Clifford Chance to leave Canary Wharf

CANARY Wharf has been dealt a blow after Clifford Chance confirmed plans to quit the docklands office district and return to the Square Mile.

The “magic circle” law firm, which employs around 2,000 people in the UK, will take 12 floors in a new building at 2 Aldermanbury Square near Moorgate, which is a new development expected to be completed in late 2025.

The move will end Clifford Chance’s 20-year presence in the east London docklands business district. The company moved from the City of London to Canary Wharf in 2003.

Explaining the move, Clifford Chance said central London was easy for its clients and staff to reach.

Last year, US rival Skadden made the same shift, relocating from Canary Wharf to 22 Bishopsgate in the City.

It comes as companies rethink their office space in response to growing demand from staff to work from home.

Clifford Chance initially planned to slash the size of its headquarters by as much as two thirds after staff refused to work in the office full time, The Daily Telegraph reported in February.

However, the move from Canary Wharf to the City will see its office space only reduced from around 440,000 sq ft to 321,100 sq ft.

Michael Bates, managing partner at Clifford Chance, said the move “ensures we have the space that is fit for our ambitions of the future and importantly is core to our values and commitments on sustainability, supporting the firm’s longer term environmental targets”.

Canary Wharf has been trying to transform itself from solely a business district into a place to live and play. It recently opened the UK’S highest buildto-rent apartment block and has a seasonal ice rink and go-karting track.

In September, Canary Wharf ’s oldest corporate resident, HSBC, said it was considering quitting its headquarters when its lease runs out in 2027.