Biglaw firms are usually pretty quick to fall in line when it seems like a trend is afoot. Associate raises? Check. Bonuses? Check. Increased attendance mandates? And check. Almost as soon as Paul Weiss announced that it had switched up its office attendance policy to mandate a four-day, in-office work week, another top Biglaw firm swooped in to announce its own similar policy.
Earlier this week, associates at WilmerHale — a firm that brought in $1,498,257,000 gross revenue in 2023 — were informed that starting on April 28, they’d have to work from the office four days each week. Sources say that attorneys will not have a set Monday through Thursday schedule in the office; they will be able to choose their office days themselves at their own convenience.
WilmerHale now joins the likes of Davis Polk; Latham; Paul Weiss; Ropes & Gray; Simpson Thacher; Skadden; Vinson & Elkins; and Weil Gotshal in its four-day, in-person attendance policy. Sullivan & Cromwell has taken its attendance policy one step further, requiring attorneys to work from the office five days each week.
Best of luck to associates at WilmerHale as they adjust to their new lives at the end of April, which will be mostly spent at the office.
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WilmerHale Tells Lawyers to Hit Office Four Days a Week [Bloomberg Law]
Staci Zaretsky is a senior editor at Above the Law, where she’s worked since 2011. She’d love to hear from you, so please feel free to email her with any tips, questions, comments, or critiques. You can follow her on Bluesky, X/Twitter, and Threads, or connect with her on LinkedIn.
