Ashurst Morris Crisp and Linklaters have played lead roles advising on the sale of the leasehold of Sainsbury’s headquarters at 33 Holborn, in what is the largest ever single-site property transaction in the UK.

The deal saw Ashursts advise Paul Hamlin Ventures on the sale of special purpose vehicle Alice Developments, which owns the lease, to German open-ended investment fund Deutsche Immobilian Fonds Aktiengesellschaft (Difa) for £237.8m.