Who
would
have
thought
that
in
2025,
Biglaw
firms
would
be
forced
onto
the
front
lines
in
a
battle
for
the
rule
of
law
against
the
president?
Faced
with
retaliatory
executive
orders,
four
firms
chose
to
challenge
the
unconstitutional
orders
in
court,
and
each
one
that
did
was
granted
summary
judgment.
One
of
those
firms
is
Jenner
&
Block,
and
after
a
year
of
protracted
litigation,
it’s
now
calling
attorneys
into
the
office
on
a
more
regular
basis.
Last
week,
the
firm
—
which
brought
in
$682,158,000
gross
revenue
in
2024,
putting
it
at
No.
83
on
the
most
recent
Am
Law
100
—
notified
associates
in
its
U.S.
and
London
offices
that
beginning
on
March
1.
2026,
they’d
be
expected
to
work
from
the
office
four
days
each
week,
on
Monday
through
Thursday.
The
firm
currently
requires
three
days
in
the
office
and
is
now
one
of
only
three
firms
ranked
in
the
Second
50
in
the
Am
Law
100
to
mandate
more
time
spent
on
site.
What
inspired
this
change?
The
American
Lawyer
has
additional
details:
The
firm’s
hiring
has
helped
lead
to
additional
investments
in
space,
which
the
memo
cites
in
making
the
change.“If
we
are
going
to
invest
in
space,
we
need
to
use
it
fully.
Major
firms
across
the
legal
industry
are
increasingly
moving
to
4
and
5
days
in-office
attendance.
And
so,
as
we
invest
in
new
office
space,
stay
in-line
with
our
peers,
and,
most
importantly,
prioritize
the
interest
of
maintaining
the
Jenner
culture
that
sets
us
apart
and
carries
us
forward
on
behalf
of
our
clients
and
each
other,
we
believe
in-office
collaboration
is
essential
to
excellence
in
our
work
and
service,”
the
memo
stated.
Quite
a
few
Biglaw
firms
are
now
requiring
four
days
in
the
office
firmwide,
including
the
likes
of A&O
Shearman; Cooley; Covington; Davis
Polk; Dechert
(junior
associates);
DLA
Piper (corporate
associates); Goodwin; Hogan
Lovells; Latham; Paul
Weiss; Reed
Smith;
Ropes
&
Gray; Sidley; Simpson
Thacher; Skadden; Vinson
&
Elkins; Weil
Gotshal; WilmerHale;
and
White
&
Case. Sullivan
&
Cromwell has
taken
its
attendance
policy
one
step
further,
requiring
attorneys
to
work
from
the
office
five
days
each
week.
As
soon
as
you
find
out
about
office
attendance
plans
at
your
firm,
please email
us (subject
line:
“[Firm
Name]
Office
Reopening”)
or
text
us
at (646)
820-8477.
We
always
keep
our
sources
on
stories
anonymous.
There’s
no
need
to
send
a
memo
(if
one
exists)
using
your
firm
email
account;
your
personal
email
account
is
fine.
If
a
memo
has
been
circulated,
please
be
sure
to
include
it
as
proof;
we
like
to
post
complete
memos
as
a
service
to
our
readers.
You
can
take
a
photo
of
the
memo
and
attach
as
a
picture
if
you
are
worried
about
metadata
in
a
PDF
or
Word
file.
Thanks.
Amid
RTO
Movement,
Jenner
&
Block
Calls
for
Four
Days
in
the
Office
[American
Lawyer]

Staci
Zaretsky is
the
managing
editor
of
Above
the
Law,
where
she’s
worked
since
2011.
She’d
love
to
hear
from
you,
so
please
feel
free
to
email
her
with
any
tips,
questions,
comments,
or
critiques.
You
can
follow
her
on Bluesky, X/Twitter,
and Threads, or
connect
with
her
on LinkedIn.
