The Role of Human Resources in Law Office Management

Law office management is often considered a part of human resources, or is at least connected to it. For most law firms, law office management is how they track personnel issues and find solutions for those issues on behalf of the human resources department. The biggest personnel issue that law office managers usually discover is that there isn't enough personnel on staff for the firm to operate as efficiently as it needs to. Maybe someone on staff isn't as great of a fit as initially believed and they are only creating more problems by staying. Maybe it's a personal relations issue, that needs to be addressed by the firm's human resources department and was discovered through management tactics. Whatever the circumstances are, human resources is a necessary component of law office management and cannot be overlooked.

Why Hire a Law Office Manager?

For lawyers who are actually good at managing their offices, there may be a question as to why a firm should consider hiring a law office manager in the first place. Big firms, with a fleet of lawyers on staff, will probably need several law office mangers in order to function every day. However, a smaller firm with maybe one or two lawyers will think that a manager is an unnecessary expense. Why bring someone else in to do work that those already present can do themselves?

The fact of the matter is that even the most fantastic lawyer is going to have to admit at some point that they are human and cannot do it all. A law office is a business and there is going to be a lot involved for it to work. There will be a focus on the current case(s) that the lawyers of the firm are handling, which can result in other things being forgotten or left on the wayside. Constraints of ability and time can make it problematic for a single person to divide their attention on multiple tasks. Without a manager handling things in the office, a lawyer may be too distracted to put the right amount of effort into a case.

The Hiring Process

A law office cannot function without staff. Some lawyers are able to open their practice with only themselves acting in every role, but it isn't something that they will necessarily be able to continue throughout their entire career. As they grow, they will need to bring more people into the practice in order for them to continue functioning without issue. Going through the hiring process, especially if a person has not been on the employer side of things, can be a bit intimidating.

The standard hiring process is rather straight forward, and can be adjusted for every profession and business. What makes the hiring process so complex for everyone involved is the content or each step, as determined by the position and the needs of the business. For law offices, they will need to take into account the legal requirements for a position in their firm in addition to the needs of the firm that will be addressed by filling that position.

The hiring process can be broken down into roughly four stages. Each stage can be adjusted as needed and the following covers the general events that occur during a particular stage. This format can be used simply as the foundation for a law office's hiring process and does not need to be used exactly as described, excluding specific instances that all potential employers are required to do in accordance with federal and state law.

Application-Employers, in this case the senior staff or administrative management staff, will compile a list of requirements potential candidates must have for the position they are hoping to fill. Those requirements are going to need to be relevant to the position and reasonable enough for there to actually be applicants.

Job postings with the details of the position are shared through hiring agencies, advertisements, the internet, etc. Also referred to as the recruitment phase, it's the point where employers must begin their search. 1 The process can take time, especially if there are issues such as a poor economy, lack of qualified candidates, or if the employer is looking in all the wrong places.

Interested in learning more? Why not take an online Law Office Management course?

Interviews-The next step is go through the list of applicants who meet the requirements of the position and begin scheduling interviews. Depending on how many people are chosen and the schedules of all those involved, this can be the longest step in the entire hiring process. Some employers choose to have multiple stages in the interview process, narrowing down the candidates at each point. Doing so can be a great way to see if someone is actually going to fit with the needs of the firm. A person can look great on paper and make a great first impression, but can turn out to not be what an employer needs. Starting with a short phone interview can quickly cut down the list of candidates and it can save time and effort. 2 A second or third interview can then allow for a more in-depth discussion that isn't always possible during the initial interview.

Background Checks-Background checks, as a stage in the process, are a bit flexible in when they can be done. Some employers will conduct background checks as part of the application process, using it to narrow down their perspective candidates. Others will use it during the interview stage, also to narrow down candidates. They may also use it in order to compile information on the candidate that can be used for questions during the interview stage.

