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Law Firm Culture Considerations

Law Firm Culture Considerations

Important Office Culture Considerations

Placement in a law firm where the office culture is a “good fit” for your particular needs is critical to your eventual success and happiness – from both a career and lifestyle perspective. Attorneys that fail to integrate into the overall firm culture, they may find find that their contributions are undervalued by peers and management, that they are given subpar work assignments as compared to other similarly-positioned attorneys at the firm, and that they are more likely to be passed over in consideration of promotion.

As a preliminary matter, it’s important that you understand what type of office culture you are willing and able to accept. Be sure to consider potential (expected) changes to your life circumstances as well. Though you may be willing to work a dense 80-hour week at the present time, your willingness to invest so much time and energy is liable to change if you decide to have children. If you’re looking to secure a longer-term position where you have room to grow in the law firm, it’s important that you find placement at a law firm where the hours requirements, work environment, and management hierarchy are well-suited to your current and future life circumstances.

 

What to Look Out For

 

Parallel Professional Tracks

Many mid-sized and “big law” firms have – in recent years – started to offer parallel professional tracks for attorneys whose life circumstances demand a lighter workweek. Attorneys at such firms can switch over to a reduced-hour track, which has a different promotion and pay structure. Salaries are substantially lower, but hours requirements are correspondingly lower as well. Though you may not be interested in transitioning to a parallel track just yet, having the option to do so at your firm can be a great advantage in the future (i.e., your life circumstances change drastically but you’d like to remain at the same firm).

 

Work from Home Potential

Though very few law firms offer permanent work-from-home positions, some firms are willing to concede a few days of the week (when possible) to a work-from-home arrangement. As these arrangements are rarely formalized, you should assess the likelihood of such an arrangement before seeking employment with a firm. Legal placement advisors – such as Garb Jaffe – have extensive contacts with hundreds of law firms in the state of California, and can investigate work-from-home possibilities for you.

 

Cooperative Office Environment

Internal competitiveness drives office culture at a great many law firms, which can lead to an unfriendly – and sometimes downright hostile – work environment. Unless you thrive in an environment plagued by infighting and complex office politics, try to transition to a law firm that has made efforts to cultivate a more cooperative ethos. It can be difficult to tease apart the firms that are actually collegial from firms that use such terminology as a marketing ploy. Do your research on Glassdoor and other social job rating sites, and speak with your legal placement advisor for additional insider information. Word gets around quickly in the legal industry. If a law firm truly has a toxic work environment, you’ll likely be able to find out through the proper channels.

 

Balanced Social Culture

Whether through careful, conscious selection or dumb luck, some law firms attract certain attorney personality sets. This aggregation of personalities often leads to the development of a specific social culture that can be quite exclusionary. Some law firms, for example, have a “work hard, play hard” vibe. After work, the attorneys may drink together and there may be a subtle expectation that associates attend such events (work-sponsored or not) with some frequency. This can put a lot of additional and unexpected stress on attorneys who are trying to balance their work life with their home life (and other social responsibilities). Alternatively, you may simply be the sort of person that prefers to strictly segment your social life and keep colleagues at arms’ length.

Whatever the case, make sure to ask questions and investigate the social culture of law firm prospects.

 

Diversity in the Office

Diversity is important for many reasons: comfort, understanding, representation, and normalization, the development of which reduces barriers to career growth for women and minorities in the legal workplace. Law firms are doing better with developing office diversity these days, but – unfortunately – there are still large gaps at many firms. Though some firms have made worthwhile strides towards better representation of women and minorities, law firm culture may not have caught up to representation.

Women-oriented initiatives and minority initiatives at the firm can indicate a positive and diverse workplace culture, but your best bet is to ask around. You should also investigate the standard HR process in response to an attorney’s pregnancy. If a woman’s career is substantially and negatively affected by virtue of her pregnancy and childbirth, then it is a strong indicator that the firm lacks a deeply inclusive culture.

 

 

The office culture of your next law firm can make or break both your career success and your general satisfaction. As an attorney conducting a job search, it can be difficult to pin down the real culture of a firm, given the nature of the traditional hiring process and the HR branding that prospective hires are subjected to. For an insider look at law firm culture, speak with a Los Angeles legal recruiter at Garb Jaffe & Associates. We have extensive experience placing attorneys with law firms located across California, and will advise throughout the recruitment process to ensure that you secure an ideal legal placement.

Call us today at (310) 207-0727 for a free consultation.

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