As the number of new cases of COVID-19 declines and governments ease restrictions on businesses, services and public spaces, lawyer and paralegal offices are re-opening, bringing more staff back into the physical workplace. Managing this transition involves complying with public health directives, ensuring the safety and well-being of staff and clients, and assessing risks specific to COVID-19 – uncharted territory for most workplaces.
While general guidance is available from government sources (City of Toronto and Province of Ontario), here is a selection of resources for law firms. These guides and checklists cover practical return to work considerations from physical distancing and PPE to employee accommodations and communications. As well, we’ve included links to a few recent articles that provide some food for thought on the potential redesign of law firm offices and legal practices in a post-pandemic world.
Guides:
Returning to the Office: Considerations for Law Firms(CBA)
- This recovery guide is divided into 3 parts: Your People, Your Office and Your Clients
A Quick-Reference Checklist for Preparing Your Return to the Office (OBA)
Guide for Law Firms: Returning to the Office after COVID-19 (Law Society of Alberta)
Lawyer’s Guide to Reopening the Office (Nova Scotia Barristers’ Society)
Articles:
Uncharted territory: The law office of the future will look and feel different following the COVID-19 pandemic (CBA National, June 25, 2020)
Law firm evolution: Old habits die hard in the legal profession (CBA National, June 25, 2020)
How to lay out law firms, post-COVID social distancing (The Law Times, May 18, 2020)
Pandemic series – (Law21 Blog, April 2020)
Part 7: Law firm essentials
Part 8: Law firm transitions
Part 9: Law firm transformation
Know How 