bishopsgate are two buildings that form the latest phase of development at British Land’s 30-acre Broadgate Estate in the City, representing the largest open market development ever undertaken in the City.

The SJ Berwin real estate team consisted of partners Lewis Myers, Helen Willett and Jeff Smith.  Richard Nicholl and Jon Pike, partners led the Reed Smith Richards Butler team.

For further information please contact:

Lewis Myers on +44 (0)20 7111 2151, email lewis.myers@sjberwin.com  or Karen Roberts on +44 (0)20 7111 2578, email karen.roberts@sjberwin.com      

• On 1 June 2005 SJ Berwin LLP, an English limited liability partnership, took over the business of the SJ Berwin general partnership.  SJ Berwin LLP or an affiliated undertaking has an office in Berlin, Brussels, Frankfurt, London, Madrid, Milan, Munich, Paris and Turin.
   
• SJ Berwin LLP was named ‘UK Firm of the Year’ at the 2005 Legal Week Awards on 30 November.  The award recognised SJ Berwin’s five years of international expansion and its involvement in a series of high quality deals.
   
• SJ Berwin's Real Estate Division totals 150 staff  in London of which 23 are partners (3 of which are tax partners) ,and over 70 associates, encompassing the disciplines of Commercial Real Estate, Construction, Planning & Environment, Property Litigation, Real Estate Funds and Tax.  In addition there are 3 dedicated European real estate partners.  There is an increasing emphasis on cross departmental activity with related areas of Banking and Corporate and also cross border / pan European real estate work, with our European offices.  The division acts for blue chip clients including British Land, Royal Bank of Scotland, the Hilton Group, Brixton plc, AXA, The Crown Estate, Marks & Spencer and Gazeley.
   
• The Real Estate Team was Legal Business Real Estate Team of the Year 2005.  It was also named "Real Estate Team of the Year" in the Lawyer Magazine Awards 2004, following its advice on the RBS/Canary Wharf transaction, the highest-value property investment transaction in the UK in 2004.
   
• Revenue from Real Estate represents approximately 21% of the firm's total revenue in London.