In-House Counsel

Tips For In-House Counsel For Closing Out The Year

As people slip away until the new year begins, take this time to square away 2023.

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New Year 2024 ConceptsWhile this may depend on your company’s culture and size, the end of the year is usually always hectic. Even as I furiously try to close out projects and matters and clear through my to-do list and inbox, others are doing the same, which can add to (instead of take away from) my to-do list and inbox.

Regardless of the frenetic energy, here are a few things I try to do to close out the year so I can start fresh in January.

Constrain And Prioritize

It is very tempting to try to do as much as you can before the year ends. But consider whether that’s the best or smartest use of the time left in 2023. As a natural list maker, I try to jot down all the things that I still have left to do — and then determine whether they absolutely have to be done by year’s end or whether they can wait until the new one. There are likely very few things that fit into this category. For me, reviewing pleadings or producing documents is a common example because these tasks have actual, hard deadlines.

The next level of prioritization — the “don’t have to but probably should” get done this year — is a bit harder to discern. Things that may fit here are likely specific asks or pet projects your leadership has tasked you with. It comes down to whether the deadline is arbitrary — and if not, what is reasonable.

Everything else can be pushed until 2024, and my strong suggestion is that you do so — especially if you are already on the verge of burning out. It can be tempting to knock off small tasks (even if they don’t have to be completed in 2023) to lessen your load in 2024 or for the dopamine kick. But if you can resist the siren’s call, your time may be better spent recharging or working on one of the tasks mentioned below. Pro tip here: if you will carry things over in 2024, consider whether you want to block off time during January to work on them, before others fill up your calendar with meetings.

Manage Expectations

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This probably also depends upon your team and company culture, but I like to give my leadership and the clients I support at least a week or two of notice of when I will be out of the office for the holidays. I personally love how our team will share “out of office days” as a calendar invite (but be sure to mark it as free so you don’t inadvertently block off their calendar too). In my email to clients, I ask that if they need anything before end of year that they ask as soon as they can and clearly let me know the deadline.

Leverage The Out-of-Office Message
This is a tool that I use whenever I am out of the office. I craft an email that not only shares that I am out, when I will return, and if applicable, someone who can be reached during my absence, but I also include why I am out of the office, how to reach me, and under what circumstances to do so. For example, my current message is:

Hi!

I am currently out of the office on PTO and for the holidays and will not return until Tuesday, January 2nd.

During this time, I’m hoping to create a little magic for the littles and for myself — a lot of rest and restoration before 2024.

If you have something urgent that cannot wait until January 2nd, please give me a call on my cell (XXX-XXX-XXXX). I’ll have my ringer on, but may not check email or messages as often.

May you also find a little magic and restoration this season.

Happy Holidays!

I like to share why because I want to encourage rest and connection with loved ones. I also share why because I want to share what they will be interrupting such that I hope the sender will consider whether their reason to call me is important enough to do so.

Look, as attorneys, we are taught to prioritize client needs, and if something comes up that truly needs to be addressed urgently, I will rise to the occasion. But if it is not urgent, I am a better attorney when I am rested and connected to my family.

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Tidy Up

This is not fun to most, but I love quiet, focused time to clean up my OneNote, my contacts in Outlook and files, both electronic and paper. I find that if I take the time to organize now, and purge what I don’t need, my life is easier in the future because I know where to find things when I need them and don’t have a lot of clutter in the way.

Update

If you aren’t swamped, this is an excellent time to spruce up your career information If you are going to take some time to reflect on what you’ve accomplished this year anyway, consider maximizing your reflection time by revising your resume, LinkedIn profile, and bio.

Meyling Mey Ly OrtizMeyling “Mey” Ly Ortiz is in-house at Toyota Motor North America. Her passions include mentoring, championing belonging, and a personal blog: TheMeybe.com. At home, you can find her doing her best to be a “fun” mom to a toddler and preschooler and chasing her best self on her Peloton. You can follow her on LinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/in/meybe/). And you knew this was coming: her opinions are hers alone.

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