Just like most of the companies across different sectors, law firms all over the United States changed in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Many firms cut jobs while many transitioned to working from home. Unlike other workplaces such as, say, factories, working from home is not impossible for law firms. But it’s certainly difficult. After watching popular legal dramas such as How to Get Away with Murder and Suits, it’s hard to imagine a law firm that operates online. Lawyers didn’t get to interact with each other, talk about their clients, and debate with each other about their cases inside their sleek offices in the heart of the business district. A small part of being a lawyer is the opportunity to wear stylish suits and look sharp all day long, enjoying the power that looking presentable brings.
But it’s now almost a year since the COVID-19 outbreak and the transition to remote working. So how did law firms cope during this time and kept their business alive? What were the ups and downs that lawyers experienced while the pandemic ravaged the world?
Transitioning to a Work-from-Home Setup
Much like most office workers, if lawyers have a computer, an internet connection, and their needed resources such as case files, they can work. But what some people often forget is that office work is only a small part of the entirety of the work that lawyers do. And the work-from-home setup greatly affected those things.
The biggest difficulty that lawyers faced with this setup are building camaraderie with their clients. Sure, they can do what they can through video calls via Zoom. But when lawyers meet with their clients, especially for the first time, they do so much more than talk. They also observe how clients behave, what makes them tick, etc. Such things will help lawyers gauge how deeply affected they are about their legal situations and offer comfort. This work is essential, especially for domestic violence and sexual assault victims. The clients just went through very traumatic experiences. As such, lawyers can offer them much-needed protection orders. But, if they were meeting in person, they can also help make the client feel calm, safe, and comfortable. This has been extremely difficult when the meetings were held via calls.
Investing in Tech
Transitioning to remote working would not be very effective if lawyers didn’t have the technological equipment they needed. This is why many law firms began investing in technology to support the workers. They made sure that each lawyer has a computer. Not only that, though. Many law firms also started embracing other forms of technology such as cloud technology. Lawyers need to access different resources all the time — from law books to old case files to help them come up with strategies and solutions to their open cases.
Saving Expenses for Business Trips
A significant part of many lawyers’ work is going on business trips to meet with clients or settle cases. As mentioned before, conducting meetings and other activities in a legal context is very difficult if done remotely. This is why many law firms preferred to invest in expenses for business trips. With the travel restrictions still in place in many areas around the world, sending lawyers on business trips is difficult and impossible in some situations.
As a result, lawyers had to adapt to the changes to get their job done. Yes, it’s certainly a challenge for them. On the bright side, this saved many law firms money that was usually invested in business trips. Instead, such money is spent elsewhere, on more essential things such as technological equipment to support the lawyers.
Keeping Morale High
Again, much like most companies during the COVID-19 pandemic, law firms saw a rise in mental health struggles among lawyers over the last few months. Being a lawyer is already very stressful, even before the pandemic started. Back in September 2020, the American Lawyer conducted a study on this matter. The findings show that over 40 percent of midlevel associates are experiencing anxiety. Three in four lawyers also said that their firms harmed their mental health.
Because of such high rates of mental health struggles, many law firms adjust to make sure that their lawyers stay stable and satisfied with their work. For example, some are offering wellness funds to support lawyers’ interests that would uplift their mood.
Even though vaccines have been distributed worldwide and that the economy has been slowly opening, it’s clear that law firms have changed drastically. There’s no doubt that some of these changes are here to stay even after the pandemic passes.