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It's now been nine months since Susman Godfrey eclipsed other law firm parental leave policies with an announcement that all lawyers could take unlimited leave to bear and care for their young children.

Other law firms continue to roll out new gender-neutral policies that also feature more generous leave. On Monday, Kelley Drye & Warren became the latest, providing paid child care leave of up to eight weeks and childbirth and recovery leave of up to 20 weeks.

But no other firms have matched Houston-based national litigation firm Susman Godfrey, which has also exceeded the scale set by Cravath, Swaine & Moore for Big Law associate salaries and bonuses.

“Our goal was to allow associates, male and female, to decide what's right for them and their families in terms of leave and to allow them to do that without any restrictions from the firm,” said managing partner Neal Manne. 

In addition to being paid full salaries for as long as they wish to take leave, all new parents have their full bonuses protected for 12 weeks, and 18 weeks for mothers who give birth.

Manne said that he initially expected more associates would avail themselves of leave and that they would seek more time. Both have been borne out.

“It doesn't really affect the number of women taking leave. Women were always taking maternity leave. It does affect the amount of leave they're taking. That amount has crept up,” he said. “On the male side, we're seeing the biggest change.”

Manne said the change was accompanied by some messaging that aimed to make clear to male associates that the new policy was “not a joke.” The overall success of the initiative depended on men taking ample advantage of leave so that women did not feel constrained to limit their own absences, he said.

“When they see males taking off, not just with approval but with encouragement, they understand that our policy is real,” Manne added.

Los Angeles associate Krysta Pachman, who is currently on leave with her second child, offered support to Manne's assessment. She took 16 weeks of paid leave, the maximum at the time, when her son was born; this time she expects to use 20 weeks and return to the office after Labor Day. Knowing that her male colleagues were taking generous leave helped quell any doubts about being gone for that long.

“I think that's the most impactful part of the policy in terms of making women feel comfortable and taking whatever time they need,” she said. 

Seattle associate John Schiltz, who also had a child under the two different regimes, has heard similar sentiments. He took the maximum of four weeks available to fathers when his son was born. When the firm changed its policy a week before he was scheduled to return to work after his daughter was born, he elected to take two more months away after spending a month back in the office.

“I don't want to speak for my female colleagues, but I've heard from some of them that they really valued I took as much time as I could. In a way it makes them more comfortable doing that as well,” he said. “It's not a female associate reality, it's an associate reality.”

Together, they depict a firm culture that appears diametrically opposed to the depictions in recent law suits targeting Morrison & Foerster and Jones Day, where women who returned from maternity leave allegedly found their work environment changed dramatically.

“The firm is extremely supportive of working mothers. I've seen that right through my first pregnancy and coming back to work,” Pachman said. “It's a firm that's committed to helping women meet personal goals as well as professional goals.”

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