The 2023 Guide to Workplace Savvy: What Every Young Lawyer Should Know
2023 may be remembered as the “Year of Lawyers Behaving Badly.” The Barber Ranen email scandal, in which dozens of racist, sexist, and anti semitic emails sent by employment law partners John Barber and Jeff Ranen were leaked, was particularly shocking. You know you’re in tawdry company when the New York Post is covering the story. From tales of summer associates getting drunk at law firm functions and posting their antics on TikTok, to wearing athleisure to work, it seems that a refresher on “Proper Office Etiquette” guidelines is in order.
Before the days of videos going viral or emails being put on blast, the theoretical fear of landing on the front page of The New York Times for all the wrong reasons, was a tool that guided social behavior on a micro and macro level. The New York Times, unlike its tabloid cousin, the New York Post, was the standard for journalistic integrity. If you read it in the NYT, except in rare circumstances, the information you read was presumed to be true. If you were exhibiting questionable—or blatantly offensive—behavior, a rebuke of “how would you feel if you were the lead story in The New York Times?” was usually enough to ensure appropriate workplace behavior and social behavior. Codes of conduct were written and you were expected to follow the rules. Schools had dress codes for teachers and students. Employers had formal dress codes.
While reliance on social norms, common courtesy, and good manners may have been enough to affect acceptable standards of behavior in the past, as more women and people from diverse backgrounds and cultures enter the workforce, companies often find themselves facing situations that were less common back in the day. As workplaces become more diverse and inclusive, what once might have been written off, minimized, or trivialized as “boys will be boys” behavior, may now be interpreted as questionable, insensitive, inappropriate, or actionable.
Promoting a positive company culture requires an understanding that your actions have a direct impact on your colleagues and clients. Generational differences and cultural touchstones may also lead to misunderstandings and miscommunications, despite good intentions. Junior attorneys who began their careers working remotely during the pandemic, or lateral attorneys who joined their current firms and companies during the pandemic, may be experiencing a period of adjustment as they return to the office several days a week. Working down the hall from your partners and colleagues is very different from working at home with Zoom meetings.
In this ever changing world of influencers, reality TV stars, Instagram, YouTube, TikTok, and a variety of other platforms, we are exposed to so much in real time. Defining (and redefining) what is considered tolerable behavior seems to be changing rapidly. Cancel culture is real, and lawyers and law firms are not immune. That said, there are certain things that we can agree are inappropriate, and possibly actionable, behaviors.
Did you really just do that?! How to behave in the office
It is never appropriate to:
Use racial, homophobic, or antisemitic slurs, tell jokes using these slurs, or make fun of others.
Comment on a colleague’s weight, anatomy, or appearance. Even if you think that you are paying someone a compliment, it’s best not to comment on what someone is wearing or their hairstyle.
Engage in unwelcome body contact. “Don’t touch me” means exactly that.
Humiliate or intimidate a co-worker by screaming at them or threatening them behind closed doors, berate them in front of others including clients, or criticize them in a group email or text.
Address a colleague as "honey," "doll," " babe," or "sweetheart."
Gossip about colleagues. Before you tell something about someone else, ask yourself, "is this my story to tell?" Unless you are sincerely afraid for someone's safety or well-being, sharing stories or confidences about a third person is not okay.
Get drunk at office functions, client lunches, or work-place dinners.
Do TikTok challenges during work hours, or post videos of yourself or your colleagues doing TikTok challenges.
Do not post videos or pix of yourself or your colleagues engaging in dangerous or questionable activities. Your clients are paying you and your law firm a lot of money for your legal advice, and they need to trust your judgment. Do you really want them to see you drunk and stumbling around half-naked?
How to behave and communicate properly when you're working
Preface all requests with "please" and always saying "thank you." There is no excuse for rudeness or entitlement.
When you are sending a business letter or email, use a colon after the person's name, not a comma.
Whenever you are sending a work-related email, do not use "Hey" as a salutation. Even if you are emailing a colleague whom you consider to be a friend, if you are discussing a work matter, starting an email with "Hey [recipient’s name]" is unprofessional.
Always proofread your emails and business correspondence. Spell check and grammar check will not catch syntax errors. If you type "Bob talked to Susan and I," grammar check will not tell you that you should have written "Bob talked to Susan and me." If you type "there house" instead of "their house", spell check won't pick that up either because the words are spelled correctly, albeit being used incorrectly.
If UR a power texter IRL, always use real words when you communicate on the job. Have you ever received a text or an email with emojis or abbreviations that you didn’t understand? No matter how savvy you are with the latest emojis or abbreviations, your colleagues, particularly your partners or clients, may not be. People are busy. If your partners, clients, or colleagues have to spend time trying to decipher your emails and texts, the net result will be irritation and confusion. Be clear, be concise, and be specific when you communicate.
Group emails. When you receive a group email, if the email requires a response, be sure to hit "reply all" when it's appropriate. For example: if your partner is in the process of delegating aspects of a matter that need to be handled, hitting "reply all" lets you tell the partner and the team what you'll be doing on the matter, and you will know what they are doing.
Making a good impression from “Day One” on the job
Making the transition from law student to practicing attorney can be socially challenging. The academic year no longer applies; January is the beginning of the New Year, not September. Working on teams with significantly older colleagues or those with different life experiences, requires learning when to listen and when to ask questions. You need time to learn your craft while learning how to navigate office politics. If someone says something or does something that makes you feel uncomfortable, ask for clarification instead of assuming that the other person was acting badly. If you ask someone “what made you say that? “what made you ask that?” or “what made you do that?” you’re giving the other person an opportunity to explain their intentions. Unless someone is a complete jerk, once someone realizes that their actions or words made someone else uncomfortable, they will want to make amends. Give yourself grace and give others grace. If you approach people from a place of kindness, gratitude, and respect, any inadvertent mistakes will be forgiven. When you know better, you do better. Take responsibility for your actions, do not blame others, and do the best job that you can. Hard work and a good attitude will always stand you in good stead.
