The international law firm Freshfields partnered with Tétris to completely redesign the fit-out of its four-floor Brussels headquarters. This ambitious project aimed to reflect the firm’s culture, strengthen team connections, and symbolize the values of justice. Drawing on its expertise in law firm fit-outs, Tétris designed a workspace that seamlessly blends confidentiality, transparency, and collaboration.
The challenge: Rethinking cohesion and vertical connection
Freshfields already occupied four floors of the building, but these levels were separated by other tenants, breaking the sense of unity among teams. The challenge was to reconnect all four floors, creating a coherent and fluid environment while improving internal communication.
JLL's Tenant Representation department first supported Freshfields in renegotiating its lease to secure contiguous floors. Within this framework, Tétris was brought on board to provide test fits and a feasibility study exploring the creation of a strong vertical connection throughout the workspace.
Once the floors were unified, JLL was mandated to oversee the project, beginning with a design competition. Thanks to a creative proposal that addressed post-COVID workplace needs, Tétris won the tender with a vision founded on flexibility, collaboration, and brand identity.
Subsequently, Tétris was also selected for both the build and furniture phases, ensuring consistency between design intent and execution. This integrated Design&Build + Furniture solution guaranteed both aesthetic and functional continuity throughout the project.
The solution: A bespoke fit-out for a contemporary law firm
Designing human-centred spaces
To understand the evolving needs of the firm, Tétris led a change management mission, including an employee survey to anticipate post-renovation attendance rates, identify team expectations, and understand motivations for returning to the office.
The core functional concept is the creation of Agoras—one on each floor. These vibrant, social spaces welcome employees in the morning and encourage spontaneous interactions. Interlinked by an open vertical circulation, they embody continuity and foster internal mobility.
Balancing confidentiality and belonging
A key challenge in any law firm fit-out is preserving the essential confidentiality required by the profession while nurturing a sense of community.
To reconcile these two dimensions, Tétris designed enclosed yet glazed offices, separated by integrated acoustic cabinetry. This ingenious solution allows employees to work with full concentration while remaining visually connected to their team. The result is a perfect balance between discretion and transparency, ideally suited to the culture of a leading law firm.
A design concept inspired by justice
The design concept revolves around the number 4, symbolizing both the four renovated floors and justice, the heart of Freshfields' work. Each level evokes a foundational value of the law, embodied by a distinct material:
- Wood, for patience;
- Leather, for wisdom;
- Metal, for loyalty;
- Stone, for trust. These materials define the atmosphere in the Agoras and are echoed in subtle details like cabinet handles, signage, and shelving. This approach creates a refined and coherent environment where materials become the language of the firm’s values.
Wellbeing and performance at the core of the design
The user experience was placed at the center of the design process. Special care was taken to ensure acoustic comfort with sound-absorbing materials in the floors and cabinetry. The flow of natural light was also optimized to reach the building’s core, while artificial lighting was designed to adapt to employees' work rhythms.
This holistic approach enhances wellbeing, concentration, and efficiency—essential criteria for any high-level law firm fit-out.
A partnership of trust and international collaboration
Freshfields extended the mission by entrusting Tétris with the renovation of the 25th-floor cafeteria to harmonize this social space with the overall office concept. This project extension reinforced the coherence between work, meeting, and relaxation areas.
To meet a demanding schedule, Tétris mobilized international teams and leveraged its strong network of local artisans and partners. This synergy enabled the delivery of a high-quality project on time, maintaining the standard of excellence expected in international law firm environments.
A fit-out serving identity and performance
With this project for Freshfields, Tétris demonstrates its ability to design functional, identity-driven spaces for the legal sector. A law firm fit-out is about more than aesthetics: it is about translating corporate culture, reinforcing confidentiality while promoting collaboration, and creating an environment that inspires trust—among clients and teams alike.
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