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The challenges lawyers will need to address in a post-pandemic market
With the CPD deadline just two weeks away, two law firms have shed light on the biggest challenges to arise for lawyers and how they should be addressing the headwinds head-on.
Emma Musgrave
As we all know, the COVID-19 pandemic has created myriad challenges for the business of law, with a need to work from home consuming much of 2020.
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Looking ahead, Lawyers Weekly spoke to Lander & Rogers and Mills Oakley on what they think will be the biggest to impact the legal profession in 2021 and beyond, and what the firms are doing to mitigate these to the best of their ability.
“Given the incredible pace at which technology is transforming the law, and as demand continues to grow for more streamlined, efficient legal services, lawyers will need to be across the new tools available to them and how best to use them,” said Catherine Whitehead, Lander & Rogers’ chief people officer.
“We are addressing this by offering learning and collaboration opportunities with tech companies and startups in our LawTech Hubs; involving our lawyers in in-house and client-facing transformation projects led by our iHub; providing structured technology-focused training, and engagement in hackathons, discussions and online courses through our partnerships with law societies, universities and the Centre for Legal Innovation.”
Ms Whitehead noted the pandemic brought to light the importance of maintaining connection both professionally and socially. As such, a key focus for Lander this year is its 2021 graduate program.
“A focus of our 2021 graduate induction program is building our cohorts’ relational intelligence – that is, their ability to connect with others within the workplace and establish mutual trust. Connection is also a focus of our firmwide wellbeing programs,” she explained.
“Lawyers, and especially leaders, will need to continue to show resilience and emotional intelligence when dealing with change and challenges. We held a program on leading with emotional intelligence throughout 2020 and will broaden the rollout of this program in 2021. Mental health remains a priority in our wellness programs – a number of our employees are now qualified Mental Health First Aiders, having recently completed training in recognising signs and symptoms of mental health problems and where to direct colleagues toward suitable support.
“In 2021 our firmwide wellbeing training will also focus on setting boundaries for better work-life balance; avoiding burnout, and promoting belonging.”
Shane Cabuka, learning & development team leader at Mills Oakley, said the pandemic has spurred changes in the way lawyers communicate with clients.
“A big challenge for the legal sector, and indeed business in general is adapting to the effects of the pandemic, including post-pandemic,” he said.
“Changes in how we collaborate and support our clients in the office and remote work environment have become urgent areas of focus.
“Our firm approached these challenges with the aim of minimising disruption to our clients and staff, regardless of physical proximity to the office, to ensure our work is of a consistent standard. Communication is extremely important for both our staff and our clients in these times.”
Mills Oakley remains committed to ensuring its people are appropriately equipped with the resources they need and are given ample opportunity for upskilling, according to Mr Cabuka.
“It has been interesting to observe the rising volume of knowledge-seekers as a result of the pandemic,” he said.
“Increasingly, people are wanting to broaden their education, especially in respect of technical skills. They have also realised the importance of staying connected and better understanding systems which can deliver this objective.”
