Francis Cauffman has designed the new offices of law firm Fox Rothschild, located in New York City, New York. When relocating its New York City office, a major law firm sought to upgrade and modernize its operations. The design team embarked on a two-phase project that responded to the firm’s key objectives: create a distinctive new space and achieve the flexibility necessary to respond to the ever-changing practice of law. The new space needed to support multiple meeting types such as internal, client, and outside counsel.

The design team aimed to create a space that enhanced the total client experience while providing a sense of comfort. In creating a significant client-focused conference center to support the practice, the design team maximized views of the new surroundings in Midtown Manhattan while ensuring that the center could accommodate state-of-the-art technology. Recognizing the density of New York and its real estate costs, the client also desired to increase attorney density while repurposing “I space” into “we space.”

Within the internal workspace, right-sized 80 attorney offices to accommodate flexible meeting spaces and redesigned secretarial work stations to allow teaming and work-sharing. Multi-functional business-centric spaces are deployed for both visitors and staff to choose the setting they wish to work in. Informal lounge spaces with food and beverage amenities, quiet heads down enclaves, and tech-intense meeting rooms all work in concert, linking to a national network of the firm’s offices.

Interior attorney offices were designed to be conducive to the intensive focus work happening within: abundant light and city views team with clean, crisp office interiors void of distractions. They also have all-glass fronts to enable natural light to penetrate the core spaces. Well below the benchmark for rentable SF per attorney, the tradeoff of these offices is positive in shared amenity spaces for all staff and clients.

Design: Francis Cauffman
Photography: Kevin Chu and Jessica Paul

https://officesnapshots.com/2017/02/24/fox-rothschild-offices-new-york-city/