After allowing 50% of their attorneys to work remotely in the past, Freshfield now requires them to be present in office at least three days a week.
Following a modification in the firm’s agile working strategy, Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer’s UK fee earners will henceforth spend a lot of their working days in the office.
Starting in September, the company would require its fee earners to spend a minimum of three days a week in the office, up from the previous year’s announcement that UK employees might work from home up to 50% of the time, subject to client and business obligations.
The change affects partners, associates, and trainees working out of the firm’s Manchester and London locations. But because the company is still keeping an eye on consumer expectations, the policy is still just temporary.
The rules differ based on the demands of each team within the business services division of the company.
Freshfields’ policy modification is the most recent example of a legal firm attempting to find the ideal balance between office and home work that allows staff to take advantage of the flexibility of remote work without compromising firm culture or client service.
The majority of businesses, including Freshfields’ Magic Circle competitors, have chosen a hybrid strategy. The move made by Freshfields aligns it with Allen & Overy, Slaughter and May, and other law firms that let employees to work remotely up to 40% of the time. Clifford Chance and Linklaters now have a 50-50 split as their maximum for remote working.
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