Standout lawyers around the world want fewer hours, according to a recent survey. And who can blame them? Already lawyers in some areas are choosing flexibility over pay, but at the same time Biglaw salaries are soaring and the battle for legal talent is reaching unprecedented levels. Still, the “fewer” hours are relatively modest decreases – albeit helpful in these hectic pandemic times. Long hours are a staple of the practice of law, and those who think the in-house world is the promised land are sometimes surprised to find similar workloads and clients right across the hall. Will work from home and hybrid home/office legal jobs help bridge the gap and bring more balance to the lives of legal professionals? Time will tell.
“Thirty percent of surveyed “standout lawyers” would like to work fewer hours, while 53% are satisfied with the hours that they are working.Another 17% wanted more hours, according to the Thomson Reuters midyear survey of nearly 1,200 lawyers who were identified as standouts by their clients.Those who are least happy with the hours they are working are younger lawyers and female lawyers. The finding demonstrates “the widely acknowledged push factor which causes many in these groups to leave the industry,” according to an executive summary of the survey report.”
Read: 30% of these lawyers would like to work fewer hours; those most dissatisfied are younger and female