How can I delay website profile? Forum

[Anonymous User]

Moving to a new firm soon.
When do firms put the name up on the official website?
I want/need to delay the firm from creating online profile on the official website (for several personal reasons).
Is this possible? What rational reasons can I give? Help!

[crouton62]

When lateraled a couple years ago from a boutique to a large firm, like an hour into my first day, I got an email from a practice group support staffer with a draft website bio for me to complete and return ASAP. I was on the website the next day, albeit without a picture until I got that taken a few weeks later. You'll almost certainly have to do something similar, so I guess you could buy yourself a few days by sitting on approving/drafting your website bio. The staff member who handles that probably wouldn't rat you out to a partner to push you to get that completed until your delay got ridiculous but you never know. In terms of a formal ask to the new firm to delay being placed on the website, I obviously don't know your situation, but short of something like you have a stalker or violent former partner and are afraid of your safety if your place of business is publicly available, I can't think of a reason you could give that wouldn't give somewhat of a sketchy or weird vibe to the new firm, so if I were you, I would not make that ask unless you are dealing with something like a stalker.

[Wanderingdrock]

When lateraled a couple years ago from a boutique to a large firm, like an hour into my first day, I got an email from a practice group support staffer with a draft website bio for me to complete and return ASAP. I was on the website the next day, albeit without a picture until I got that taken a few weeks later. You'll almost certainly have to do something similar, so I guess you could buy yourself a few days by sitting on approving/drafting your website bio. The staff member who handles that probably wouldn't rat you out to a partner to push you to get that completed until your delay got ridiculous but you never know. In terms of a formal ask to the new firm to delay being placed on the website, I obviously don't know your situation, but short of something like you have a stalker or violent former partner and are afraid of your safety if your place of business is publicly available, I can't think of a reason you could give that wouldn't give somewhat of a sketchy or weird vibe to the new firm, so if I were you, I would not make that ask unless you are dealing with something like a stalker.

I think I'm agreeing with you, but:

Either this poster has a legitimate reason for asking (stalker/violent former partner are the only ones that spring to mind, but there must be others) or they don't. I don't see any good way of going about this other than telling the new firm the truth as part of a request to delay. And I hope the original poster feels comfortable doing so - if it's a legit reason, the new firm should be perfectly welcoming to the request.

If the poster can't tell the firm the truth, then are their "personal reasons" actually improper? Some of the improper reasons that spring to mind are: 1) they're not yet authorized by the relevant immigration authorities to work; 2) they're not admitted yet to practice in the relevant jurisdiction; or 3) they're still employed somewhere else. If any of these are the true reason, then the poster should assess their fitness to be a lawyer in light of their failure to immediately see why these are a problem.

Above all, the poster should not give reasons which are not true.