Last week, as we reported, the legal community began speculating on whether associates may need to gird themselves for potentially spending four days a week in the office. Now, one leading Biglaw firm has made such speculation reality.
Simpson Thacher & Bartlett instituting a policy requiring associates to work in-office four days a week. This mandate will be effective January 2024. The firm, noteworthy for achieving a staggering $2,150,365,000 in gross revenue in 2022 thereby placing it 15th in the latest Am Law 100, stated this as a follow-up to its May 2023 proclamation that office attendance may greatly affect employee compensation.
The firm now joins a growing trend amongst other prominent firms including Skadden, Davis Polk, Weil, Ropes & Gray, and Vinson & Elkins with similar policies.
It will be intriguing to observe how this policy affects the workforce, given that our report mentions that previously the firm’s enforcement of its Tuesday through Thursday attendance policy was less rigorous. As it stands, we are yet to hear firsthand on how this altered attendance could impact associates’ year-end bonuses.
As we wait to see how this change will ripple through the industry, culminating perhaps in a new norm, we wish associates at Simpson Thacher a smooth transition as they accustom to life mostly spent at the office in the new year.
Any information regarding your firm’s office attendance can be sent to us via the details provided here. Any information provided will be kept confidential.
More news regarding Simpson Thacher’s new policy can be found here.