Practising law over a long period of time has meant dealing with technological change, more prescriptive laws and more demanding real time deadlines.
For three long-term partners of McCullough Robertson Lawyers, most of the fundamentals of the law have remained the same over the decades.
But electronic communication has sped up processes and expectations, and that has put extra pressure on work-life balance and deadlines, while also reshaping how lawyers manage time and client service.
This often means more drafts of documents, a broader range of rules for clients to deal with and just more noise in general in the processes.
The McR partners have observed over the years a move away from broad judicial discretion towards laws with less wriggle room and more specific direction.
Many clients are also increasingly looking for long-term business-advice partnerships with their lawyers, not just legal advice on issues as they arise.
As part of a series of features to mark McCullough Robertson’s 100 years celebrations, Newsreel spoke with partners Dominic McGann, Stuart Macnaughton and Jason Munstermann to explore the changing nature of the profession.
Below are some of their observations.
Dominic is a Partner in McR’s Project Approvals and Compliance team, and a recognised Indigenous, government, renewables, and resources expert with over 40 years’ experience.
Some things stay the same
“In some respects, the more things change, the more they remain the same. There’s no doubt technology has profoundly influenced what we need to do, but three things I regard as foundational remain the case.
That is:
- You have to act in a way to ensure our clients succeed.
- You have to work with your colleagues in a way which ensures that you’re able to function as a team and service the clients effectively
- You need to make a contribution to the community
The drift to prescription
“As a whole, I think that there has been a drift to prescription within the law. There’s a lot more complexity, and that’s simply because there’s a lot more that is being particularised and an increasing desire for certainty. When I started, there was a lot more discretion – involving judgement, balance, principles-based advice. Nowadays, increasingly things are specifically prescribed in law, and that requires some different skills.”
Not just legal advice
“I think most lawyers aspire to be what we’d call trusted advisors. That is, you’re not just giving legal advice. You know your client’s business intimately and you are helping them grow and succeed, and that comes through experience. Not all clients want it, but particular clients continue to put a significant premium on it, especially in more complex commercial environments.
Reflections
“I think the great things about working at McCullough Robertson are that it is generous, collegiate and very egalitarian. In terms of the values, everybody is an equal. Everybody has a contribution to make.
If I knew what I know now when I started my journey at 22, I would not have hesitated to commence it. It is a journey. There’s an incredible breadth within a legal career and an incredibly broad landscape within that journey.”
Stuart is a Partner in McR’s Planning & Environment team. He leads a team of lawyers who practice in town planning, property development, local government and environmental law, and has practised exclusively in those areas for over 35 years.
The changing technology
Technology has obviously changed the way we work and timing. “Back in the day, we used to get something urgent on a roll of thermal fax paper. Now you get an email with a range of attachments and then a follow-up text message from the client saying: ‘Have you read that’? ‘When can I get the advice’? That goes hand in hand with (and has shaped) changing client expectations.”
More complexity
“I think the complexity of the legal environment has multiplied many 10s of times since I started, in the planning environment sector anyway. So many of the things now regulated simply weren’t in the early 1990’s, and some were years off being recognised at all.
It used to be very much a background of broad judicial discretion as to how the Court decided planning cases. Now it’s very prescriptive about the things they decision maker must and may take into account. Judgments used to be around 10-20 pages, but now they can run to the 100’s in complex matters.
There is also the interplay between levels of government which impacts so many areas. You’ve got local government, state, and federal, and often they have different requirements about the same subject matter, and you’ve got to navigate through that.”
The client relationship
“It all comes down to the human connection, and the relationships. The law is really the background for what we do and the advice that we give. But it is much more than just a straight yes or no legal question. As Dominic said, it is a journey and its iterative.”
Are clients less inclined to go to court?
It depends on who your client is. We’ve got clients who are prepared to spend significant sums on legal teams and experts to add many millions to the value of a property by getting a favourable approval through the planning court in the face of adversity. The costs can be large, but so too the gain.
We’re all required to go through alternate dispute resolution processes and practices but at least in our practice, there is very much a baseline of often needing going to court to achieve the particular outcomes. If ADR does not resolve a matter, the Court will, but we always try.”
Reflections
“The culture at McCullough Robertson is very collegiate, open and honest. It’s a very pleasant place to be. If people like coming to work and like working with their teams and our clients, then they’re going to keep coming back and doing it well. Without that culture, the firm would not be the same, and I wouldn’t have stayed for nearly 28 years.
I still encourage people to do law. I see it as a very fulfilling profession. The work that we do and the people we work with are key. The main thing is to do your absolute utmost to get a good start in a good reputable firm with relatable people – that makes the job easier and enjoyable, and the rest will follow.”
With over 30 years’ experience in commercial litigation and investigations, Jason is a Partner in McR’s Litigation and Dispute Resolution team and heads the firm’s Sydney office.
Changing expectations
“I think the pace of expectations for practitioners is probably the biggest step change for me. You can get something at 5.30pm and there is an expectation that it is answered early the next morning. You can receive a court application after standard business hours and be expected to turn up the next morning at 10am ready for the hearing. That was just something that was physically impossible to achieve when I started practice. There is no way that that could be done without the technology we have now.
Always on
“Today everyone is always contactable – including our junior staff and clients. When I first started – before mobile phones and email – that was not possible. There’s a real blurring (between work and private lives). That can make for very a challenging balancing act because we’re ultimately in a service industry and you want to service your clients well.
Complexity
“I think the environments that our clients are operating in have become more complex both in a regulatory context and just in terms of what they’re doing. The problems that they’re coming to me with are more complex and involve multifaceted issues. There is just a lot more legislation and consumer protection in place that they have to navigate their way through.
Hard but rewarding
Being a lawyer, being a private practitioner can be hard. It’s a difficult job but it is one that continues to evolve in scope and the impact that can be made. In litigation, at times there can be moments of intense pressure and stress. But you find ways to successfully manage that personally and provide support across the internal and client teams. Taking all this on can be hard, but that’s what makes it a very rewarding profession to be in. I get a great deal of satisfaction out of what I do because at the end of the day, I’m helping people. That’s what gets me out of bed in the morning and coming in – mentoring lawyers and guiding clients through the hard stuff.
