The Law Society Gazette: “Many law firms will claim that great strides have been made since then. I beg to differ. While on the face of it, large law firms have changed in response to Covid-19, the reality is that it is skin deep and insufficient given the pressures they are facing from younger lawyers, clients and wider society. The profession finds itself in the grip of sky-rocketing wages to tackle the talent war and huge profits per partner, all whilst a mental health crisis is taking hold, out of sight, as many staff struggle in the face of much uncertainty and pressure to deliver. This is no time to be complacent or distracted into thinking more has been achieved when fundamental transformation is yet to come – judging by the headlines, many law firms are still driven by billable hours targets, offering lawyers huge rewards for putting the job first, ahead of family, friends, life outside work and health. So how do we start to affect change? Let’s begin with flexible working. Our latest report – Legal Reset – identifies four key ‘pillars’ of law firm culture needed to drive necessary change, namely: need to practise with purpose; embracing genuine flexible working; moving away from a partnership model fuelled by billable hours; and driving innovation through technology…”