I remember writing about our very first Legal Workflow Report back in 2021, based on data from 2020. That research came at a time of major change. Firms were navigating remote work, rethinking team structures, and trying to stay productive through uncertainty.
Now, five years later, we have the benefit of hindsight. We can clearly see how far we’ve come, and in some areas, how far we still have to go.
Remote Work and Support Staff Retention
- Then (2020): 58% of firms expected their support staff to work remotely three or more days a week.
- Now (2025): 84% of firms have adjusted office attendance requirements in the past year - and of those, 53% have increased the number of in-office days required for support staff.
The takeaway? While remote and hybrid models are now widely accepted in many industries, legal support professionals are being asked to return to the office more than others. In the same group of firms, only 29% increased lawyers’ required office days.
This imbalance sends a message, and support staff are noticing. Retention remains a challenge! Just 13% of firms reported a decrease in support staff turnover over the past year and, among firms reporting attrition, 20% cite hybrid working arrangements, or the lack thereof, as a contributing factor.
Of course, lawyers and support teams have different responsibilities, but optics matter. If firms want to hold on to their experienced administrative professionals, they need to think carefully about fairness and flexibility.
There’s a silver lining. Of those firms that changed their policies, 39% actually increased flexibility for support staff. That’s a step in the right direction, but more consistent approaches are needed to compete for talent in today’s market.
Support Team Structures Are Still Evolving
- Then (2020): 76% of firms had restructured or introduced support teams in the prior 12 months.
- Now (2025): That number has grown to 90%.
The move toward team-based support and centralized services continues to gain momentum. Done well, restructuring delivers better lawyer productivity, more efficient task delegation, and reduced overhead.
Here’s the catch. Not all firms are approaching restructuring with the same level of data or clarity. Without visibility into workloads and performance metrics, these changes can fall short. They can end up costing time, money, and trust.
To build efficient support structures, firms need to understand who’s doing what, when, and how well. When tasks are centralized and assigned based on skill, urgency, and availability, everything improves. Service delivery becomes more consistent, and profitability follows.
Workflow Technology: The Missing Link
If there’s one thing that’s become clearer over the past five years, it’s this: solving retention challenges and inefficiencies isn’t about choosing between flexibility and structure, it’s about enabling both with the right tools.
Many firms resistant to hybrid working cite visibility as a concern. However, with BigHand Workflow Management, visibility isn’t an issue. Every task and handoff is trackable. It doesn’t matter if someone is working in the office or remotely. Leaders can see who’s doing what, where capacity sits, and where the bottlenecks are.
That same transparency enables smarter decisions around team structure. By reviewing data on peak periods and delegation patterns, firms can design workflows and support models that match their real needs.
Today, 51% of firms already use workflow technology. Another 11% plan to implement it soon. These firms are taking steps toward better structure and greater flexibility. Plus, they’re more likely to retain talent, control costs, and deliver great client service along the way.
Legal support roles have always been essential to the success of law firms, and that’s not changing. What is changing is how we empower these professionals. With the right policies and the right technology, firms can build workplaces where support staff feel valued and set up to succeed.
for more critical insights about the evolving role of legal support.
