Law360 Quotes Jill Huse In Article On 'Ambiguous Law Firm Leadership'

Jill Huse was recently quoted in the Law360 article, “Ambiguous Law Firm Leadership Hurts Attorney’s Morale.” The article discusses the impact of ambiguous law firm leadership practices, from unclear remote work policies to compensation disparities, and how they affect attorney morale.

Below is an excerpt of the article. Click here to visit Law360 and read the article in its entirety.

The partnership nature of law firms can lead them to have more ambiguous policies and less transparency in management than corporate peers, and the COVID-19 pandemic may have led to more ambiguity in law firm leadership.

—

One law firm management practice that stemmed from the pandemic is a requirement for attorneys to be in their physical offices "more days than not," something professional development training consultant Rachael Bosch says is overly vague and can lead to uneven enforcement.

"What does that mean? Half the year? Half the week or every two weeks? There's no definition," Bosch said.

And even where there is a definition, she said, some law firms will put a remote work policy in place and then associates later learn that their bonus may take a hit, or they may face other negative consequences if they choose to work from home frequently, even if they are complying with the letter of the policy.

The problem of ambiguity stretches beyond remote work policies and affects areas such as how compensation is decided, who gets promoted, how evaluations work and what attorneys' nonbillable obligations are, according to Jill Huse, a professional services adviser at Society 54.

"Overall communication is a challenge for most firms to effectively manage. Lack of transparency has been a huge problem for many firms for a long time, but COVID and hybrid work have exacerbated the issue," Huse said.

At many firms, leadership can be difficult to implement because law firms are flat organizations, with a number of powerful partners and rainmakers all holding sway, and Huse said that often means when decisions are finally made a lack of consensus can lead to unclear decisions and policies that leave room for "bending the rules."

"Lawyers by nature also enjoy rules and structure, so the mixed messages become extremely frustrating, especially to those outside of the partnership [like] associates, counsel and income partners," Huse said.

Read more here.