I am currently writing this column from Europe, where I am spending some time on vacation. Lawyers deserve to take vacations like everyone else, but business operations may require lawyers to complete tasks while they are away. Attorneys should take a few steps to ensure that traveling does not negatively impact clients or the quality of time off.
Perhaps the biggest issue lawyers need to consider when traveling is the time difference. In Europe, the normal American workday does not even begin until the afternoon. This can actually be useful since a lawyer can spend much of the morning sightseeing or relaxing before people back home start sending emails. But it also means that a telephone call scheduled for the late afternoon in New York might occur late at night in Europe.
Lawyers should therefore be careful when scheduling calls while traveling. Before my trip, I tried to move calls to times that would not interfere too much with my vacation. Attorneys should also make sure their calendars properly account for time-zone changes. Few things would be more embarrassing than missing an important client call because you incorrectly calculated the time difference.
Lawyers should also tell clients when they are going to be unavailable. Most reasonable clients do not expect their attorneys to be sitting in front of a computer every waking moment of the year. Problems arise when clients expect a quick response and suddenly discover that their lawyer is on another continent and will not respond for several days.
An out-of-office message can help avoid this problem, but attorneys should be clear about what being “out of the office” actually means. Some lawyers will be completely unavailable while traveling. Others, including many law firm owners and partners, may check their emails periodically even though they are technically on vacation. If you really will be unreachable, clients should know who else at the firm they can contact if something urgent arises.
This is also where having good colleagues and staff becomes extremely important. Before leaving, lawyers should identify matters that might require attention and make sure somebody knows enough about them to respond if necessary. This does not require preparing a massive memorandum about every file on your desk. It might simply mean telling another lawyer that a client could call about a settlement or that a discovery deadline is approaching. A few minutes spent providing this information before leaving can save considerably more time during a vacation.
Being reachable and being constantly available are two different things. Modern technology makes it possible for lawyers to answer emails from almost anywhere. That does not necessarily mean they should. If attorneys spend an entire vacation staring at their phones, they have essentially relocated their offices rather than taken time off.
One strategy is to designate periods when work will be handled. For someone traveling in Europe, checking email in the late afternoon can work particularly well since that is when the East Coast is beginning its workday. After addressing anything important, the lawyer can hopefully put the phone away again.
Realistically, sometimes work cannot wait. Emergencies happen, deals suddenly need attention, and litigation has a remarkable ability to become complicated at inconvenient times. Lawyers who own firms or have substantial responsibility for clients may never be able to guarantee that they will not work during a vacation. But there is a big difference between dealing with a genuine emergency and reflexively answering every email simply because a phone is within reach.
Ultimately, taking a vacation should not be inconsistent with providing excellent client service. Tell clients when you will be away, account for time zones, arrange coverage, and decide in advance how often you intend to check your messages. With a little planning on your part, clients can continue receiving the service they expect while lawyers get something they need too: an actual vacation.
Jordan Rothman is a partner of The Rothman Law Firm, a full-service New York and New Jersey law firm. He is also the founder of Student Debt Diaries, a website discussing how he paid off his student loans. You can reach Jordan through email at jordan@rothman.law.