Check E-Mail Hourly, Quinn Partner Says, Unless in Court, in Tunnel or Asleep

AndytheLawyer
Oct 19, 2009 11:15 AM CST

Presumably this will limit Quinn Emmanuel attorneys’ sexual encounters to 59 minutes, unless a new form of multitasking becomes socially acceptable.

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DKR
Oct 19, 2009 11:41 AM CST

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B. McLeod
Oct 19, 2009 2:18 PM CST

Asleep?  What!?

Being asleep should not be an excuse.  “Associates” can easily set their alarms to wake them every hour on the hour, to check for the (unlikely, but possible) E-mail actually sent by a partner after 5:00 (some may have their blackberries at the local bar, or on the golf course).  Another alternative to accomplish the same goal would be to implant small electrodes just under the “associates’” eyelids, to give them a jolt of electricity every hour.  That would stop the goofing around.  They can sleep when they’re laid off!

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B. McLeod
Oct 20, 2009 9:16 AM CST

Actually, I think Tim has this one.  The E-mails probably contain some basic information and directions the junior woodchuck needs to start the assignment.  You can pretty well bet the time spent reading the E-mail is going to be billed.

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Solo
Oct 20, 2009 11:13 AM CST

He sent the email to the associate at 7:30pm. Did the partner really think the client was sitting by his fax machine at 7:30pm anxiously awaiting it?  And if the partner thought the client WAS, then why didn’t he place a phone call – to that VERY SAME BLACKBERRY—and thus get positive confirmation that the associate checked his email?

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B. McLeod
Oct 20, 2009 9:07 PM CST

Yes.  I think that is pretty much the practice everywhere.

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kasey
Oct 21, 2009 9:03 AM CST

It is true that the associate should have checked his (or her) email once more before completing calling it a night, just in case he received some information that required a substantive change to the project.  I know that this is what I would have done (and continue to do today) when I was an associate.  However, Mr. Urqhart is not entirely blameless. If it was crtical tuhat the client receive this document that evening. and given that Mr. Urquhart was in still in the office at 7:30, he should have WALKED to the associates office or CALLED the associate to verify receipt of the email and the instruction to send to the client. That he could not be bothered to do so, suggests to me that he was actually more interested in testing the associate and later making an example of him, rather than providing impeccable client service.  Finally, Mr. Uruqhart’s decison to then publicize the error in this manner (an act that no doubt embarassed this poor associate) makes me think he is also a bit of a bully.

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Michael
Oct 21, 2009 10:30 AM CST

This guy pulls the same “The economy is sucko so we have to completely toss aside all progress on making this a reasonable working environment” crap I see in many other places now.

The economy sucks, but the success of tomorrow won’t go to those who just do the old thing even harder. It will go to those who figure out how to break out of this insane system that is in its death throes and move on.

This memo writer is just trying to save his dead horse by bullying yet another associate to drag it down the road for him and pretend it’s going to win the Derby next week. Hopefully the associate figures it out soon.

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Tim Faith
Oct 23, 2009 3:56 AM CST

Two reactions come to mind.  First, this illustrates for me that arbitrary rules about anything waste time and resources, demoralize staff, and in the end, are not effective.  Checking your email once an hour?  Why not every 38.2 minutes? Why not once a month?  A better rule would be to have clear expectations at the onset about who is doing what, when by having a project plan for the engagement.  Second, this also illustrates how far behind the technology curve this firm is.  If you don’t want to be bothered with actually seeing someone in person in your office to communicate a last minute imperative, have you thought about using a secure instant messaging system that would tell you if the person you are messaging is actually around?  It isn’t like that’s such a new or difficult thing to use.  But here the technology isn’t the problem - it is the silly expectations of those using it.

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John
Oct 23, 2009 4:26 AM CST

If it was that important that the draft go out that night, the partner should have communicated that to his associate earlier.  Also, when I need something immediately, I PICK UP THE PHONE.  Email is great for many things but not all.  Expecting an email sent late in the day to be seen before the next day is rather optimistic.  The partner dropped the ball and should focus instead on improving his communication skills rather than berating his associates and looking like an oppressive ass.  If I wanted to be on call 24 hours a day, I would have become a doctor - not a lawyer.

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Bush One
Oct 23, 2009 5:34 AM CST

Urquhart is a Faquad.  Do you think that if the associate had checked the email, and had a question, thus sending a follow-up emaill, that Urquhart would have responded within an hour?  Please.

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Rob P.
Oct 23, 2009 5:50 AM CST

If it was that important that the draft go out that night, the partner should have sent it.  It would have been no more effort to send an e-mail to the client than it was to send an e-mail to the associate.

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Bill
Oct 23, 2009 6:04 AM CST

Those who are Firefighters and EMTs have the heart and hypertension laws to protect them which provide lifetime benefits following on the job stress.  I wonder if this crackput has considered the affect this has on the person. 

