JD Journal » reduced hours

Halliwells Cutting Work Hours — Billing Requirments Stay the Same

Erik Even — Fri, 24 Jul 2009 16:36:42 +0000

Manchester, UK’s Halliwells, which in March launched a redundancy consultation targeting 30, is cutting attorneys’ working hours, but not adjusting its billable hours requirements.

The firm is putting three quarters of its fee earners on a four-day week, with a commensurate 15% pay cut.

But the firm is keeping billable hours targets unchanged, meaning attorneys must work 25% more hours each day to keep up.

Halliwells is a commercial law firm, and one of the UK’s top 50.

Addleshaw Goddard Offers Reduced Hours, Sabbaticals

Erik Even — Mon, 13 Jul 2009 16:55:33 +0000

Addleshaw Goddard, which laid off 19 partners in February and 85 staff in May, has approved new measures to save money on compensation.

Some attorneys will work a four-day week and earn 85% of their normal pay.

The firm is also offering sabbaticals, or extended time off at 30% salary. Salaries have been frozen until 2010.

Addleshaw Goddard has also announced is is keeping on only 75% of its incoming associates, or 33 new lawyers.

Addleshaw Goddard LLP is a UK law firm, with almost 750 lawyers and 1,350 staff, based in Leeds, London and Manchester. It was formed in 2003 by the merger of Addleshaw Booth & Co with Theodore Goddard.

Addleshaw Goddard Reports 30% Drop in PPP

Erik Even — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 16:38:20 +0000

Addleshaw Goddard, which cut 19 partners in February and 85 staff in March, saw a 30.8% plummet in partner profits in fiscal 2008; and turnover fell 11.4% to £173.3 million ($285.5 million).

Profits per equity partner nosedived from £586,000 ($958,000) to £405,000 ($663,000).

The firm is considering reduced work hours and unpaid sabbaticals. There is already a salary freeze in effect.

According to The Lawyer, a UK legal newspaper, Addleshaw Goddard was ranked 15th largest law firm in the UK by turnover in 2006.

BPE Solicitors Returns to 5-Day Week

Erik Even — Sat, 13 Jun 2009 19:35:48 +0000

Cheltenham, UK commercial law firm BPE Solicitors has ended its reduced-hours scheme after eight months, saying the economy is picking up.

In October, staff at the firm voted to work a four-day week to prevent redundancies.

The firm recently sold its Birmingham office to international law firm Irwin Mitchell.

BPE Solicitors is recognized for its expertise in corporate and commercial, commercial property, credit and asset finance, employment, construction and engineering, dispute resolution, debt recovery and intellectual property.

Pinsent Masons to Hold Redundancy Consultation

Erik Even — Sat, 13 Jun 2009 19:18:35 +0000

Pinsent Masons is holding a redundancy consultation. It has not announced how many positions have been targeted.

The firm employs almost 1,000 lawyers globally, including 275 partners; and 1,600 staff.

Pinsent Masons also plans to implement part-time working arrangements and sabbaticals, and a pay freeze.

Pinsent Masons LLP is a full-service commercial law firm. The firm ranked amongst the top 15 law firms in the UK and internationally ranks in the Global 100. Pinsent Masons has UK offices in Birmingham, Bristol, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Leeds, London and Manchester, and internationally in Beijing, Brussels, Dubai, Hong Kong and Shanghai.

Addleshaw Lays Off 85 Staff

Erik Even — Mon, 18 May 2009 19:42:27 +0000

Addleshaw Goddard, one of Britain’s largest firms, which announced in February it would cut 19 partners, has now announced the redundancies of 85 staff positions.

The layoffs target the firm’s Manchester office, and affect the business services division, including business development, human resources, information technology, finance, and secretarial.

No lawyers are being let go at this time, but the firm is instituting a salary freeze, and cutting pay for trainees. Addleshaw is also considering cutting hours.

According to The Lawyer, a UK legal newspaper, Addleshaw Goddard was ranked 15th largest law firm in the UK by turnover in 2006.

Update: DLA Piper Lays Off 24 Lawyers, 100 Staff

Erik Even — Wed, 13 May 2009 23:07:46 +0000

In February we reported that DLA Piper had launched a second layoff consultation, with up to 140 jobs under threat.

Today the firm completed the consultation, laying off 24 lawyers and 100 support staff across its UK offices.

Some staff chose reduced working hours or lower pay to save jobs.

In February, DLA Piper cut 80 associates and 100 staffers across all of its offices. In March, the firm laid off 20 lawyers and 34 staff across its Asian offices.

DLA Piper deferred start dates for incoming associates to January, 2010. All deferred associates will get a $10,000 stipend in addition to a bar stipend.

In April DLA Piper laid off eight associates in Dubai, and put other Dubai lawyers on sabbatical.

PAR: Reduced Hours Better Than Layoffs

Erik Even — Tue, 17 Mar 2009 16:20:45 +0000

The Project for Attorney Retention says reducing associate working hours will save a firm more money than cutting associate positions.

