New research from legal recruiter Laurence Simons shows that, on average, partners are pulling 2,622 hours worth of office time per year. At approximately 56 hours per week, this figure is up from 50.5 hours per week, or 2,359 hours annually, recorded for partner-level lawyers two years ago. Using a 40 hour working week as a point of reference, the growth translates into an extra 6.5 weeks' worth of work per year being crammed into partners' busy office schedules.
Junior hours decline
Though partner office hours are on the up, the Laurence Simons survey found that lawyers at other levels are in fact enjoying fewer hours in the office. Newly qualified lawyers are pulling an average of 46.8 hours per week, down from the 47.4 hours recorded for junior lawyers over the last two years. Senior associates' office hours have also shrunk slightly, from a weekly average of 51.3 hours last year to 50.5 hours now. Associate-level lawyers are still under the pump however, gaining an average of 2.3 extra working hours per week over the last year to an average of 52.4 hours per week. The overall average weekly office workload for lawyers across all levels has been reported at 48.2 hours, down slightly from last year.
Lawyers trump accountants
According to Laurence Simons global managing director Clare Butler, increased competition is the likely culprit behind the spike in lawyers' office hours. In particular, the emergence of Big Four accountancy groups as new players in the legal market is forcing lawyers to pull their socks up and build 'leaner and meaner' firms. But with an average of 5.2 more working hours per week than your garden variety accountant, lawyers are clearly putting in the hard slog to stay competitive. 'Accountants are innovating, but lawyers aren't going down without a fight,' commented Ms Butler. Source: The Lawyer; City AM
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