Taylor English Duma is breaking the mold of what most people imagine a law firm to be by having lawyers work remotely from their homes.
Remote work has increased in almost all job settings within recent years and concepts of what makes a “traditional” workplace have changed drastically. In fact, according to a Gallup study conducted in 2016, 43 percent of people (out of 15,000 polled) reported that they worked remotely in the course of their work year.
However, it feels as if a law firm can’t have lawyers working remotely. Surely the attorneys need to be present at all times, ready to field any of their clients’ questions at a moment’s notice. Right?
Taylor English Duma says no. Headquartered in Atlanta, the firm now has remote lawyers servicing clients across the nation.
“Our concept is that [remote lawyers] are not disconnected,” says Partner Chris Wilson. “They are full and active participants in our 150-lawyer ecosystem that we built in Atlanta.”
And Taylor English Duma holds true to making their remote lawyers feel like part of the team. Similarly to other virtual firms, the remote lawyers keep 80 percent of the revenue from dealings that they maintain. These lawyers are also able to become equity partners similar to their Atlanta-based coworkers.
“The fact is,” says founding partner Marc Taylor, “We are in the presence of probably the greatest transformational period of time in the history of the legal business, whether it’s the advent of technology, the focusing of buyers of commercial legal services on value, the willingness to explore alternatives from the traditional large law firm, or the millennial generation coming onboard who have completely different ideas on how they want to practice, why they want to practice, and what they expect out of their career.”
With this in mind, it’s unsurprising that law firms have been accommodating virtual lawyers more and more. According to Wilson, formerly of virtual law firm FisherBroyles, they’ve observed many firms that have over 100 virtual lawyers, with some coming close to having 200.
When it comes to Taylor English Duma’s decision to hire remote workers, Taylor describes it as a pretty straightforward conclusion. “From Taylor English’s standpoint, our partners have always been tasked with the idea of ‘how do I drive value to our clients, and how we do we find a way to meet their needs?’
“The idea of being able to get geographic reach plus the idea of tapping into an enormous network of highly-qualified, highly-trained lawyers that simply no longer want to be part of the large law firm paradigm, obviously you’re limited if only you draw from the city of Atlanta.”
Both within and outside of the firm, Taylor English Duma has seen a resoundingly positive response to their remote lawyers and intends to continue to hone their unique process. It’s a refreshing example of a firm that’s eagerly willing to adapt and grow as workplace habits continue to change.