PAR is an initiative of the Center of WorkLife Law at the University of California Hastings College of the Law in San Francisco, and advocates for reduced hours as a way for law firms to retain attorneys, particularly women and minorities.

PAR’s Joan Williams: “Our analysis shows that flexible downsizing with balanced hours may save as much or more than layoffs. Flexible downsizing also helps firms retain their investment in high-performing attorneys and avoid certain legal risks.”

The group says layoffs are costly and can lead to lower overall billable hours. Reduced hours give firms more flexibility to respond to changing workloads, without going an expensive hiring process when business returns.

Harrowells Adopts 4-Day Week

Erik Even — Tue, 03 Mar 2009 17:30:44 +0000

Over 100 employees at one of York, UK’s largest law firms have gone on a four-day week, to save money in the economic meltdown.

Solicitors and administrators are among the members of staff at Harrowells affected by the move, which started yesterday.

Partner John Yeomans stressed not all areas of the firm, which employs about 130 people, were affected, and said the plan would be reviewed at the end of June, if not before.

Harrowells will continue to operate five days a week, with employees’ days off being spread through the week.

Yeomans said the four-day week was an alternative to redundancies.

Last June Harrowells announced it was cutting 18 jobs; 13 in its residential property department and five in related areas.

Herbert Edward Harrowell founded the firm in 1908. It has offices in St Saviourgate, Haxby and Clifton Moor.

Last year it shortened its name from Harrowell Shaftoe to Harrowells and became a limited liability partnership.

Ashurst Cutting Staff Hours

Erik Even — Mon, 02 Mar 2009 17:44:27 +0000

Biglaw firm Ashurst is cutting staff hours.

The firm has invited staff to take up to fifteen days unpaid leave, or work a four day week.

A spokesperson for the firm said “in common with many other law firms, we have offered staff the option of taking sabbaticals or working shorter hours”.

The firm said the plan was voluntary and discretionary. Each request will be considered on a case by case basis and will depend on the individual’s situation.

The spokesperson declined to comment on whether this meant redundancies could be avoided.

Ashurst has over 800 lawyers, including over 199 partners, in twelve countries. Founded in 1822, the firm was known as Ashurst Morris Crisp until it rebranded in late 2003. Ashurst has offices in Abu Dhabi, Brussels, Dubai, Frankfurt, Hong Kong, London, Madrid, Milan, Munich, New York, Paris, Singapore, Stockholm and Tokyo, and a liaison office in New Delhi.

Olswang to Lay Off 8% of UK Lawyers, Staff

Erik Even — Mon, 02 Feb 2009 16:58:05 +0000

Olswang has begun a redundancy consultation targeted at 8% of the firm’s 618-strong UK workforce.

The firm announced today that up to 42 staff in the UK will be affected by the cuts, with salaried partners, fee earners and support staff all included in the consultation.

The firm declined to comment on how many fee earner positions are likely to be axed as a result of the consultation.

Olswang said the final number could be lower, with HR director Ffion Griffith and CEO Kevin Munslow heading a staff consultation group that will look at ways to reduce job losses, such as unpaid leave, reduced working hours or reduced working weeks.

Olswang has 682 employees worldwide, including 242 fee earners and 104 partners, and has UK offices in London and the Thames Valley.

Olswang trainees and the firm’s plans for newly-qualified recruitment will not be affected by the review, which is expected to be completed by the end of March.

Founded in 1981, Olswang also has offices in offices in Reading, Brussels and Berlin.

Reduced Hours for Associates Instead of Layoffs?

Erik Even — Mon, 12 Jan 2009 18:28:17 +0000

The Project for Attorney Retention (PAR), an initiative of the Center for WorkLife Law at University of California Hastings College of the Law in San Francisco, is suggesting to struggling law firms that they cut associate hours rather than laying off lawyers completely.

“I think if firms aren’t thinking about such a program, they really should,” consultant Charles Santangelo told the NLJ. “A number of firms are already talking about it, and it’s happening for some paralegals. It may or may not work, but they should consider it.”

The PAR has long advocated for reduced hours as a way for law firms to retain attorneys, particularly women and minorities.

Associates working reduced hours would see corresponding reductions in their compensation, which would help firms cut their costs without firing associates.

It remains to be seen if the reduced-hours schedule idea will catch on with law firms.

The PAR does not have any statistics on the number of firms using reduced hours as a response to the economy, because the trend is fairly new. But a growing number of firms have contacted the PAR since this summer to ask about reduced hours and how such a program could be implemented.

Michael Nannes of Dickstein Shapiro said he doesn’t foresee a wave of law firms looking to reduced hours solely as a cost-savings move. The reality, he says, is that having associates work fewer hours doesn’t provide the same level of savings as layoffs.

It costs a law firm less to have three associates working 2,000 than to have four associates working 1,500 hours because the law firm must pay for office space and benefits for that fourth, reduced-hours associate. That added cost is eliminated in the layoff scenario.

On the other hand, Nannes said, clients value continuity among attorneys, and reducing associate hours would help protect the continuity that is disrupted by the layoff process.

Via NLJ.