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Legal Sector Insights: The Current Status and Future of the Law Firm Workplace

By Ryan J. Hoopes
July 01, 2021

It's no surprise the legal sector has entered unprecedented times. Most industries are navigating the effects of rapid forced changes caused by the pandemic. What sets the legal sector apart is the major shifts law firms have experienced over the last 12 months which have been predicted by experts for over a decade. The pandemic served as a catalyst to accelerate those trends ahead at lightning speed.

Cushman & Wakefield's Legal Sector practice focuses specifically on analyzing legal sector data and translating it into actionable intelligence and insights law firms can utilize to implement in their workplace and real estate strategy. Below is a summary overview of our findings related to the following themes found in our 2021 Legal Sector Bright Insights report:

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  • Where Is The Legal Sector Today
  • Where Are Law Firms Headed
  • What Does The Future Law Firm Workplace Look Like
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Where Is the Legal Sector Today?

The law firm world today remains largely in a state of remote working. Nationally the legal sector has a current office return rate of under 10%. There is still uncertainly in the future of the law firm workplace and business pressures that existed pre-pandemic have only exponentially increased. For example, recruitment and retention remains one of the top major concerns of law firms and an increasing challenge as previous strategies have become relatively obsolete.

In our global surveying of attorneys over the last 12 months and subsequent analysis, we discovered that any aspect of law firm business that is primarily transactional, process-oriented or linear was efficiently and effectively accomplished in the remote working environment. However, critical functions of a law firm's culture have suffered greatly, such as business development, mentorship, cross-selling and creativity.

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