Traditionally, law firms have relied heavily on contract labor for a range of roles, including positions such as of-counsel attorneys, discovery attorneys, investigators, and a myriad of temporary workers focused on specific casework. These individuals are usually classified as independent contractors, issued a 1099 and thereby omitted from employee benefit programs.
However, a shift has been observed in recent years with many states opting to employ the “ABC” test to distinguish between independent contractors and bona fide employees. This test broadly presumes that all workers are employees, with an exception carved out for those executing tasks that exist outside the realm of the employer’s core operations.
Per the parameters of the ABC test, a contract attorney engaged by a law firm for litigation work would be categorized as an employee, while tradespeople such as plumbers, who might be called in for one-off repair tasks, would retain the status of independent contractor.
This transition in worker classification methodology underscores the dynamic nature of labor law and the necessity for legal professionals to remain conversant with such changes. For more detailed information, the tests and their implications are discussed extensively here.