The COVID-19 pandemic has affected practically all areas of life. The times in which we live are uncertain now, and nothing will be the same again. Lawyers and legal professionals have been in their homes at the monastery for more than a year, and now that vaccination is rampant, states across the country are reopening their economies, lifting their on-site policies, and even removing their mask mandates.
With all of this in mind, major law firms – many have just completed a second round of special awards to keep their lawyers as happy as possible – have weighed their plans to get their employees back into the office. As companies attempt to establish a return to work market standard, it should be noted that employees largely support their company’s remote working guidelines and hope that full-time office presence will no longer be required in the future.
Just like in the past when it comes to raises, bonuses, and savings, we’re making a table of all the companies that announced reopening policies during these strange times. We want you to see exactly how the legal profession is handling this new phase of the coronavirus crisis.
Help us to help you. Let us know what your company is doing to protect employees and adjust to the new normal in this unprecedented moment.
As a reminder, we love to cover news from law firms, however we need your help. As soon as you find out about the reopening of plans in your company, please send us an email (subject: “[Firm Name] Reopening of the office ”). We always keep our sources of stories anonymous. There is no need to send a memo (if you have one) using your permanent email account. Your personal email account is fine. If a memo has been distributed, please include it as evidence. We like to publish full memos as a service to our readers. You can take a photo of the memo and attach it as an image if you are concerned about metadata in a PDF or Word file. Many Thanks.
| Festivals | Reopening / WFH guidelines |
| Orrick | The company aims to return to work in September (after work day) and those who can do their work remotely don’t have to return to the office five days a week |
| Ropes & gray | “Permitted office use” will continue in the US offices through Labor Day in September. Thereafter, the company will “give at least 45 days notice before moving from permitted use to broader office return”. |
| Wilson Sonsini | The firm won’t require their attorneys to return to the office in 2021 |
| Willkie Farr | The firm won’t require their attorneys to return to the office in 2021 |
Staci Zaretsky is Senior Editor at Above the Law, where she has been working since 2011. She would love to hear from you. Please send her an email with tips, questions, comments or criticism. You can follow her on Twitter or connect with her on LinkedIn.
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