Influenced by US Lawyers, UK Attorneys Relax Dress Rules, Experiment with Skinny Ties, Bright Socks
Influenced by United States law firm casual dress trends, British attorneys are starting to loosen up on their traditional suit-and-tie-at-all-times attire.
But they are far from adopting the attorney “beachwear” accepted at Los Angeles-based Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan, where a founding partner recently told the careerist that the firm prohibits bare feet only because their insurance company requires shoes of some kind, according to the Guardian.
Casual dressers among the British bar are pushing the envelope with apparel such as skinny ties and the brightly colored socks favored by television newscaster Jon Snow. But even that relatively restrained approach is apparently raising some eyebrows.
“The ideal we strive for is the preppy Ralph Lauren look: chinos, a shirt and loafers,” solicitor Kevin Poulter of Bircham Dyson Bell tells the newspaper. “But let’s just say that it doesn’t always work out quite as nicely as in the Ralph Lauren adverts.”
Related coverage:
ABAJournal.com: “Quinn Emanuel Takes Casual Dress to the Flip-Flops Level”
ABAJournal.com: “BigLaw Email Bans Short Skirts and Stiletto Heels, Asks Women to Please Brush Their Hair”
Komodo: “Jon Snow and his technicoloured socks”
