Henein Hutchison Robitaille LLP

A workplace born from a singular culture

For decades, Henein Hutchison Robitaille LLP (HHR) occupied a low-rise office building in Toronto’s eastern downtown, conspicuously outside the city’s traditional law corridor. By 2025, however, the firm had outgrown its home.

KPMB, in collaboration with project director Sonia Bitterman of Modernist 67, designed HHR’s new workplace inside the East Tower of the Bay Adelaide Centre. Despite decades of avoiding commercial high-rises, uniting colleagues on a single floor offered a compelling opportunity for the law firm’s next chapter.

The workplace supports HHR’s uniquely collaborative practice model while serving as a serene counterbalance to the high-stakes nature of litigation. Replacing the base building’s rectilinear lines with organic and sinuous forms, the design departs from industry conventions and reflects HHR’s distinct identity within the profession.

Conceived as a garden elevated on an urban plateau, the office features a gently curving “garden wall” complemented by interior pavilions. This idea emerged as the guiding thread for a calming and expressive workplace with zones for concentrated work, reflection, and collaboration.

Unlike many law firms with siloed individual practices, HHR employees work with the entire partnership. The office is designed to choreograph movement and sightlines, with an emphasis on fostering chance encounters, social connections, and shared learning. The conceptual heart of the garden is a flexible staff lounge that accommodates twice-weekly staff lunches, impromptu meetings, and industry events.