Crafting an Ideal Floor Plan for the Law Office

Essential Components of a Law Office Blueprint

A law office floor plan is intended to be the best fit for the user. But all things considered, every Law Office Floor Plan includes the following:
Client reception area: This is obviously where clients will wait to see attorneys, so it is important to take into consideration the size, furnishings and even the décor. You may also want a separate private area for your clients to review their legal documents and work with attorneys.
Meeting rooms: In addition to any conference areas you may have for consulting with multiple clients or parties at a time, meeting rooms are often needed. The distinction may be a small one, as a meeting room may be a conference room, or vice versa. Basically , these are the spaces used for meetings with individual clients or groups that may not fit in the client meeting area. These are generally in a more private location in the office and are not meant for clients to access without being escorted by an attorney.
Attorney offices: These are where attorneys will collaborate with clients. There are two distinct options for attorney offices — whether to have corner offices or offices that are along the exterior walls, or perhaps even internal locations. These decisions will likely be impacted by the size of the overall office space itself and your location within the building.
Support spaces: These include areas such as copy, kitchen, supply storage and filing units. In addition, if you use legal assistants and paralegals in your practice, you may want some areas dedicated to those roles and their functions, even if they share an office or cubicle. These need to be close enough to be convenient — but the degree of separation is often dependent upon the size of the overall space.

Maximizing Space for Efficiency and Productivity

The most common layout for law office floor plans, and for that matter office environments in general, is the open design. The belief in open plan design is often that it encourages collaboration. The widespread tradition for the last several decades was to create an office space where attorneys were not isolated from one another, they were in the same room so that they could frequently share ideas and work together. This environment also allowed for "buzz," the sound of busy employees and a certain energy that can encourage productivity.
However, certain law firms have recognized that in addition to energy and shared ideas, there are ways to encourage productivity and focus that go beyond the open plan design, and can even encourage collaboration while allowing for privacy. A law office floor plan that includes shared space like communal rooms—please recall our previous blog about the Google offices, which famously feature communal rooms—can encourage collaboration but also allow for semi-private space. For example, the space can be divided by gradation in terms of privacy. On one side, there may be a completely open area conducive to quiet idea sharing and group discussions. Moving toward the center, there may be a semi-private space for temporary collaboration, with temporary dividers. Toward the other end, you can place rooms where attorneys can occasionally meet for private discussions to iron out creative differences or simply meet privately with clients.
An important component of office design is determining what environment will elicit the most productivity. For many people, open spaces can be distracting. A more closed-off space where the noise level is lower can encourage people to focus and really get to work. In addition, in such a space, associates and attorneys will frequently stop at each other’s desks to ask questions. Without the benefit of cubicles, separating workspaces, or at least some natural barriers that will shield distractions such as the sounds coming from other employees and offices, your plan will fall flat if the goal is to have associates and attorneys focus on their work.
As such, the way in which you divide up floors in the context of this structure will not only feature communal space, but also offer flexibility so that an associate or attorney can afford themselves spaces of earshot or visual barriers while still encouraging open space and communication. The introduction of private offices can shift the dynamic in favor of a less open atmosphere that encourages work during the day so that attorneys can leave the office earlier (hopefully).

Fostering a Client-Friendly Atmosphere

While it may be tempting to position your office to take advantage of the best view in the building or to secure the most square footage for your money, successful law firms make their floor plan choices based on what will provide the most positive experience for their clients. A client-centric design must take into account factors such as accessibility, privacy, security and comfort in order to create the best working environment for attorney and client alike. Designing the ideal layout for your law firm facility starts with effective and thorough measurement and analysis of the space you’re considering. Consider your requirements for file storage, conferencing, and administrative support functions relative to the amount of office and conference room space needed. In terms of design, the ideal layout of your law office will almost always incorporate a central corridor that connects all the areas of your facility, such as the office, meeting rooms and public spaces. Allow for easy access to your receptionist desk as well as to your conference rooms. And incorporate adequate stacking space – i.e. bathrooms, copy and fax rooms, etc. – into your open corridor design. Beyond your individual law firm features, your floor plan must address other important client-centric considerations. For example, you’ll want to provide separate and secure access to your office facilities for attorneys, administrative staff and clients. Reception areas, interviewing rooms and offices should be designed with both privacy and efficient movement in mind. You may also choose to include separate client entrances or stairwells that enable private access to certain offices or areas of your firm. Accessibility is also a key consideration in floor plan design; your offices should be easily accessible to all clients. For example, if you operate in a two-story office building, you’ll need to ensure that the second floor is accessible by elevator for any client that may use a wheelchair or mobility aid. In addition, consider the location of liaison and support staff to adequately meet the needs of clients and attorneys alike. Finally, the most successful law firms understand the importance of client comfort and offer a range of amenities such as snack and refreshment facilities, lounge and relaxation areas, and staff kitchenette.

