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As parts of the world begin to reopen amid the coronavirus pandemic, many in-house lawyers are cautious but willing, under certain circumstances, to venture outside for continuing legal education and training, according to the latest COVID-19 member flash poll from the Association of Corporate Counsel. 

Of the 405 randomly selected ACC members who responded to the May 5-11 online poll, nearly 45% said they'd be willing to go to educational events—but only if health safety measures are being enforced, such as limited attendance, social distancing and having attendees wear personal protective equipment. The ACC has more than 45,000 in-house lawyer members throughout the world. 

"It's been hard to tell, until we got these numbers, about people's comfort levels and I think that with sort of conflicting points of view out there, it's kind of heartening that people do believe the safety measures are going to be sufficient," said Catherine Moynihan, assistant vice president of legal management services at the ACC.

More than 27% of respondents said it would take a widely available COVID-19 vaccine to get them to attend a CLE gathering. And about 3% reported that they were done with in-person education events and would only attend virtual events going forward.

Meanwhile, 17% said they would show up at an event as soon as the stay-at-home orders in their regions lifted. 

"A total of two-thirds are willing to attend in-person events once the quarantine orders are lifted. I think that's good news that people are willing to get out there," Moynihan said.

The poll also showed the impact that COVID-19 has had on in-house lawyers' educational opportunities. Nearly 70% reported that the pandemic had prevented them from attending training sessions since March 1. 

Interestingly, 36% of respondents said they typically attended virtual educational events live before the outbreak as opposed to on-demand recordings. But nearly 30% said they tuned in to both equally. 

"Continuing legal education is, of course, important and to some extent live participation is important," Moynihan said. 

Looking ahead, 46% of respondents expected their education and training budgets to decrease during the next year, compared with 3% who anticipated an increase. Nearly 30% thought their budgets would remain the same, while 21% were unsure about what was going to happen. 

"These poll results touch on the concerns and challenges our members are facing with respect to one of their core responsibilities," ACC president and CEO Veta Richardson said in a written statement.

The ACC's next flash poll will focus on in-house counsel wellness, "which is something we've been paying attention to pre-coronavirus," Moynihan said. 

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