Navigating the new Normal

I don't think anybody had any idea of the changes that were coming to the legal profession this year in the face of a global pandemic. We all started the year with our resolutions and aspirations to improve the legal services we offer to clients, grow our client bases, and make a good living doing it. Never in my twenty-seven-year legal career would I have imagined that I would be staying in a courtroom wearing a surgical mask, dealing with the wholesale shutdown of the court system or meeting clients, colleagues and friends by video conference instead of in person.

In January, the news outlets started to talk about the Corona Virus that was coming from China and spreading out around the world. By February, it had come to the United States, first in Seattle, but then hit the big population centers. When March came, the fear of the Corona Virus, or CoVid-19 as the World Health Organization designates, it started to spread here at home in Georgia. Cities, counties, and even the state-issued orders declaring a state of emergency, People were encouraged, and they eventually ordered to stay at home to prevent the spread of the deadly virus. We learned the term "social distancing," avoided being in groups of ten or more, and paid more attention to details like washing hands.

I watched as the restaurants, bars, gyms, hair salons, and even barbershops had to close their doors to paying customers. As a lawyer, I was somewhat immune to the shelter in place order because the practice of law is considered to be an essential service and my firm is small enough that we already practice "social distancing." Still, it was pretty scary because the clients I represent are out of work, and their businesses are closed. I worried that sheltering in place would economically impact my practice and my ability to make payroll. Still, court and the legal system remained open, working full throttle, practicing law, and going to court. Then came March 14, 2020.

That is the date the Supreme Court of Georgia issued its first Statewide Judicial Emergency Order that virtually shut down the court system for the first time in history. While some lawyers closed down, I did my best to keep the lights on at the office, keep the staff working and paid and handle the cases that my clients pay me to. I wanted to continue providing legal services to people in Cherokee County, and I also wanted to do that safely and prevent the spread of CoVid-19 to my clients, my staff, my colleagues, and my family. That meant social distancing, keeping plenty of hand sanitizer on hand, and wearing a mask when safety requires that.

Fortunately, I was reasonably prepared for this "New Normal" before the quarantine started. First, a couple of years ago, we moved all of our case management systems and servers into the cloud. With that move, we were able to create something of a paperless filing system. While I have never wholly eliminated my paper files, all of our documents, notes, and records are available in the cloud. That makes all of my data available to me and my staff anywhere we have a secure high-speed internet connection. Most of the courts that I work with have shifted to electronic filing, which eliminates the need to go to the courthouse to file cases.

Additionally, last October, I was able to downsize the office from my former high rise facility. On the one hand, this drastically cut my overhead but also got the ball rolling to make some technological changes that improved our ability to work remotely. We switched to a Voice Over IP phone system that allows us to answer out landline phones remotely from anywhere. So when the Governor issued his shelter in place order, and the Chief Justice issued his statewide judicial emergency, we were able to transition to a system where I court effectively work from home. Not only did that maximize our ability at the office to social distance, but it cut down the amount of time I spend in the car commuting every day. The found time allowed me to even more effectively handle my caseload than before.

The courts continued to handle cases and hearings by video conferencing at first only in emergencies. Still, as time marches on, judges are beginning to feel more routine matters on platforms such as Zoom and WebEx. I have held mediations, pre-trial conferences, and even depositions on the same platforms. I also attended bar meetings and happy hours using video conference technology. That means getting dressed up for court, at lease above the desk, in a suit and tie suit like I did when I would go to the courthouse. Now the difference is that I just walk down the hall to the home office that is a converted guest bedroom.

It seems like that every day I hear on the news that the number of Corona Virus cases is continuing to spike. On Friday, the Chief Justice just issued a fourth extension of the Statewide Judicial Emergency, and Judge McElyea just walked back her plans to reopen the courts in the Blue Ridge Judicial Circuit. The courts and the legal system will not be going back to business as usual anytime soon. There are predictions that CoVid-19 statistics will only get worse moving into the fall and winter when the flu season ramps up.

I will continue to respond to the challenges of operating an essential service in the fact of the CoVid-19 and having to do with the constraints of the judicial emergency orders that are designed to keep us all safe. That means that every day I continue to navigate the new normal and keep my business open to respond to the needs of my clients to the best of my ability.