The Work From Home Debate: Do Litigators Need to be in the Office?
By Kluger, Kaplan, Silverman, Katzen & Levine, P.L. March 25, 2013
By Alan J. Kluger
There has been much talk over the last few weeks about telecommuting following Marisa Mayer’s proclamation that Yahoo! employees can no longer work from home. At Kluger Kaplan, we have always been supportive of attorneys working remotely as long as the work is getting done. Over the years, we have had female attorneys request flexible hours when their children are very young so that they can continue to grow in their career while making time for their families. Kluger Kaplan is extremely supportive of women (and men) working hard while raising children. Where the commitment from the attorneys is there, we are more than happy to work with them to develop a mutually beneficial schedule.
While it is true that certain types of work – client meetings, hearings, depositions and the like – require visits to the office, there are certain types of litigation projects – complex briefs and motions, research – that can certainly be performed at home. We have provided attorneys with laptops, IP phones, remote access to our servers, video conferencing capabilities and other technological tools to help make the transition to working from home more seamless.
It is key that the attorneys and their firms open the lines of communication to discuss options and create a mutually beneficial plan. At Kluger Kaplan it is critical that we have the brightest, most dedicated attorneys on our team so we are willing to work with them to create a flexible schedule in order to ensure that they remain a part of our firm.