Can I work from home as a junior when the partners are always in office? Forum

[Anonymous User]

I'm a second year at a NYC biglaw. The hours at my practice group are extremely bad. I myself billed 2600+ last year and this was about average among the team. My firm introduced agile working policy last year but none of the partners/seniors in my group are using it (and of course I didn't either). Last month due to some medical issues I worked from home for a week and it dramatically improved my days. My work efficiency increased as distractions like office gossips are gone. I didn't need to be called into partner/senior's office and wait for them to take calls after calls before they finally have time to talk to me. As an introvert reducing face time also helped my mental health. And I saved time on commute which I can use to make up for some sleep or go to the gym. I really want to work from home more in the future, but the partners and seniors in my group are workaholics and are always in the office. I don't think they would be thrilled about my agile working plan. I'm looking for some advice on how to best approach this. Maybe I can spend one day at home each week now and gradually increase as I get more senior? Shall I let the team know beforehand if I'm not coming into the office (which is a bit awkward when I'm the only one doing it)? FWIW, I do not want to make partner, but do want to stay in my current firm for an extra couple of years if allowed. Any thoughts are appreciated.

[ughbugchugplug]

How big an office is it and what is your typical workload like? I worked at a V10 and now at a mid law firm. At the V10 I could always work from home
Because it was an enormous office and no one would know if I was there or not. At the mid law job I can work from home because people don’t know if you’re at court or at a client so they don’t even know you’re working from home.

[Anon-non-anon]

I'm a second year at a NYC biglaw. The hours at my practice group are extremely bad. I myself billed 2600+ last year and this was about average among the team. My firm introduced agile working policy last year but none of the partners/seniors in my group are using it (and of course I didn't either). Last month due to some medical issues I worked from home for a week and it dramatically improved my days. My work efficiency increased as distractions like office gossips are gone. I didn't need to be called into partner/senior's office and wait for them to take calls after calls before they finally have time to talk to me. As an introvert reducing face time also helped my mental health. And I saved time on commute which I can use to make up for some sleep or go to the gym. I really want to work from home more in the future, but the partners and seniors in my group are workaholics and are always in the office. I don't think they would be thrilled about my agile working plan. I'm looking for some advice on how to best approach this. Maybe I can spend one day at home each week now and gradually increase as I get more senior? Shall I let the team know beforehand if I'm not coming into the office (which is a bit awkward when I'm the only one doing it)? FWIW, I do not want to make partner, but do want to stay in my current firm for an extra couple of years if allowed. Any thoughts are appreciated.

If you really have no desire to make partner, and your work + mental health + physical health improved significantly, fuck it, stay home some days. If you keep doing good work they won't fire you. I would start slow, and maybe on Fridays/around long weekends. If it's an official firm policy that you can do it w/o talking to anyone, I wouldn't ask unless someone raises it. If someone does, and you're comfortable, I would just say pretty much what you said above with the caveat that of course for closings and stuff you'll be there. I think most people will get it and, if not, will be too afraid to say anything.

[LaLiLuLeLo]

Start slow and ramp up. You have to get people used to it over time, particularly as a junior. Starting off with the occasional Friday won’t turn any heads. If you start off doing a week at a time people will notice.

[Anonymous User]

How big an office is it and what is your typical workload like? I worked at a V10 and now at a mid law firm. At the V10 I could always work from home
Because it was an enormous office and no one would know if I was there or not. At the mid law job I can work from home because people don’t know if you’re at court or at a client so they don’t even know you’re working from home.

OP here. It's a big office but I work in a small corporate group (~10 people). We sit together so people definitively notice when I'm not there.

[Anonymous User]

I have a similar group; same size and same aversion to people working from home. Honestly, I think if no one else is doing it, I wouldn't do it, especially as a junior. We had a junior last year that would try to work from home and she just got the reputation that she was a slacker (whether true or not). I think once every other week or every three weeks wouldn't be a huge deal though. I'd consider asking a mid-level if they plan to use the new policy and what their thoughts are. If your group is big on face time though, not much you can do.

[kaiser]

I was in a similar position when I was in biglaw. As others mentioned, best to start small and work your way up a bit. I initially began working from home 1 day every other week, which slowly shifted to 1 day per week. I never really pushed beyond that, but the benefits were immense for many of the reasons you mentioned. That being said, I did sort of get the sense that others assumed I took Fridays off or something, despite always being on calls, being completely responsive, etc. But I was ok with a bit of unfair stigma because (i) I was doing good work and getting in my hours, and (ii) I had no plans to stay in biglaw long-term. If making partner is your goal, you have to play the politics game and not really draw too many lines. However, if that isn't your goal, it becomes far easier to start drawing some lines for your own well-being past a certain point.

[burritotaco]

I think only you can really gauge if it'll fly or not.

When I was in big law, there were some partners who were not open to it, others who didn't care at all, and some who frowned on it but didn't really care. It was pretty easy for me to determine when I could work remotely, and it was never a problem. I generally did it on days when I had substantial projects (generally briefs) to work on.