An in-depth background check may be conducted after the interview stage and before a final decision is made. This way, employers can check to see if information gathered about a candidate during their interview is true. It can also allow them to check for anything that may prove problematic. A background check will only include information that is public record and while employers can use that information when making their decision, they cannot discriminate against a candidate based on information in their background check. 3

Training-The training portion of the hiring process will depend on what the position is within the firm. It is expected that lawyers who are added to the staff are going to be set thanks to their education and background, so their training isn't going to have anything to do about how to do the job they've been hired to do. If anything, the training stage for a firm's new lawyer is going to include information on the regular operations of the firm-where things are, who else is on staff, how to use equipment, etc. They may have a probationary period that acts as a final test, but they shouldn't need any other instruction unless necessary.

Training is designed to acclimate new employees to the daily operations of a business. Employees in a law office that are not practicing law may need instruction for things that are used as a part of those daily operations. Software programs, for example, may require training to ensure that the new employee is going to not only be able to use it, but use it correctly.

Employers may find it helpful to go through their own hiring process to check its efficiency. 4 There could be problems with it that they are not aware of, especially if a problem is visible from the perspective of the applicant. Doing so can also allow an employer to make adjustments for both their convenience and that of the candidates. The process is long, and there may be parts that an employer included that are great in theory but not in practice. It can also help the employer, and any other staff members in the office who are involved, prepare for their role in the hiring process.

Termination Policies

While most employers would like their employees to stay, it's not always possible. The departing staff members who are a part of the high turnover rate for law firms either leave via one of two ways-the quit or they are fired, for whatever reason(s) associated with each method. Quitting any job is rather straightforward and employers do not need to have any special policy in place for when an employee quits. It's mostly the employee notifying their employer and/or human resources department that they are quitting, when it's happening, and handling the appropriate paperwork to remove them from the company.

When an employee is fired, there are more factors involved that can make the process a bit tricky. First and foremost, there needs to be a valid, legal reason for the termination. 5 There are enough protections in place on the federal and state level that ensure that employees cannot be fired on the basis of things such as race, gender, sexual orientation, or religion, to name a few. If an employer states that an employee is being fired for a specific reason, they have to have evidence supporting it. An employee who feels like they have been wrongfully terminated and can prove it, they can file a complaint against their employer with the federal government and possibly sue their employer. And yes, law offices can be sued for such a thing. Employers do not have to reveal their reasons for terminating a client, even if asked. However, they will have to disclose their reasoning and supporting evidence in the event that the validity of the termination is brought into question.

Termination polices are often explained to employees through an employee handbook or during an employee's training. The policy should be clearly laid out, and any reasons that are for immediate termination should be thoroughly explained. Some employers choose to have the termination process broken down into steps, a mirror to the hiring processes. This ensures that nothing is forgotten and can help if the termination is a result of something like layoffs. One common part of the termination process is to conduct an exit interview. It can be conducted by a human resources representative, rather than the employer. Exit interviews can provide feedback for both the employer and the employee about the person's time with the firm. The interview can also help illuminate problems or issues that contributed to the employee's exit, whether it's by termination or resignation.

Employee Policies and the Employee Handbook

A law office is still a business and parts of it will need to be treated as such. Establishing policies and creating an employee handbook that contains those policies and other information is a fairly common business practice that law offices adapt. Doing so can allow the firm to communicate with all of its employees and have some sort of structured system by which it operates. 6

Creating Policies-Some of the polices that a law office has are required by law, such as anti-discrimination policies. The termination polices discussed earlier are going to be included, but the details will vary from firm to firm. Policies concerning conduct, work schedules, compensation, and security should also be included. For a law office, policies concerning client relations and legal issues are going to be necessary. There may be polices about the usage of technology in the office, such as what is considered appropriate or inappropriate use of software. As some cases may result in media attention, there should also be policies concerning how the firm and staff will handle media relations.

What To Include in the Handbook-The employee handbook should include any and all information that an employee must know or have access to in order to work at the business. This can include things such as daily procedures, polices listed elsewhere in this article, and emergency protocols. Some choose to include a copy of the firm's non-disclosure agreement(s) in the handbook, in the event it needs to be revisited. Information on employee benefits-both those offered by the firm and those that are required by law-should also be listed in the handbook. An employee handbook should be accessible for all employees in the office, whether it's in hardcopy or digital. If updates are made-and they should be as the firm or policies change-then new copies of the handbook should be issued.