To complement its ongoing growth plan, Cleveland law firm BakerHostetler is counting on its swanky new Century City office to serve as a beacon.

The firm now occupies nearly two full floors at 1900 Avenue of the Stars, with first right of refusal for the remainder of one floor and on four full adjoining floors. This space currently houses 70 attorneys, a significant growth from the 30 in 2019, when office managing partner Eric Sagerman was hired.

“Our move into Century City reflects the firm’s commitment to continued investment in our West Coast practices and people,” Paul Schmidt, BakerHostetler chair, said in a statement. “I am thrilled that we were able to acquire modern space to efficiently support our growing headcount and dynamic client base.”

Under Sagerman’s stewardship, the BakerHostetler outpost here has significantly expanded its offerings. 

Last year it brought in the team of Olivia Kim and Ed Poplawski to kickstart the office’s intellectual property practice; that has since been shored up. Additionally, Sagerman poached a 10-person team last year of attorneys from Proskauer Rose LLP, Polsinelli and Kirkland & Ellis LLP to bring a corporate practice to the location.

Moving forward, Sagerman said he’d like to continue adding to the corporate group and expand the real estate transactions practice.

 Litigators are always a plus, he added, but his office has a deep bench already.

“I’ve got several groups of laterals that, if we continue at our pace, we can get to 85 or 90 over the next few years,” he said. 

This outpost had been in Brentwood since 2013, so the new office not only accommodates the growth but situates its attorneys in one of Los Angeles’ primary law firm clusters. Sagerman said in-person attendance has jumped from 40% to 70% since the move.