By Madison Blevins

 

As the world has worked on adapting to the many ever-changing adjustments from the world-wide pandemic of 2020, COVID-19, many have had to switch to remote work in order to have continued success and efficiency in a socially-distanced world.[1] And civil and criminal attorneys are no different. In a change that seemed to happen almost overnight, the legal profession was thrust into what was arguably the biggest change in procedure it had seen in decades.[2] Due to necessity, the previous rules that judges had for likely their whole careers about in person conferences and hearings were thrown out the window.[3] In addition to courtroom changes, interactions with clients saw a large transformation as well.[4] Attorneys practice remotely, are now able to meet with clients virtually, and can notarize and review important documents online, as well as argue important cases via platforms like Zoom.[5] But as the world has slowly started to return to a new “normal,” the question has become what the practice of law will look like going forward.[6]

In what seems to be a move of efficiency, lawyers can expect courts to continue with virtual proceedings even after the pandemic, according to a recent survey by Thomson Reuters.[7] After surveying more than 238 judges and other court staff and officials in state, county, and municipal courts in June about the continuing impact of COVID-19 on court proceedings, the overwhelming response was that respondents were involved in remote proceedings both last year and this year.[8] With so many proceedings being held remotely last year, it is unsurprising that the hybrid-model will be here to stay.[9] Gina Jurva, who authored the report, wrote that “[t]he next phase of hybrid hearings will require courts to deploy a platform of optimized, seamless technology to avoid more backlogs and disruptions. Court administrators will need to find the right technology that allows lawyers and litigants to focus on the substance of proceedings, not the procedural, audio, and visual aspects of it.”[10] Despite these potential technological challenges that lie ahead, lawyers seemed to have adapted well to the rapid change going on in the industry.[11] Nearly half of all firms surveyed by MyCase in 2020 were able to move from office to home in less than one day, and 80% of those surveyed have transitioned to working remotely some or all of the time.[12] This seems to suggest that despite being able to work remotely in the past, a majority of firms have had the ability to work from home, but simply lacked the desire to do so.[13]

While efficiency and morale may be up for some remote workers, there are certainly disadvantages to having to work from home.[14] Among other things, main factors that will be heavily impacted are practice management, work culture, productivity, clients, and security of important files.[15] Not everyone works well in a remote culture, and so it will be up to attorneys and their firms to ensure that work product and client relationships do not suffer as a result of the transition to remote work.[16]

Despite the above addressed advantages and disadvantages, remote work is here to stay. Whether it is a hybrid model or fully remote, almost all firms and jurisdictions have found a way to make proceedings and client interactions in both the civil and criminal field work remotely when necessary.[17] Therefore, attorneys, judges, and firms need to either adapt or fail, since these technological industry changes are ones that the law practice simply cannot afford to ignore.[18]

 

[1] See Laura LaBerge et al., How COVID-19 Has Pushed Companies Over the Technology Tipping Point – and Transformed Bus. Forever, McKinsey & Company (Oct. 21, 2021, 3:39 PM), https://www.mckinsey.com/business-functions/strategy-and-corporate-finance/our-insights/how-covid-19-has-pushed-companies-over-the-technology-tipping-point-and-transformed-business-forever.

[2] Adapt or Fail: Industry Changes Law Firms Can’t Afford to Ignore, ABA TechReport 2020, (Oct. 21, 2021, 3:43 PM), https://www.americanbar.org/groups/law_practice/publications/techreport/2020/sponsored-mycase/ [herein after “Adapt or Fail”].

[3] See id.

[4] See id.

[5] See id.

[6] See generally Adapt or Fail, supra note 2 (discussing how law firms are generally adapting to the pandemic related technological changes); Jacqueline Thomsen, Virtual Court Hearings Are Here to Stay Post-Pandemic, Survey Finds, LAW.COM (Oct. 21, 2021, 3:51 PM) https://www.law.com/nationallawjournal/2021/08/18/virtual-court-hearings-are-here-to-stay-post-pandemic-survey-finds/?slreturn=20210921150011 (discussing how remote work for attorneys is here to stay) [herein after “Virtual Court”].

[7] See Virtual Court, supra note 6.

[8] Id.

[9] Id.

[10] Id.

[11] See Adapt or Fail, supra note 2.

[12] Id.

[13] Id.

[14] See Surprising Working From Home Productivity Statistics (2021), Apollo Technical (Oct. 21, 2021 4:01 PM) https://www.apollotechnical.com/working-from-home-productivity-statistics/.

[15] See Adapt or Fail, supra note 2.

[16] See id.

[17] See generally id. (discussing the implications on the law practice of working remotely due to COVID).

[18] See id.

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