Biglaw

Top 30 Biglaw Firm Introduces 2-Day, In-Office Work Week For Its January 2022 Return

Associates at the firm will surely be happy about this.

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New year, new firm? That’s what seems to be going on at Paul Hastings, which just unveiled its hybrid office policy for 2022.

Here’s an excerpt from a memo that chairman Seth Zachary, co-managing partner and chair elect Frank Lopez, and co-managing partner Sherrese Smith sent to all personnel at the firm’s U.S. offices yesterday (emphasis added):

As the entire legal profession adapts to a new paradigm, we are embracing this moment to create new and innovative opportunities for the Firm and our people to thrive. We have been actively engaging with team members from all Offices and Departments, who have expressed a growing desire for professional development, reengagement with colleagues, and the sense of connection that comes only from being together. At the same time, we all have different considerations that shape our personal and professional lives. As we prepare to return to our offices, we do so with an understanding that a flexible working environment will be a key element in the post pandemic workplace.

With these considerations in mind, and to allow us to balance the need for connection and collaboration, as well as to allow you to take advantage of the professional development activities and events that we will be offering, beginning Monday, January 10, 2022, we recommend that all lawyers, client service support roles, paralegals and other timekeepers begin working from the office at least two days each week. Team and Department leaders will coordinate directly with the rest of the firm-wide departments on schedules that ensure full coverage. Local operations and IT support will continue with existing in-office service coverage. We recognize and understand that personal circumstances will vary, and anyone with questions or concerns should contact their leader.

This “two days each week” business is a marked change from the firm’s stance this past May, when lawyers were told that “by default, we should work from the office when we are able.” The firm later walked back its “by default” language in June, stating its intention to remain a flexible workplace. Now, Paul Hastings seem ultra flexible when it comes to its employees’ time, and full-time, in-office work will no longer be the “by default” norm at the firm.

(Flip to the next page to see the memo from Paul Hastings.)

As soon as you find out about the reopening plan at your firm, please email us (subject line: “[Firm Name] Office Reopening”) or text us at (646) 820-8477. We always keep our sources on stories anonymous. There’s no need to send a memo (if one exists) using your firm email account; your personal email account is fine. If a memo has been circulated, please be sure to include it as proof; we like to post complete memos as a service to our readers. You can take a photo of the memo and attach as a picture if you are worried about metadata in a PDF or Word file. Thanks.

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Staci ZaretskyStaci Zaretsky is a senior editor at Above the Law, where she’s worked since 2011. She’d love to hear from you, so please feel free to email her with any tips, questions, comments, or critiques. You can follow her on Twitter or connect with her on LinkedIn.

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