Currently based in 60,000 sf at 345 Park Ave., Morgan & Finnegan is the first major law firm to relocate from Midtown to Downtown since Sept. 11, 2001, and one of a handful of firms that has returned after long-term occupancy in Midtown.

John F. Sweeney, partner at Morgan & Finnegan, tells GlobeSt.com the firm's lease was expiring this spring and they started a search process in the fall of 2002. They looked all over the city before deciding on relocating to the class A four-building complex whose towers offer large floor plates, modern state-of-the-art infrastructure, and technology, in addition to amenities such as the Winter Garden and European-style courtyard.

"We liked the big floor plates, the Hudson River view and the competitive rents. This is an important move for our firm, one that brings us back to our roots in Lower Manhattan, and one that offers us more space for future growth," he says. The firm will occupy the 20th and 21st floors of the 53-story property, providing sufficient expansion space to meet its immediate goals for continued growth. The lease also provides an option for future additional space, consistent with the firm's long-range growth objectives. A build out is in the works and the firms expects to move into the space in July or August.