The Managing Partner’s thoughts on new ways of working

Over the last 18 months many people who previously would have been opposed to video conference calls, signing documents remotely and taking advice without ever visiting our offices have embraced these and other measures. 

Arrangements in Courts and Tribunals for the expansion of remote hearings that might have been expected to have crawled forward, have be urgently implemented and British society has accepted the change. Our staff have worked miracles to continue to service work inside our premises and from their homes, while juggling their personal bereavements, their health and the needs of children and dependants.

Had the pandemic hit, say 10 or 20 years ago, the solutions to keep the wheels of the law running would have been different. The IT used by the majority of people today, broadband and smartphone especially, would simply have been unavailable. It was extremely helpful to Thomson & Bancks (and to our clients) that our technology and systems were already in place to cope with the demands of “the new normal”. The increased use of technology would have happened in any event, but the pandemic has accelerated the exploitation of everything that can be done to carry out work without being physically together. It has demonstrated to me the strengths of Partners and staff who can work outside the constraints of normal office premises and business hours; and also the strengths of those who can maintain office working and traditional hours to free up their colleagues to work flexibly. Whereas one size does not fit all circumstances, a complete diversity of arrangements does not suit everyone or every business.

The challenge for Thomson & Bancks (in common with businesses in general) is to conserve all that is valuable from the last 18 months, while refreshing traditional opportunities for training, supervision and team working that were previously conducted in person. It has remained our strength that our hub is in pleasant towns within Gloucestershire, Worcestershire and Warwickshire; that we have modern systems to protect our clients; and we are blessed with good people who have worked tirelessly to do their very best for clients. These are the strengths of being local, trusted and dedicated… which by no coincidence is an expression we continue to use to promote Thomson & Bancks Solicitors.

Paul Johnson

Paul’s areas of expertise centre around employment and business law. The County Court cases he has handled over the past 25+ years have been many and varied, with a broad range of property, business, agricultural and commercial disputes.

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Catch up with Paul N Johnson’s previous blog posts

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