Biglaw

More Biglaw Firms Set To Fully Reopen Their Offices In January 2022

The new year is looking like it's going to be full of newly repopulated law firm offices.

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One by one, Biglaw firms are announcing their “post”-pandemic office return plans, and many are now settling on January 2022 for their reopenings en masse.

We’ll start off today’s coverage with news from Gibson Dunn & Crutcher. The firm originally had plans to welcome employees back to the office on September 13, granting them the autonomy to work remotely “whenever it is appropriate,” because such flexibility is needed for lawyers to have “full, well-rounded, happy lives.” The firm later postponed that reopening date until October, and then pushed back its October plans for an unspecified date in the future.

Earlier this week, Gibson Dunn announced that future date would be January 10, 2022. Managing partner Barbara Becker confirmed these plans with the American Lawyer, noting the firm would proceed as scheduled, barring “unforeseen circumstances.” Many attorneys have already returned to the office, and certain practice groups have arranged specific weekdays when they’ll meet in person.

Kramer Levin, which originally had plans to return to the office in late September, will now be reopening its doors in full, starting on January 4, 2022. Before then, the firm will have a “reorientation” period, where lawyers and staff will work from the office at least one day a week. The firm’s first reorientation period will be November 1 through November 12. Here’s a relevant excerpt from the firm’s memo:

Our goal in reorientation is to support your return to the office and ensure that everyone is fully operational on January 4, 2022. We also hope that during this time you will reconnect with colleagues and meet new colleagues that joined the firm since March 2020.

Please be reminded that to come into the office, you must be fully vaccinated and have uploaded proof of vaccination in the Eden Health app. If you have any questions about vaccinations, please contact [redacted].

For Biglaw firms that have been forced to postpone their reopening plans, it sure looks like the new year is going to be full of excitement (mixed with the anxiety that some may feel about returning to the office in a whole new world).

What has your firm announced as far as a reopening plan is concerned? The more information is out there, the more likely it is that firms will be able to establish a market standard for a return to work.

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(Flip to the next page to see the memo from Kramer Levin.)

As soon as you find out about the reopening plan at your firm, please email us (subject line: “[Firm Name] Office Reopening”) or text us at (646) 820-8477. We always keep our sources on stories anonymous. There’s no need to send a memo (if one exists) using your firm email account; your personal email account is fine. If a memo has been circulated, please be sure to include it as proof; we like to post complete memos as a service to our readers. You can take a photo of the memo and attach as a picture if you are worried about metadata in a PDF or Word file. Thanks.

Gibson Dunn Sets January Date for U.S. Office Reopenings [American Lawyer]

Staci ZaretskyStaci Zaretsky is a senior editor at Above the Law, where she’s worked since 2011. She’d love to hear from you, so please feel free to email her with any tips, questions, comments, or critiques. You can follow her on Twitter or connect with her on LinkedIn.

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