Adapting to a Hybrid Working Law Firm Set-up​

Written by Fatima Freifer
Written by Fatima Freifer

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case management software, practice management software, legal accounting software, legaltech, technology for lawyers, case management, immigration, london, united kingdomcase management software, practice management software, legal accounting software, legaltech, technology for lawyers, case management, immigration, london, united kingdom

Hybrid working – the blending of traditional office-based work with home-based and remote working – is set to become the new normal for law firms. It is an attractive proposition for both lawyers and their clients, who will benefit by reducing expenses, increasing flexibility and producing greater output in less time. This makes sense given that hybrid working can help to combat the growing issues of isolation among professionals and the high cost of living in urban areas. [1]

 

Nevertheless, implementing a hybrid working setup is not simple for all organisations. Smaller firms struggle with trust issues between team members and a lack of technological infrastructure such as a legal office management software which transcends office space into remote work, while large organisations may struggle to implement remote working on a scale that is beneficial for all employees.

 

How does a hybrid working set-up work?

In recent years there has been a growing recognition that the traditional model of working in law is no longer suitable for today’s professionals and clients. In response to this, there has been an explosion of new set-ups and work arrangements with legal support remote working tools in place, as alternative structures are being championed by many as the future of legal services. [2]

 

These include the use of contractors, virtual teams, remote working and a hybrid law firm structure. While these concepts are not specifically new – lawyers have traditionally contracted out specialist advice on a case-by-case basis – their uptake has increased considerably.

 

A hybrid working law firm set-up allows firms to more easily scale up and down and provides more flexibility over who is working with them. Hybrid firms typically use contractors, independent practitioners, external lawyers and/or technology-enabled staff (e.g. artificial intelligence or robotics process automation in addition to legal office software) to provide non-core services. [3]These services can include support functions including IT, finance, HR, marketing and administration, as well as advice work including non-core legal areas, research and analysis. Hybrid firms are also increasingly looking to use remote working – where employees are based outside of the office but are nonetheless on the firm’s payroll. This enables firms to hire the best talent, regardless of where they are located, while still maintaining a centralised decision-making structure. [4]

 

Why is there an increase in hybrid firms?

Over the last decade, there has been a significant rise in the number of hybrid firms and a major shift away from traditional working practices. The main drivers for these changes are three-fold: an increasing focus on client experience, the need for cost-effectiveness and greater flexibility for employees. An increased focus on client experience has put greater emphasis on value-add and quality across all areas of legal advice. [5] This has meant that firms have improved their service delivery by looking to outsource non-core services and relying less on partners who sit in offices 9-5, 5 days a week. This has enabled firms to increase the number of clients they serve by freeing up capacity and making best use of their resources as well as utilising workflow for document management systems. [6] Firms have also sought to improve their cost effectiveness by following the example of large multinational corporations and adopting a hybrid model that incorporates remote legal work and enables them to draw on a flexible pool of specialists at both hire and retainer rates. This has helped mitigate the costs associated with office-based working and improved overall flexibility.

 

Key challenges for hybrid law firms

While hybrids offer several benefits over the traditional law firm set-up, they are not without their challenges. As such, there are various factors in the fold.

 

Retaining control of the culture: While hybrids offer increased flexibility, they also demand more from employees, who will have to take on greater responsibility for their own work schedules. This means that firms must be careful to ensure that employees are given the remote working legal support, remote legal software training and mentoring they need to manage their work and expectations. [7]

 

Ensuring continuity of service: A key benefit of hybrids is the ability to quickly scale up resources as needed. However, hybrid firms must be careful to ensure that the right balance is struck between scaling up and keeping a consistent level of service through the implementation of the necessary office document management systems. While hiring the right staff and retaining them over time when the need for them is reduced will be key to achieving this. [8]

 

Maintaining quality standards: One of the most common criticisms of hybrids is that they introduce a two-tiered system, where full-time employees work alongside contractors who are less well remunerated and/or lack the security of full-time employment. [9] To avoid this, firms must be careful to implement and manage hiring processes that ensure the quality of both groups of staff and that full-timers have a say in who is hired and at what rate.

 

 

Downsides of a Hybrid Working Law Firm Set-up

 

Hybrids are not without their challenges. In particular, firms must carefully consider the impact of adopting a hybrid model on their existing customers, employees and reputation. Customers may not always be aware of the subtle differences between different types of staff, and may have certain expectations of what it means to work with a law firm. Firms must be careful to ensure that their branding, communications and service delivery are consistent with the expectations of customers, whatever the make-up of their workforce. In doing so, firms will help to ensure that clients continue to trust and value their services. [10]

 

Conclusion

 

The hybrid working law firm set-up offers considerable advantages for law firms. It allows firms to better scale up and down by using contractors and other non-full-time staff to provide non-core services and allowing remote working. The adoption of hybrid working practices has also helped to improve the experience of customers by allowing firms to better scale up and down and provide more flexible services. However, firms must be careful to address key challenges associated with the adoption of hybrids, such as maintaining continuity of service and managing compliance and quality standards, as well as managing customer expectations.

 

References

[1] The future of work: what hybrid means for the legal industry, Sophie Gould, Oct 2021 https://flex.legal/blog/the-future-of-work-what-hybrid-means-for-the-legal-industry

[2] Issues Law Firms Are Facing Today, Fatima Freifer https://goodlawsoftware.co.uk/technology/issues-law-firms-are-facing-today/

[3] Motivating lawyers to participate in law firms return to office policies, April 2022 https://legal.thomsonreuters.com/blog/motivating-lawyers-to-participate-in-law-firms-return-to-office-policies/

[4] How Law Firms Are Developing And Maintaining Prospective Long Term Client Relations, Fatima Freifer https://goodlawsoftware.co.uk/business-management/how-law-firms-are-developing-and-maintaining-prospective-long-term-client-relations/

[5] The rise of hybrid working within the legal industry, May 2021 https://www.simplylawjobs.com/career-hub/articles/career-advice/lifestyle/the-rise-of-hybrid-working-within-the-legal-industry

[6] The future of work: what hybrid means for the legal industry, Nov 2021 https://www.legalfutures.co.uk/associate-news/the-future-of-work-what-hybrid-means-for-the-legal-industry

[7] Why Legal Firms Are Focusing Their Outsourcing Efforts, Fatima Freifer https://goodlawsoftware.co.uk/business-management/why-legal-firms-are-focusing-their-outsourcing-efforts/

[8] Adopting a successful hybrid working model for law firms https://intelligentofficeuk.com/insights/adopting-a-successful-hybrid-working-model-for-law-firms/

[9] Staff at London law firm can work from home full-time – if they take 20% pay cut, May 2022 https://www.theguardian.com/business/2022/may/02/staff-london-law-firm-can-work-from-home-full-time-if-they-take-20-per-cent-pay-cut

[10] How Legal Technology Supports Hybrid Work Models at Law Firms, June 2022 https://www.notarize.com/blog/how-legal-technology-supports-hybrid-work-models-at-law-firms-lc

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