High-Rise Owners File for Chapter 11

The owner of the 26-story downtown Los Angeles headquarters of O’Melveny & Myers--one of the region’s largest and oldest law firms--filed for protection from creditors under Chapter 11 of federal bankruptcy law. The building’s owner, a partnership that includes O’Melveny, filed for protection after failing to reach a deal to refinance a $132.7-million loan on the property. That loan comes due in September, and the building’s value has fallen below the loan amount. O’Melveny was the first U.S. law firm to build its own skyscraper headquarters, which was completed in 1982.