The Current, an office building at 3615 Delgany St. in Denver, was completed last year. (Justin Wingerter/BusinessDen)
Last October, Moye White invited the media to an open house at the Denver law firm’s new office in RiNo.
Managing Partner Merc Pittinos would be available to talk about “how the firm is preparing for the next generation of clients, attorneys and leaders and the rapid transitions Colorado’s legal market is experiencing,” per the invite.
Doug Zabel, the firm’s landlord, could comment on how the space was “designed for ultimate productivity, wellness, and the pace of business,” reporters were told.
Six months later, however, neither want to talk about the new office at all.
On April 1, the Phoenix-based law firm Fennemore announced that it would hire the vast majority of Moye White attorneys and staff, including the Pittinos and the firm’s only named partner, Ted White. Fennemore CEO James Goodnow indicated to media outlets that Moye White itself would eventually cease to exist.
That seemingly poses a challenge for the owner of the RiNo building that Moye White leases, as well as another landlord downtown.
If Fennemore was simply acquiring Moye White, the deal would have included all Moye White assets, including leases. But the deal was structured as a mass hiring rather than an acquisition or merger.
Moye White has been operating from about 42,500 square feet at The Current, a new office building at 3615 Delgany St. The company was the first major law firm to move to the nascent RiNo office district and a marquee tenant for the building, which has since signed leases with two other companies but remains largely vacant.
Moye White Managing Partner Merc Pittinos
Pittinos and multiple spokeswomen for the law firm didn’t respond to an email with specific questions, including confirmation that the firm will shut down and whether Moye White had any sort of deal with its RiNo landlord — which has been a client of the firm — to get out of the lease.
The Current was completed last year by Seattle-based Schnitzer West and Denver-based Craft Cos. Zabel, a Schnitzer West managing partner who is based locally, didn’t respond to multiple requests for comment. A Craft Cos. executive referred a reporter to Zabel.
Multiple veteran office brokers told BusinessDen that Moye White’s lease would not likely have named anyone, such as partners of the firm, as guarantors. If it had, those individuals would have been responsible for paying rent if the firm failed to do so.
Moye White built out its space in The Current specifically for its needs, meaning another firm might not necessarily want the same features.
Fennemore, meanwhile, currently has a Denver office in the Wells Fargo Center at 1700 Lincoln St. That space, leased through 2027, is about 12,000 square feet, according to a source familiar with the building.
Fennemore CEO James Goodnow told BusinessDen last week that the firm would need more space in Denver, but gave no indication Fennemore expected to use Moye White’s space in The Current.
“Fennemore’s current plan is to move some of our new team members into Fennemore’s office in the Wells Fargo Center and others potentially into subleased space while we seek a long-term space that can accommodate our larger head count,” Goodnow said on April 1.
A Fennemore spokeswoman declined to address additional questions emailed this week related to Moye White’s real estate, including whether Fennemore was in talks with the landlord at The Current. She said the 50 attorneys and 30 staff coming from Moye White start at Fennemore on April 15.
Moye White’s real estate footprint isn’t limited to The Current. The company previously operated at 1400 16th St. in downtown Denver. While the company has moved out, its lease for the space has not expired, multiple office brokers told BusinessDen. While some of the space has been subleased, the sublessee or sublessees are paying less than Moye White’s rate, leaving the firm responsible to cover the remainder, the brokers said.
Fennemore previously said it offered jobs to all but 10 Moye White attorneys. The destinations for the others have become more clear in the week and a half since.
Frost Brown Todd said this week that it is hiring six Moye White attorneys — along with two from Brownstein Hyatt Farber Schreck and one from Lewis Roca — for the firm’s new Denver office. Lewis Roca, another Phoenix-based law firm that already has a presence in Denver, also said this week it had hired three from Moye White.
BusinessDen staffer Matt Geiger contributed reporting.
The Current, an office building at 3615 Delgany St. in Denver, was completed last year. (Justin Wingerter/BusinessDen)
Last October, Moye White invited the media to an open house at the Denver law firm’s new office in RiNo.
Managing Partner Merc Pittinos would be available to talk about “how the firm is preparing for the next generation of clients, attorneys and leaders and the rapid transitions Colorado’s legal market is experiencing,” per the invite.
Doug Zabel, the firm’s landlord, could comment on how the space was “designed for ultimate productivity, wellness, and the pace of business,” reporters were told.
Six months later, however, neither want to talk about the new office at all.
On April 1, the Phoenix-based law firm Fennemore announced that it would hire the vast majority of Moye White attorneys and staff, including the Pittinos and the firm’s only named partner, Ted White. Fennemore CEO James Goodnow indicated to media outlets that Moye White itself would eventually cease to exist.
That seemingly poses a challenge for the owner of the RiNo building that Moye White leases, as well as another landlord downtown.
If Fennemore was simply acquiring Moye White, the deal would have included all Moye White assets, including leases. But the deal was structured as a mass hiring rather than an acquisition or merger.
Moye White has been operating from about 42,500 square feet at The Current, a new office building at 3615 Delgany St. The company was the first major law firm to move to the nascent RiNo office district and a marquee tenant for the building, which has since signed leases with two other companies but remains largely vacant.
Moye White Managing Partner Merc Pittinos
Pittinos and multiple spokeswomen for the law firm didn’t respond to an email with specific questions, including confirmation that the firm will shut down and whether Moye White had any sort of deal with its RiNo landlord — which has been a client of the firm — to get out of the lease.
The Current was completed last year by Seattle-based Schnitzer West and Denver-based Craft Cos. Zabel, a Schnitzer West managing partner who is based locally, didn’t respond to multiple requests for comment. A Craft Cos. executive referred a reporter to Zabel.
Multiple veteran office brokers told BusinessDen that Moye White’s lease would not likely have named anyone, such as partners of the firm, as guarantors. If it had, those individuals would have been responsible for paying rent if the firm failed to do so.
Moye White built out its space in The Current specifically for its needs, meaning another firm might not necessarily want the same features.
Fennemore, meanwhile, currently has a Denver office in the Wells Fargo Center at 1700 Lincoln St. That space, leased through 2027, is about 12,000 square feet, according to a source familiar with the building.
Fennemore CEO James Goodnow told BusinessDen last week that the firm would need more space in Denver, but gave no indication Fennemore expected to use Moye White’s space in The Current.
“Fennemore’s current plan is to move some of our new team members into Fennemore’s office in the Wells Fargo Center and others potentially into subleased space while we seek a long-term space that can accommodate our larger head count,” Goodnow said on April 1.
A Fennemore spokeswoman declined to address additional questions emailed this week related to Moye White’s real estate, including whether Fennemore was in talks with the landlord at The Current. She said the 50 attorneys and 30 staff coming from Moye White start at Fennemore on April 15.
Moye White’s real estate footprint isn’t limited to The Current. The company previously operated at 1400 16th St. in downtown Denver. While the company has moved out, its lease for the space has not expired, multiple office brokers told BusinessDen. While some of the space has been subleased, the sublessee or sublessees are paying less than Moye White’s rate, leaving the firm responsible to cover the remainder, the brokers said.
Fennemore previously said it offered jobs to all but 10 Moye White attorneys. The destinations for the others have become more clear in the week and a half since.
Frost Brown Todd said this week that it is hiring six Moye White attorneys — along with two from Brownstein Hyatt Farber Schreck and one from Lewis Roca — for the firm’s new Denver office. Lewis Roca, another Phoenix-based law firm that already has a presence in Denver, also said this week it had hired three from Moye White.
BusinessDen staffer Matt Geiger contributed reporting.