I volunteer on an ambulance on the weekends.  I can tell you Johnie the client isn’t dying over whatever his life’s grand issue is. 

Everyone needs down time to release the stress.  I don’t care what the issue is, after working 12 hours, I’m not checking email at home for the firm.  This is simply stupidity and a firm who has crossed the boundaries of decency.  Perhaps the associates should unionize.  This sounds like labor tactics from the 1930’s era.  After all, are these guys slaves?

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Mamalaw
Oct 23, 2009 6:29 AM CST

I don’t know whether to laugh or cry.  I know lots of lawyers checking email hourly.  It is a completely insane standard to devolve into.  I’m not sure whether to laugh at this guy for his insanity or cry at the ABA for deigning to make this a news item that potentially (and I am sure unintentionally) supports a trend toward devoiding lawyers of any sense of a life.  Of course, never fear.  Soon we will have androids built in India or China to do this for us and we will all be out of jobs - and the headlines will read - “Lawyers fail to check email every hour - Androids take over.”

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Small FIrm Attorney
Oct 23, 2009 7:03 AM CST

I agree with Bill - Big Law Job, Big Law Money, Big Law Life. The associate is getting paid how much? Is it too much to ask to respond to a partner’s email? I also find it difficult to believe that a young person would not be checking their emails if they have a blackberry UNLESS they were sleeping. So, maybe the associate did check the email, but just ignored it.

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Thomas
Oct 23, 2009 7:17 AM CST

…and that’s why I left BigLaw. I had my epiphany during a weekly meeting when one senior associate reminded everybody that she was about to go on her honeymoon the next week and she would be out of touch for the week (she had sent around a memo and provided coverage for all of her assignments, etc.). The partner was furious and berated her in front of the group telling her that unless she had her crackberry with her at all times, she wouldn’t have a job when she came back. We all thought he was kidding, but it soon became apparent that he was quite serious when he added “And your hotel better have a working fax machine!”

I’m now a founding partner of a much smaller law firm whose corporate culture recognizes quality of life… largely because all of the partners are shell-shocked from BigLaw abuses. I always explain to clients that unless it’s an emergency, we can’t be reached after 7:30 or on weekends and I remind them that this is how we keep down the billables. To date every client I’ve had this discussion with has thanked me and often adds that a well-balanced attorney is one they would rather have on their jobs.

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EJCroft
Oct 23, 2009 7:23 AM CST

As an attorney practicing in a county seat town in Iowa, this story helps me to better appreciate life here where our jackasses are on farms and the practice of law is more enjoyable.

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Matt
Oct 23, 2009 7:32 AM CST

As a client, I want a focused, efficient, and effective lawyer.  Not an overtired, overstretched, burnt out, constantly “on” one.  Lawyers who are forced to forego the human need for downtime and restorative rest because less effective, less efficient, and worse.

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Abner Stanwick
Oct 23, 2009 7:36 AM CST

Who ONLY checks their email hourly?  It pops up automatically on my computer screen and phone all day long.  I wish I could only check it hourly.  Quit your whining planktons.

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Glenn
Oct 23, 2009 7:53 AM CST

Amazingly, Law Practice Management committees and private management counselors suggest looking at email twice daily. Once in the morning, once in the afternoon so that you can keep on task with what you have set out to accomplish during the course of the day. Otherwise, you become a captive audience to whatever email is received and then you run off and address the content of the email and not what you have to accomplish for court cases in the next week.

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government gal
Oct 23, 2009 8:07 AM CST

I might make half or less of what big firm folks do but it is totally worth it not to have to put up with this kind of nonsense.

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Hadley V. Baxendale
Oct 23, 2009 8:25 AM CST

law students: here’s the deal: take a job at $40,000 a year and work 8 hours a day.
Take one at $80,000 and work 10 hours a weekday plus one half-day on a weekend, night, etc.. Take one at $160,000 and work 20 hours a day. Your choice but those are the terms.
The Biglaw job is really just 2 shifts at the same factory.
And as for maknig partner? It’s been well said that it’s like a pie eating contest where the prize is more pie (

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friedtoad
Oct 23, 2009 8:43 AM CST

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Steve
Oct 23, 2009 8:53 AM CST

If it was so urgent the high and mighty partner could pick up the phone… or pick up his tukus and walk himself down the hall to the associate’s office to deliver the message via human contact.  Or…better yet. Send an e-mail himself.  If he’s a dinosaur, he could have his secretary do it.  Technology created redundancies, it did not replace good old fashioned forms of human contact or managerial oversight.

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Email_is_so_1995
Oct 23, 2009 9:07 AM CST

This partner doesn’t know it, but he just illustrated one of the biggest reasons for post-email technologies like IM, SMS, micro-blogging, etc.  Email is . . . well . . . electronic mail, and letter-writing is horribly inefficient for certain types of communication.  Around the house, people doing chores don’t coordinate efforts by writing notes to each other and sticking them up in predetermined places.

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