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The positive and negative impacts on practice from COVID-19: Report
While certain pandemic-inspired changes regarding the maintenance and management of legal practices have helped, other evolutions in the past two years are being viewed as detrimental by many practitioners.
Jerome Doraisamy
Between 13 July and 4 August 2021, the Law Society of NSW undertook a survey of 1,483 of its members, titled, A Fair Post-COVID Justice System: Canvassing Member Views. The survey period fell at a time when most of Sydney was in lockdown.
As reported earlier this week by Lawyers Weekly, there is “overwhelming” support for retention of many pandemic-inspired measures. However, there are certain impacts on changes to maintaining and managing a practice that are being seen as negative.
While the findings of this survey pertain to NSW-based practitioners, there are pertinent takeaways for lawyers across the country.
General reaction to changes
When asked out if it has been easy or difficult for one’s practice or team to adapt to pandemic-inspired changes, 44 per cent of respondents said that it has been “easy” or “very easy”, while just under one in four (24 per cent) said that it had been “difficult” or “very difficult”. One-third (33 per cent) were neutral.
The impact of such changes has been “positive” or “very positive” for 44 per cent of practitioners, compared to the “negative” or “very negative” experiences of one-quarter (26 per cent).
If given the choice, 70 per cent said that they would keep those workplace changes for some situations, while 16 per cent said so for every situation.
Positive impacts
When asked about the impacts upon various areas of their legal practices, two in five (40 per cent) said that efficiency has been a positive impact since the onset of COVID-19.
Elsewhere, 27 per cent pointed to the ability to meet CPD requirements as being a positive impact, followed by the management of workflow (23 per cent), employment issues and arrangements (18 per cent), maintaining profitability (17 per cent) and staff mental health and wellbeing (16 per cent).
Negative impacts
However, there were numerous areas of practice that COVID-19, and the subsequent changes, had a negative impact upon.
Almost three in five (59 per cent) of respondents said that the impacts upon professional networking were negative. Nearly half (49 per cent) said there had been a negative impact upon staff mental health and wellbeing, and 43 per cent said that the ability to mentor junior staff had been hindered.
Additionally, the following quantum of respondents saw negative impacts from these pandemic-inspired challenges: maintaining client relationships (34 per cent), business development (30 per cent), volume of business opportunities (29 per cent), and management of workflow (28 per cent).
Jerome Doraisamy
Jerome Doraisamy is the editor of Lawyers Weekly. A former lawyer, he has worked at Momentum Media as a journalist on Lawyers Weekly since February 2018, and has served as editor since March 2022. He is also the host of all five shows under The Lawyers Weekly Podcast Network, and has overseen the brand's audio medium growth from 4,000 downloads per month to over 60,000 downloads per month, making The Lawyers Weekly Show the most popular industry-specific podcast in Australia. Jerome is also the author of The Wellness Doctrines book series, an admitted solicitor in NSW, and a board director of Minds Count.
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