Sidley Austin expands into Miami

Sidley Austin has opened a Miami office, bringing its global office count to 21.

Sidley has been recruiting and hiring local lawyers since February and expects to announce the full roster of talent in August as various teams are released from their existing firms. This is Sidley’s first office in the southeast of the United States, a growing market for a wide variety of industries, including private equity, crypto, real estate, healthcare, finance, and sports/entertainment. In addition to attracting new lawyers to the firm, some Sidley attorneys have relocated to Miami to join the new office.

“Miami is a dynamic international business hub that is attracting industries that we already serve, as well as incredibly talented attorneys,” said Yvette Ostolaza, Sidley’s management committee chair. “This move into South Florida is a natural next step to continue serving our global clients, many of whom have moved their operations to Florida or are expanding to the region. We are also growing our talent pool to meet our clients’ needs by recruiting local teams who fit the Sidley platform as well as with our culture of hiring the best lawyers who believe in working in teams that are ‘built to win’ to deliver the best service to our clients. We also have Sidley lawyers who have been in Miami during the pandemic and are planning to make Miami their permanent home.”

Upon completion of construction, the firm will be located in Miami’s Brickell Financial District. Sidley signed a 60,000 square-foot lease at the 55-story tower, marking the largest new-to-market office lease signed in the city’s urban core this year.

“This is an exciting time at Sidley as we continue to expand our reach and identify new global growth opportunities,” said Mike Schmidtberger, Sidley’s executive committee chair. “Establishing this diverse team very much reflects our commitment to talent, teamwork, and results as we serve our clients in and from the growing South Florida market.”