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48 ¦ FEBRUARY 1, 2021 OPINION

Tea and Empathy at Big Law

By Vivia Chen

M Photo: Shutterstock.com
ercy. Could this be true: Money is no lon- On the empathy point, the Volta coaches write:
ger the lure that keeps lawyers tethered to “Employers should engage in genuine outreach,
Big Law? In the age of COVID, what law- expressing authentically held concern as well as
yers (particularly lawyers who are parents) want/ curiosity about what parents need while mak-
need/crave are moral support, compassion and ing good-faith efforts to take action on what gets
empathy. shared.”
Well, that’s what we’re hearing these days. Re- “Genuine outreach,” “authentically held con-
cently, Whittney Beard and Malini Nangia, career cern” and “curiosity”—mighty tall orders! Those
coaches at Volta Talent Strategies, wrote that 45% attributes seldom describe top management in
of lawyer respondents in their study wanted most business sectors, but for the lawyer class,
“demonstrated empathy and understanding they seem downright unnatural.
from law firm leaders/partners.” That was the top Not to state the obvious, but law firm leaders
response to the question, “If you could ask your are not a sensitive lot. From my observations, they
employer for the support you need now, without are usually hypercompetitive, sometimes manip-
fear of judgment or a negative impact on your ca- ulative and narcissistic, and, occasionally, nasty.
reer, what would you ask for?” (In that same study, Seriously, how many law firm leaders would you
28% wanted suspension of billable hours during trust with your puppy?
the pandemic and 27% wanted “reduced hours So here’s my question: How the hell are you going
with no reduction in pay.”) to teach this group empathy and understanding

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