Everyone has been affected in one way or another by this world pandemic. Our lives, careers, and working style have changed considerably. Businesses needed to adapt quickly to survive and lawyers were no exception.
The legal system has indeed adapted to new working and physical distancing conditions and as a result, the path of future lawyers. And this leads to the question of whether these changes are here to stay or will we return to the world as it once was. How has the professional life of a lawyer been impacted by the coronavirus pandemic?
Even though most people would say that the COVID-19 pandemic came with many bad and unhappy things, the changes it produced are here to stay. And many of them were welcomed by workers, such as the possibility to work remotely. But in the legal domain, working remotely might not be the best approach.
It is a domain where you need to have contact with the clients and your colleagues to prepare the cases. However, just as any other employees have adapted to these changes, the legal system did the same. So, what does the future path of many lawyers look like?
The following article highlights how the Covid-19 pandemic has affected the future of lawyers.
Technology Will Be Accepted
Maybe it sounds extreme to say that lawyers were reluctant to the evolution of technology, but it is not. According to the latest UK SuperiorPapers reports, there are many articles and columns published in newspapers, blogs, and magazines that tell the story of this reluctance. However, this is no longer valid as more and more lawyers are embracing the evolution of technology.
In the beginning, the reluctance related to new technologies and innovations had the potential to hold people back. The legal system has acknowledged the importance of bringing innovations to this field too and the barriers to accepting and implementing technology in the legal system have begun to disappear.
As a result, the legal system became more open regarding changing with new technological solutions and the future career path of lawyers. Adapting to these new changes is imperative, as they help lawyers continue their work and keep in contact with clients.
Blooming Law Areas
We might like to think that all the legal areas will bloom considerably in the next few months. While this may be true, the legal system is already experiencing a boom in certain areas. As remote work has become the new normal, many challenges appear in the workplace.
Employment law will grow considerably in the next few months. It will include cases such as the duty of the employer in case a coronavirus wave is coming again, working from home conditions, and the position of the employee in the workplace. The law areas that are deeply connected with what is happening now in the world will bloom over the next couple of months and this will come with new opportunities for lawyers.
The Rise Of Divorces
The coronavirus pandemic came with both good and bad changes for the entire world. But for many others, it worked as a wake-up call. The need to spend months closed in your home gave rise to many disputes for couples and families. Everyone is well aware of the Christmas effect, a usual thing that happens every year.
The legal system is aware of it as it represents a crowding of the entire system because of the divorce applications filed. Well, this is happening now as well. And it is due to the global pandemic which forced countries and governments to impose strict lockdown measures. As people are divorcing, lawyers are busier and busier.
Reforms In The Legal System
One of the things that will happen and will change the future career paths of lawyers is the reform of the legal system. As the coronavirus pandemic highlighted many advantages and disadvantages of the reforms that are currently in place, the legal system acknowledged the importance of implementing some changes. In many states, a set of legal reforms were proposed and implemented for a test period of 90 days. This is just the beginning of an entire reform of the legal system.
Online Services Implemented By Courts
Some legal consultants say the COVID-19 pandemic changed the way everyone works. Even as the vaccine becomes widely available, we still have a long way to go until we return to the world as it was before the pandemic outbreak.
Physical distancing measures are still in place and protective equipment is a must, at least in closed spaces such as courts. And for this, many courts are tempted by the idea of implementing online services.
Remote And Online Legal Services
Before the pandemic, meetings with clients were mainly in person, now they are mainly happening online. Since the COVID-19 outbreak and the lockdown measures, everything has shifted online. Including lawyers and the legal system which needed to adapt to these new changes. And even though it may have seemed that these changes will be in the short-term, the legal system will change in the long term.
For some lawyers, it might be easier and more accessible to organize online meetings with clients. It is also less time-consuming and it helps lawyers with their productivity and energy. We will experience a rise of remote and online legal services which will impact the career path of lawyers.
More Resilient Lawyers
All law firms are interested in hiring the best law students. They want to test their resilience in working in a hectic and stressful environment such as law. But now, as the entire hiring process has been changed, law students have more time to adapt to the future of the workplace. They had more time to test and improve their resilience skills, but also to gather more knowledge and practice their skills.
Working in the legal system isn’t the only thing; it is about networking and getting to know your colleagues. It is about adapting to a whole different workplace, maximizing productivity and efficiency. And this is something law universities are trying to do: to prepare their law students to enter a different workplace.
Ending Note
The coronavirus pandemic produced many changes, especially in the legal system. It accelerated some of the long-awaited changes. Technology will slowly be incorporated into the legal system, as lockdown and physical distancing measures need to be followed. We will see a rise in remote and online legal services as well as many reforms of the system.
At the same time, a rise in divorces and employment law cases will be experienced. But we will also see more resilient lawyers enter the workplace, which adds more to the whole legal system. Certain law areas will bloom while the entire system will be changed through reforms and technological implementations. And the change of the system will likely impact the future lawyer’s paths.
About the author:
Tiffany Harper is an experienced freelance writer, who sometimes helps professional essay writers and the essay service with their style and other writing skills. Now she is working on her book in self-motivation and self-growth areas. If Tiffany is not working on another research for college paper.org reviews, you can find her walking in the local park or meditating. Do not hesitate to contact her on Twitter.
