Global Law Firm Signs First Big Downtown DC Lease This Year

Rebecca Phillips

A global law firm has signed a renewal in the first big office lease in downtown Washington, D.C., this year, according to Costar information, though it will give up some space in the process. Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman LLP agreed to a long-term renewal for 89,027 square feet at 1200 17th St. NW, a trophy building located off Connecticut Avenue at the corner of 17th and M streets. The lease covers the top five floors of the 11-story building, as well as a smaller space on the first floor.

Though the deal represents the largest office lease signed in the Washington area year to date, it marks a reduction in space for Pillsbury, a New York City law firm that focuses on the energy, financial services, real estate and technology industries. The firm, an original tenant in the building that has its signage next to the entrance, gave up its space on the sixth floor as part of the renewal, reducing its footprint from nearly 106,000 square feet to 89,027square feet — a reduction of about 17,000 square feet, according to Costar data.

The lease is for 10 years and is scheduled to kick in once the firm's existing deal expires in 2025.

The deal is a win for D.C.'s central business district, one of the hardest-hit areas of Washington's beleaguered office market. Since 2020, leasing downtown has slowed by more than 15% relative to the-pandemic norms from 2017 to 2019. This is due specifically to the drop-off in renewals versus new lease deals, where volume has remained resilient.

Though CoStar data puts office occupancy downtown at 18%,"Conversations with office brokers hint that total vacancy could be well over 20% when accounting for shadow space," according to CoStar's latest report

. Shadow space refers to space that is being leased but is not being utilized.

The 1200 17th St. building is fully leased, according to Costar. Completed in 2014 and owned by Akridge and Mitsui Fudosan America, the 171,255-square-foot building is also home to American

2/12/25, 11:09 AM News | Global Law Firm Signs First Big Downtown DC Lease This Year