As
we
enter
year
three
of
the
pandemic,
we
know
all
the
tropes.
Yes,
we’ve
made
sourdough.
We’ve
binged
Tiger
King.
And
a
bunch
of
folks
got
dogs.
Now
that
going
back
to
the
office
is
looking
like
more
and
more
of
a
reality,
the
question
is,
what
do
we
do
with
little
Fluffy
now?
The
ABA
Journal
reports
on
a
growing
trend
of
lawyers
who
simply
refuse
to
go
back
to
the
office
if
Fido
can’t
come
along.
Like
Ruth
Carter,
who,
when
offered
a
new
job
said
simply,
“Great,
I
come
with
a
dog.”
The
stories
of
attorneys
and
their
pets
really
show
the
lengths
some
will
go
to
in
order
to
ensure
their
dog
can
be
with
them:
David
Reischer,
an
attorney
and
CEO
with
LegalAdvice.com,
says
he
always
planned
on
being
self-employed,
specifically
because
he
wanted
to
be
with
his
dog
at
all
times.
He’s
had
six
dogs
since
childhood,
and
now
he
can’t
imagine
being
separated
from
his
pet.Reischer’s
current
dog
is
Winter,
a
pit
bull
terrier
mix
with
lots
of
energy
who
just
turned
7.
She
needs
to
go
to
the
park
twice
a
day—or
else
she
becomes
rambunctious
and
will
tear
up
the
house—and
Reischer
is
happy
to
oblige.“Working
at
home
with
Winter
is
so
important
because
her
breed
is
a
very
energetic
type,
and
she
needs
constant
walks
to
burn
off
energy,”
Reischer
says.
“Thankfully,
I
am
self-employed,
so
I
am
able
to
bring
Winter
to
the
office
when
I
need,
and
I
mostly
work
from
home.”
Or
this
attorney
who
would
move
offices
if
there
were
no
pets
allowed:
Kris
Parker,
a
co-founding
attorney
and
partner
at
Hendry
&
Parker
in
Dunedin,
Florida,
has
a
12-year-old
Boston
terrier
whom
he
brings
to
the
law
office
daily.
Parker
says
Dunkin
is
a
cheerful
dog
who
lifts
the
morale
of
visitors
and
attorneys
alike.
The
clients
know
his
name
and
look
forward
to
seeing
him.“Law
offices
and
legal
matters
can
be
intimidating,
and
Dunkin
takes
some
of
that
edge
off
for
most
of
our
clients,”
Parker
says.
“If
he
were
not
permitted
in
our
office,
I
would
probably
look
into
working
somewhere
he
is
welcome.”
This
attorney
uses
her
dog
as
a
screening
tool
for
new
hires:
Maria
Barlow,
a
Chicago
solo,
got
two
pandemic
puppies
during
the
lockdown.
When
she
returned
to
the
office,
she
brought
her
terriers
without
blinking
an
eye.“I
will
not
hire
new
staff
who
do
not
like
dogs—or
whom
my
dogs
do
not
like,”
Barlow
says.
If
clients
are
scared
of
her
dogs,
she
leaves
the
puppies
at
home
briefly
during
her
lunch
break,
meets
with
the
clients
and
runs
home
to
grab
her
dogs.
She
also
doesn’t
take
in-person
cases
if
she
knows
they
are
in-person
in
advance—so
that
she
can
always
be
present
with
her
dogs.
If
absolutely
necessary,
Barlow
says,
she
sends
her
dogs
to
their
pup
nanny.
And
if
she
ever
needs
to
quickly
run
to
court
because
someone
is
going
into
custody,
she
leaves
her
dogs
with
her
staff.
But
most
of
these
anecdotal
stories
feature
small
practices
or
self-employed
attorneys.
Not
sure
Biglaw
would
be
nearly
as
accommodating
of
Spot.
Kathryn
Rubino
is
a
Senior
Editor
at
Above
the
Law,
host
of
The
Jabot
podcast,
and
co-host
of
Thinking
Like
A
Lawyer.
AtL
tipsters
are
the
best,
so
please
connect
with
her.
Feel
free
to
email
her with
any
tips,
questions,
or
comments
and
follow
her
on
Twitter
(@Kathryn1).