Hybrid Legal
Find out what a hybrid law firm looks like, why running one is beneficial for lawyers and clients, and how you can build your own. Justin Osborn is a founding member of Counsel Carolina, whose personal advocacy for equity and progressive social policies led to the firm`s RV-based mobile services program. A former insurance adjuster and insurance advocate, Justin now represents clients against the same corporate and insurance interests he previously defended. Whether as a litigator, probate counsellor or lawyer, Justin has dedicated his career to making legal services fairer and universally accessible to people in the community. In 2019, Justin was named a law leader by North Carolina Lawyers Weekly as “one of the most influential people in our state`s legal community.” Companies that offer career development or training opportunities that could benefit a hybrid lawyer should highlight this characteristic to the candidate. Investing time and money in career development shows commitment to long-term success. Law firms interested in the idea of hybrid legal positions, but want to test them before hiring full-time, can use a recruitment agency to hire a temporary worker. This allows them to determine what works and what needs to be adjusted before making a decision. Hybrid work means that an employee works a few days on-site and a few days at home. Sixty-three percent of employers offer hybrid work opportunities to most employees, according to the Society for Human Resource Management`s 2022 Employee Benefits Survey. “When employees, whether exempt or not, move to new jurisdictions, they can be subject to a whole new legal framework,” Tomiak said.
“For non-exempt workers, this may include requirements for rates of pay, calculation of overtime, and timing and paycheck information.” The pandemic has changed the way many lawyers and lawyers want to work. Hybrid teamwork is the expectation of many talented professionals today – a model (and skill set) that executives and legal teams must continue to embrace and practice in order to retain top talent. The problem of paying for remote employee expenses, whether due to legal obligations or as a way to attract and retain talent in a tight job market, will not go away as the pandemic recedes. You must ensure that your company`s decisions to allow or deny hybrid work arrangements do not discriminate against people belonging to groups protected by law. Hybrid labour policies should avoid discrimination based on race, religion, sex, age, sexual orientation, disability and pregnancy. It is unlikely that the data show that there has been unequal treatment or negative effects on workers in a protected group. Lawyers who have additional skills that can be combined with their legal knowledge begin to go their own way with highly specialized roles. For example, lawyers with a background in programming, information technology, and data science have become valuable assets for businesses and law firms because they can serve as a bridge between IT departments and less tech-savvy legal professionals. As more employers adopt hybrid work policies, there are many complex legal considerations to consider. Hybrid work has an impact on, among other things, tax compliance, reimbursement of labour costs and non-discrimination. Whether you are a lawyer looking to fill a hybrid position or a law firm looking to recruit for one of these roles, JurisTemps can help.
We are an industry leader, finding legal jobs at every stage of their careers, helping law firms recruit and hire the talent they need to grow. Take a look at our current job openings or contact us today – we will be happy to advise you! This role combines the traditional function of a paralegal (assisting lawyers with research, document preparation, file preparation) with the administrative duties of a legal secretary (correspondence with clients, scheduling, filing documents). For paralegals, the transition to a hybrid role provides expanded competency that can increase their market value (especially with respect to technical skills). For legal secretaries, taking on a hybrid paralegal role can be a stepping stone to other paralegal/legal support work (and therefore a higher salary). It should be noted that the transition from administrative professional to paralegal can be difficult, as employers often seek specific experience from paralegals when hiring. Transitioning within the same firm offers a better chance of success, so legal secretaries who want to enter the paralegal should inform their supervisor of their career goals. Most companies require paralegals to have a four-year degree and a certificate of completion of an ABA-approved training program (although Missouri does not currently require paralegals to hold a certificate).