Meanwhile, Mayer Brown Platt executive director Stephen Wells says expectations are loftier and more entrenched in the legal profession, where the average ratio in the US is 950 sf per professional. "We still office our professionals in single (10-feet-by-15-feet) offices with a window," says Wells, meaning an elongated rectangular shape of the floor plate is the preferred model. "We don't want the elephant. We want the cheetah. We're looking for a cereal box."

Technology is playing a larger role for both space users. Stradinger's new building, scheduled for completion in 2003, is employing risers to run cables under the floor. A law firm, Wells says, must be able to have word processing equipment whirring "24 hours a day, seven days a week, 365 days a year."

One difference, though, is that Wells and his counterparts generally accept the fact they are going to pay market rates for functional space that also projects an image. "Your clients have to be comfortable in our space," says Wells, whose firm has 1,000 attorneys based at 190 S. LaSalle St. "The lawyers we need to attract and retain to do your legal work also need to be comfortable in the space…We want the space to look good, we want the space to be functional. We're not looking for the last nickel out of your space."