Baker & McKenzie, founded in Chicago in 1949, has since spread its offices worldwide, hiring over 3,800 lawyers, with 80% of their staff in the United States. It could be they will be a little less ubiquitous in the near future. Said one source:
“Check Baker & McKenzie San Diego. Management decided to close the office a while back, yet they have not told clients or employees. Culture of deception?” Other sources corroborate the story, and there are a few tell-tale signs to suggest it isn’t idle gossip.
The headcount at the office has steeply dropped from 45 lawyers in 2000 to a current 13 lawyers. They recently lost two intellectual property lawyers, James Conley and Howard Wisnia, to Mintz, Levin, Cohn, Ferris, Glovsky and Popeo.
Some sources suggest that Baker & McKenzie have fallen into a rent trap with a contract that now expects them to pay double rent, though they have 50 offices with only 13 lawyers.
Baker & McKenzie’s Chicago Spokesperson would not comment on the possible closure of the San Diego office, which may be an admission by silence.