Post-Pandemic Lawyer Priorities

• Pages: 16-17
• Date: 01 January 2023
• Subject Matter: Civil Law

Post-Pandemic

Lawyer Priorities

What makes lawyers stay at jobs?

2Civility ’s Marin McCall reviewed data

from an ABA survey taken by nearly

2,000 members that looked at how

the pandemic triggered changes

to how and where lawyers want to

work. According to the survey, which

is the basis for the ABA’s 2022 Practice

Forward Report, work-life balance, com-

pensation, welcoming and collaborative

workplaces, and remote work options rank as

top priorities for today’s lawyers. Given this, how can legal employers better sup-

port and retain lawyers? (1) Create a culture that supports hybrid work—enact a trans-

parent hybrid-work policy actively supported by leadership that promotes engagement

and connectivity while allowing remote work. (2) Create a culture that addresses well-

ness and mental health—provide holistic mental health resources and encourage fewer

meetings and more time away from work. (3) Create a culture that fosters diversity, eq-

uity, and inclusion (DEI) values—implement transparent DEI protocols in all aspects of

employment, from hiring to succession planning, and consider oering compensation or

billable hours credit for DEI work. (4) Create a culture that maximizes the use of tech-

nology—provide equipment and tools employees need to thrive while working remotely,

keeping in mind accessibility for lawyers with disabilities.

Get in the (New) Habit

Old habits die h ard. But sometimes, die they mu st.

Lindsay Grith s of Zen and the Art of Legal Network ing

suggests it may be ti me to begin building new habits for

better results f rom your work routine. Griths oer s a

© Getty Image s

few ideas to get you star ted: (1) If available, star t taking

public transp ortation to work, and use th e free time to

read industry materials or listen to an industry podcast.

(2) Force yourself to take a mo rning coee break away

from your desk. ( 3) Change scenery each af ternoon

for 10–15 min utes—get some fresh air by ta king a walk

around the bloc k, or do something else th at will break

the afternoo n slump so that you return to your des k re-

freshed. (4) Check Linke dIn f‌irst thing in the morning

for f‌ive minutes and e ngage with two or three peop le in

some way each day—this ca n also be done from a mobile

device while waiting in l ine at the coee shop. (5) Find

one new person o n Twitter to have a conversation with

each day. And (6) take a younge r lawyer to lunch once a

week, both to remin d yourself what it w as like when you

were starting o ut and to be a mentor to someone . If you

are the younger law yer, reach out to more se nior lawyers

to connect and a sk them to meet with you.

WINTER 202 3 • VOL. 48 NO. 2

16 | ABA LITIGATION SECTIO N

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Published in Litigation News Volume 48, Number 2, Winter 2023. © 2023 by the American Bar Association. Reproduced with permission. All rights reserved. This information or any portion thereof may not be copied or disseminated in any form or by any means or

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