A handful of governors say they're ready to reopen their states for business in the coming weeks, while many more states' shelter-in-place orders are set to expire at the beginning of May. But even if certain jurisdictions give businesses the green light to reopen, law firms, which have largely shifted to remote work during the last two months, say they're not planning to get everyone back in the office quite yet.

States are already planning to reopen their economies in waves. Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp said the state would reopen gyms, barber shops, tattoo parlors, and elective surgery on April 24, with other businesses to follow. Also on Friday, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott will reopen retailers for to-go business and may allow restaurants and bars to reopen on April 27 with social distancing.

And some states, such as South Dakota and Iowa, never issued shelter-in-place mandates, while others, including California, Kentucky, Maryland, New Jersey and Oregon, have shut down business indefinitely.

For most Am Law 200 firms, many of which have offices in multiple states and abroad, the transition to working from home was swift, even for an industry that historically values face time and in-person connections. With the federal government deferring to states—and, in turn, some states deferring to municipalities—getting people back into the office will be a different story, taking longer in some places than in others.

"You can turn an economy off pretty quickly," said Jim Cotterman, a principal at consulting firm Altman Weil who, among other issues, focuses on law firm economics. "But when you flip the switch back on, it takes longer."

Cotterman said firms will have to coordinate regionally, as some states have done, and seek guidance from local officials about how to get back into the office. Even so, just having the blessing of the political apparatus should not be enough, he said. 

"I certainly wouldn't want to do anything ahead of the politicians, but wouldn't necessarily be following them," he said.

Cotterman compared it to turning off stadium lights: they shut off quickly, but in order to turn them back on, they need to slowly warm up and gradually shed more light.

"It is going to be more complicated than people expect," he said. "For example, what if your firm's office in Philadelphia opens back up, but the workforce is mostly located in New Jersey and that state still has restrictions?"

Vincent McGuinness, managing partner of Cozen O'Connor, an Am Law 100 firm with 30 offices, has been grappling with this question for months. He said his firm's COVID-19 plan was divided into three phases.

"Phase one was getting everyone working remotely," he said. "Phase two was making sure everyone was able to work and remain healthy. Now we are in phase three: Getting people back into the office, balancing economics with employee health and safety."

For firms such as Cozen O'Connor, which have offices in many different regions as well as offices in major cities hit harder by the pandemic, any plan to reopen doors has to be regional.

McDermott Will & Emery, which has 13 U.S. offices, seven in Europe and a presence in Asia, will also reopen with a regional approach, said chairman Ira Coleman. But it's not as simple as following local guidelines, he said. The firm is considering multiple issues in determining when to reopen any of its locations.

"We will do test cases for getting people back in," Coleman said, noting that lawyers and staff may make certain requests to feel safe at work. "Can we provide them masks? If a client comes in, do we have to take their temperature? Should we ask them if they have had an immunity test?"

Coleman said there are some issues every one of McDermott's offices will have to deal with, including safety protocol for deliveries and in common areas such as coffee stations, cafeterias and restrooms.

"Some offices are easier than others, but we all love our cafes, for example, and eating together," he said. "So, do I have to shut down the office's refrigerators? Coffee? Do we make our hallways one-way so people don't have to pass each other?"

With a full office, those questions become more difficult to answer.

Even Regional Firms Take It Slow

As behemoth Big Law firms strategize and navigate patchwork regulations across the country, small and midsize firms, many of which have a single office or a geographic footprint in one state or region, are on the front lines of deciding whether to reopen their doors when their local and state governments give the go-ahead.

"We remain cautious, and our preference is to have the entire firm at the same status," said Brad Harmon, chairman of Hunter Maclean, a Georgia law firm with offices in Savannah and St. Simons Island.

Harmon said his firm started transitioning to remote work at the beginning of March on an at-will basis and closed offices on March 22 after the mayor of Savannah issued a shelter-in-place order. Gov. Kemp followed suit with a statewide order a week later.

Harmon said he's in no hurry to get his lawyers back to the office, despite the advantages of having everyone under one roof.

"We anticipated getting an order at some point in May that Georgia would attempt to open back up, but we're going to be very cautious about that," he said. "Working from home is not ideal, because at a law firm, the genesis of ideas that comes from people brainstorming together is not the same when people aren't in the office."

Still, he said: "We're not adjusting our status right now, but we'll play it by ear—the health of our employees comes first."

In Texas, another state whose governor is moving to restart the economy, Munck Wilson Mandala managing partner Bill Munck said he is not relying solely on state and local leaders' green light as a sign to resume business as usual in the firm's Austin and Dallas offices.

Even if all of his lawyers are allowed to come back to the office, he said, he feels he has a duty to be as flexible as possible because of school closures and other ways the coronavirus has upended his lawyers' lives.

"We're really aware of how this impacts primary caregivers, especially moms, and we want to make sure to make accommodations so the kids are taken care of," he said. "I'm not going to force somebody to come to work. I trust the people I have to work remotely, and the work is getting done."