Paris, France

Hogan Lovells is encouraging its Paris-based staff to return to the office and "get used to coming back to work in the physical premises," the firm's Paris managing partner has said ahead of the French government's move to ease the country's lockdown.

The firm, which numbers 300 people in Paris including 150 lawyers, will be "fully open" on June 2, office leader Xenia Legendre said, with social distancing and hygiene precautions in place.

While returning to work will be voluntary, Legendre said, "we are somewhat relaxing our guidance and making it clear that people will be very welcome to come back."

Hogan Lovells' preparations for a return to office work include a two-person limit in the firm's three elevators, tape on the floor to mark social distancing, and a requirement to wear masks in public areas. Meetings will be limited in time and attendees, and staff who share offices will have their timetables or workspaces reorganized.

The new French government guidance, which is effective on June 2 for most of the country and being phased in for the Paris area, includes a de-emphasis on remote working, the reopening of more schools, and a gradual reopening of restaurants, bars, museums and other leisure activity locations.

Throughout the COVID-19 lockdown that began in France on March 17, Hogan Lovells staff have been working remotely. The firm continued encouraging remote working even after the first round of lockdown easing on May 11, although a handful of staff – mainly litigation teams who needed access to printers for document submissions – used the offices, Legendre said.

As the lockdown continues, "given the business environment, which is not really picking up, we decided to be more proactive in bringing people back," Legendre said.

In announcing the government's new guidance on Thursday, French Prime Minister Edouard Philippe underscored the importance of tackling France's economic crisis now that the health crisis seems to be abating. Official data released this week show a dramatic decline in new COVID-19 cases and a similarly dramatic decline in GDP for the year.

"Freedom will be the rule, not the exception," Philippe said in the nationally televised announcement.

Legendre said that, mathematically, the firm's offices could accommodate 50% of its workforce at any one time under the measures. She said she expected that around 30% of staff would return in the early stages, and that some people would choose to continue working remotely, at least part of the time, even after the crisis is past.

"Remote working functioned very well, but when you work from home there are no boundaries," Legendre said. "It can go both ways: Either you are working too much, which can lead to burnout, or you loosen up and can have a hard time maintaining the work mindset.

"Even with social distancing, there is value in being together," she said.

Last month, the firm introduced measures to alleviate the strain caused by the pandemic. Staff across its Belgium, France, Luxembourg and U.K. bases were placed on government furlough schemes.

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