No industry has been unaffected by the COVID-19 virus. With a severe downturn in the US economy, numerous businesses have reluctantly laid off many valued employees within the past eight months. To this end, the law industry is no exception, and in March, many US law-firms had to reduce staff, postpone programs, and ask partners to take a reduction in pay. Colby Wegman and the staff at Wegman Partners has been there, every step of the way, to help their large client base find new employment in other thriving law firms. Wegman Partner’s lawsuit attorneys, paralegals, and other legal professionals are known internationally and throughout the east coast for their professionalism and result-based work performance. Now that the economy has shown signs of recovery, many firms are taking measures to hire both old and new staff members to fill empty positions. While the full extent of COVID-19’s effect on the law industry is still unknown, Wegman Partners will review the major industry events that have taken place as a result of the pandemic.
Temporary Halt in Residential Evictions
Perhaps one of the most publicized and controversial events in the law industry during COVID-19 was the moratorium on evictions. During the first few months of COVID, many cities and states put a temporary halt on evictions to protect renters from homelessness and viral infection during the pandemic. There was, however, much confusion and contention following the announcement as many renters were served complaints for unpaid rent and given court date summons. While evictions have been halted until January 2020, landlords can still sue renters for unpaid rent. Many real – estate lawyers and their clients have since had to navigate the court system’s new implementation of virtual court sessions.
Virtual Court Proceedings
As with many other professions, remote connections have become popular in the legal industry as a way to continue to perform necessary judicial hearings while keeping employees and clients safe. However, many attorneys have found the change to virtual proceedings challenging and often frustrating. Dropped connections, hurried arguments, and interruptions have been some of the day-to-day challenges attorneys have faced since March. However, recent articles have pointed to the possibility of these changes becoming permanent, much to legal professionals’ chagrin.
Lawsuits against Universities
During April and the start of many universities’ spring semester, twenty-six US colleges were sued for tuition reimbursement. Although many universities switched to remote learning for their spring semester, some colleges such as Drexel University and another 25 universities continued to charge students for on-campus housing, extra-curricular activities, and unused campus facilities. The court date for Drexel University is still unknown; however, a hearing of this nature will set a precedent for other universities’ tuition pricing models during COVID-19.
