The American Lawyer: Law Firms Move Away From "Convenience Offices" Post-COVID
A recent American Lawyer article by Andrew Maloney examines how AmLaw 200 firms are rethinking their office footprints, with firms increasingly stepping back from smaller "convenience offices" staffed by just one or two lawyers.
According to Law.com survey data cited in the piece, 17 firms reported closing at least one office in 2025 - the lowest annual total in five years - though the overall number of closures, at least 54 across AmLaw 200 firms, remained notable. The largest cluster of closures came in Asia, particularly China, as US-China tensions and tightening cross-border deal rules continue to reshape firms' presence there.
Matthew Bersani, a partner at Macrae, comments in the piece on what's driving the shift in how firms think about office locations:
"If you're looking at your deployment of offices, it's less about being closer to your clients and more about being closer to your talent, so you can attract them to your platform."
The article also points to a related trend: firms growing more deliberate about smaller "beachhead" offices in markets they're eyeing for future growth, even when those outposts aren't formally promoted.
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