Working parents find themselves caught in the crossfire—managing their lives and careers in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic and working through a child care crisis of epic proportions. The result? The potential for a long-term talent exodus that disproportionately impacts women and diverse attorneys or, for those who remain in the workforce, a professional framework that ends up unintentionally penalizing parents. The solution? Surprisingly, at least for a start, the demonstration of empathy and understanding by employers and leaders.

In "Call It a Crisis" we flagged the damage being done to working parents by the pandemic and outlined several initiatives that law firms might take to mitigate the impact on this group. Inspired by an overwhelming response to the article, we decided to ask parents what they needed, and to work on creating meaningful solutions and support. Thus, we designed the basis for this article, the Working Parents and COVID-19 Survey, the objectives of which were two-fold: to gather specific data on the impact of the child care crisis for lawyers, and to support and contribute to the design of real-world solutions across the legal industry.