Offices of Stradley, Ronon, Stevens & Young
Law Trends
Like most industries, the law field has changed over the years because of variations in the economy, politics and technology. These and other factors are shifting how firms accomplish and offer work, and therefore, how they use and respond to the office environment. Job roles are changing and integrating new technology continues to be an evolving issue.
We regularly benchmark the best practices of Law firms and professional service firms, not to impose solutions, but to draw attention to trends, issues, and solutions, as a starting point for discussion. Our goal is to develop a workplace that is tailored to each Law firm's specific needs and culture, to how its legal teams like to work.
Here are some of the law office design trends we are finding:
Specialty Groups – Arranging teams by market sector expertise.
Collaboration – Sharing information and knowledge.
Impromptu Meeting Areas – Informal and flexible spaces provide an environment where staff can work where they are comfortable.
Technology Influences – Continuous changes require law firms to change their focus to match that of their clients.
Telecommuting/Videoconferencing – Reducing long-distance travel – Decreasing face-to-face communication.
E-mail Communication/Internet Resources – Increased security concerns, automated document management systems – bound volumes and legal libraries are decreasing in size as access to information online increases.
Security Issues – New 9/11 security concerns, Life Safety and Emergency Evacuation Procedures.
Flexible Team Areas – Accommodate existing or visiting staff. Some firms are creating “Retired/Visitor Partner Suites” which allow for multi-use shared offices and “touchdown” spaces.
Universal Private Offices – Hierarchies are flattening and office space is at a premium. Furniture is being based more on function than status and accommodating changing teams and shifting personnel. By adopting a universal standard of only 150 square feet per attorney office, may firms have reported a 10% to 20% reduction of their overall space needs.
Universal Workstation sizes for support staff – Maximum flexibility for changing and integrating new technology. Legal Assistants are being clustered in teams and interaction is encouraged with planned informal common spaces. Attorney-to-secretary ratios have increased from 1:1 to 2:1 – the trend is 3:1. In conjunction with the outsourcing of support functions such as travel planning, filing, and data entry.
“Flex” Facilities – Recast shared settings as multi-use spaces.
- Conference Centers – Large conference room for partner / all-staff meetings and client seminars that can be subdivided for smaller events and meetings. Built-in A/V technology catering kitchen, business center, phone booths, touchdown workspaces and other amenities are provided. Placing them in one area, reduces their overall size.
- Caserooms/workrooms/practice suites – Large open rooms that can be subdivided with furniture to create a multiplicity of layouts to support teamwork, meetings, training and other activities.
- Lunchrooms/cafés:– Upgrade lunchrooms, making them more like cafés and lounges. When they are adjacent to conference rooms they can serve as networked “touchdown” space for conference participants to work, talk, relax. When they are adjacent to reception areas, they can double as event spaces.
- Libraries– Large law libraries are becoming more compact and “digital.” As shelving space decreases, libraries are able to provide more space for attorneys and paralegals to do research. Librarians are replacing paralegals in research functions.
ADDED EFFICIENCY + INCREASE EFFECTIVENESS + REDUCE COSTS = FLEXIBILITY
Achieving flexibility begins with understanding the firm’s short-term, midrange and long-term business strategies. How attorneys really work now and what the trends say about how they will work in the future both have a bearing on the type of workspace a firm will need, where they are located and how much space they will occupy.
