Office Sharing for Law Firms: Put Empty Offices to Work

Few workplaces have as many private offices as a law firm, and few have them sitting empty as often. Partners spend days in court, at depositions, at client sites or traveling. Meanwhile, associates share cramped rooms, summer associates work from conference rooms, and lawyers visiting from another office hunt for somewhere to take a confidential call.

Office sharing fixes that without taking anyone's office away.

Why law firms are a perfect fit

• Private offices are the norm. Most attorneys have a door that closes, so an empty office is a real, usable room.
• Schedules are known in advance. Trial dates, hearings and client meetings are on the calendar weeks ahead, so office holders know which days they'll be out.
• Confidential work needs privacy. Calls with clients and opposing counsel shouldn't happen in an open workspace or a hallway.
• Visitors are common. Lawyers from other offices, co-counsel and new laterals all need somewhere to work for a few days.

How it works in a firm

1. Office holders offer their office for the days they'll be away: in trial, at a deposition, on vacation. It takes a few taps, and they keep the office on every other day.
2. Associates, clerks and visitors request one for the days they'll be in.
3. Requests are matched automatically, first come, first served. If nothing is free, the request waits in line and gets the next office that opens up.
4. Everyone sees one schedule, so the front desk knows who's in which office and nobody walks into a room that's already taken.

Keep it professional

A partner's office holds more than a desk. Set clear expectations before you start:

• Clear confidential files from the desk before your away days, and lock drawers and cabinets.
• Guests never open drawers, read papers or log in to the office holder's computer.
• Leave the office exactly as you found it, and say thanks.

Our etiquette guide and Community Guidelines cover the rest.

Getting started

OfficeSwap is built for exactly this. Set up your firm at officeswap.co, scan your printed staff directory to add every office in seconds, and share one access code with your colleagues. Offices are only ever shared among people in your firm. Every plan starts with a 30-day free trial.