Integrating Technology in Office Design

Technology is moving into law office layouts at an increasing rate. From internet and phone lines to desk space, it is vital that high-tech features are seamlessly blended into the basic layout of your office floor plan. These include things like internet cables, power supplies, Wi-Fi intakes, data transfer and more. Lawyers also have to give some thought to their phone systems and conference call capabilities.
Traditional telephone lines are no longer used or needed by most law offices. Not only do you have to have standard phone lines, but most lawyers also need basic computer systems and smart devices throughout their offices. Since most lawyers do not use traditional phones, they need to make the necessary provisions for the phone lines and other data. An attorney needs to ensure that they have sufficient wiring, equipment and workspace to allow themselves to work remotely, if they want to stay competitive.
Perhaps the most essential telecommunication systems for a law corporate are the associated networks. Lawyers can no longer afford to be without Wi-Fi and other internet connections. Law firms typically have the basic wired internet connections as well as a Wi-Fi network for laptops , phones and other phones they may bring to work.
Lawyers should also be concerned about network security. Again, because they are in the business of collecting and safely keeping sensitive client information, they among the primary unattractive targets of brands of cyberattackers around the world. To avoid both internal and external breaches, law firms should be proactively ensuring that their computer system is secure. Everything from wifi passwords through firewalls on the internet could be at risk.
Moreover, a lawyer’s computer network should be designed to make their work lives easier. Lawyers of the mid-21st century are increasingly on the move or working with clients remotely. These demands require investment into network technology that gives lawyers flexibility and mobility. For example, a central server and remote access to a work desktop, as well as sufficient wireless connectivity to work with the system are all essential elements to a 21st century lawyer’s office. The cost of investing in up-to-date technology is ever-changing, but it’s also a very serious consideration that no law firm can afford (and should not be permitted) to ignore. Technology simply must be a part of the layout of any law firm floor plan.

Compliance with Legal and Ethical Requirements

In addition to practical considerations, you also have to consider legal and ethical guidelines. Your design needs to meet your state’s bar requirements as well as other legal obligations and ethical standards, including all existing legal requirements for making sure you’re following ADA guidelines, including considerations for people with mobility issues and color blindness; maintaining client confidentiality (even in the conference rooms, examine what you’ll be discussing that could be overheard in offices or other conference rooms, as well as whether your door is going to have a window, etc.); attorney-client privileges; privacy rights; as well as making sure all areas are attractive and professional. You don’t want potential clients looking at your space and thinking that they can’t trust you or that you will not represent them well.

Preparing Your Office Layout for the Future

There’s no question that change is a constant for law firms and legal service providers. If we were to chart the evolution of legal service delivery, we would see a tremendous increase in the number of applications deployed; the proliferation of digital data; the tearing down of siloed departments and the creation of cross-functional teams to deliver services.
And through all of this, firms have still been focused on how they can be strategic with their real estate decisions. But if you think this challenge is going to be continually on the top of your mind, you are living in the past.
The reality is that the needs of legal service providers who are trying to adapt to change are not as burdensome as they once were.
Take a look at the ways you can make your office space dynamic and flexible while avoiding the pain of long expensive renovations.
Your Future Office Space May be All About Flexibility. Flexible space and modular furniture concepts were widely used just a few short years ago. But since then, many leading, mid-sized and emerging law firms have adopted more straightforward approaches.
A case in point? One of the Nation’s leading law firms was known for keeping everything in a persistent state of flux. It was common for their teams to move from one office to another in a matter of months. Staffers—both legal and non-legal—have become accustomed to using a variety of work spaces including collaboration spaces, private offices, huddle rooms, and open space.
They were still in the market looking for new office space to meet their needs and were facing the challenge of finding a new base to work. What they were looking for was agility and flexibility, not flexibility and modularity.
Another firm made a similar move about a year earlier going from a much larger space (with 400 offices) to a smaller space (300 offices). In this case, the acquiring firm had the foresight to think about a design that would accommodate both distinct civic and collaborative spaces allowing for more mobility, and more collaborative spaces over time. In both cases, they succeeded. Change was not rock solid or people dependent.
The future office has changed. Enduring change is in relative terms, fast. Not only does it depend on technology to support it, but it also needs to be designed into the space and be a dynamic part of its fabric .
Collaboration: The Next Big Challenge for Office Space Design. No doubt, there are likely some significant corporate culture issues going on at the same time. But the obvious question remains: how did this law firm’s leadership realize that it no longer needed to keep all of its team members behind closed doors?
And the answer is not so surprising. This and other law firms have opted to make more collaborative spaces available. They are anticipating that they need to make collaboration the default—and not offices or huddle rooms at the request of a partner.
Co-working spaces, task force meeting rooms, quiet cabins for a focus workspace, and mobility spaces—all are needed to strike the right balance between the fluidity of collaborative conversations and the relative permanence of private conversations or quiet focus.
Lawyers and staff have always been mobile. We’re constantly on the go and see clients in their environment. We also have varying productivity requirements and needs depending on the tasks at hand. While our teams may continue to make use of a co-working or huddle room; our collective real estate needs are now more about creating enough space for on-the-job work and task force (and case) work.
Technology Will Play a Key Role in the Evolution of Office Space. The primary reasons for changing space include an opportunity to enhance the firm’s image, or a need to improve the quality of the work environment. While improving the cost profile of the firm is always a consideration, the opportunity to accommodate a growing practice and the need to design a modern agile law office floor plan become higher priorities.
Technology plays an important role.
New products and best practices are here to support the changes in space utilization. Firms today understand that the flexibility and dynamism of the space should be followed with an equally dynamic set of space codes and analytics. Law firms, for example, can use space management software to understand the current ratios for space in the firm; to forecast required space as headcounts grow or change; to tailor and direct future growth via lease decisions; and to better relate office design to practice needs.
The technology is easy to implement, cost effective, and readily available. There is no reason not to tap into an arsenal of technology options as the firm plans for its future.