A business law firm based in Phoenix is expanding its Orange County operations, adding a few thousand square feet of office space at Costa Mesa’s Plaza Tower. The lease is one of the largest law firm office deals in the country this year.
Snell & Wilmer LLP , the seventh largest law firm in Orange County, committed to 57,326 square feet at 600 Anton Blvd. in Costa Mesa, expanding upon the 53,005 square feet the firm previously leased within the same building.
The 57,326-square-foot lease was hailed as one of the biggest deals for a law firm in the country in 2024. The law firm plans to “significantly upgrade” its new space.
The lease is also one of the largest deals this year for Orange County, per data shared by CBRE and U.K.-based Savills. Other major leases signed this year in Orange County include Pacific Premier Bank’s 115,000 square feet at 17901 Von Karman Ave. in Irvine, Wells Fargo’s 52,958 square feet at 2030 Main St. in Irvine, O’Melveny & Myers’ 45,156 square feet renewal at 610 Newport Center in Newport Beach and Lathan & Watkins’ 85,825-square-foot renewal at 850 Town Center Drive in Costa Mesa.
Jon Frank, a partner with the firm, said the expansion would accommodate more than 70 attorneys, plus administrative staff.
“Our firm wanted to remain in this location because we value our 20-year relationship with the Segerstrom family and the quality of the greater South Coast Plaza area and the building itself,” Frank said in a statement.
Snell & Wilmer opened an Orange County office in 1989. The local office is the seventh largest law firm by local employee count in OC, according to Business Journal data.
“This region has been instrumental in our firm’s success, and as we look to the future, we anticipate continued growth and expansion in response to the needs of our clients and the evolving legal landscape,” Snell & Wilmer Managing Partner Eric Pezold said in a statement.
“Our presence here enables us to attract top talent and reinforces our role as a leading law firm in the region.”
Snell & Wilmer was founded in 1938 and has since expanded to include more than 500 attorneys working at 16 offices across the United States and Mexico.
In addition to its Phoenix headquarters and Orange County practice, Snell & Wilmer has offices in Albuquerque, New Mexico; Boise, Idaho; Dallas; Denver; Las Vegas; Los Angeles; Los Cabos, Mexico; Portland, Oregon; Reno, Nevada; San Diego; Salt Lake City; Seattle and Tucson, Arizona.
Some of Snell & Wilmer’s most notable cases this year included the sale of United Kingdom-based Motorsports Images to Getty Images and advising a client on the $11 billion financing of SunZia Wind and Transmission Project in Arizona and New Mexico.
Plaza Tower, at 21 floors and 460,000 square feet, is one of Orange County’s tallest and most recognizable high rises. Tenants at the tower, which was designed by Cesar Pelli, include IBM, Morgan Lewis, Porsche Design of America and BakerHostetler.
Snell & Wilmer were represented by JLL’s Kevin Bender and Charles Nixon of CBRE’s Phoenix office lease negotiations, while Robert Lambert and Rick Kaplan of Cushman & Wakefield represented the landlord, 600 Anton Boulevard Associates.
