Risk and Practice Management
Disaster Planning
Lawyers should be prepared for anticipated disruptions to their practices that will occur when they, their staff, suppliers or clients are affected by a pandemic like the H1N1 virus or other disruption – either because they have contracted the virus, or have to stay home to care for someone who has. Many parents of young children may have to stay at home if schools or day cares are closed.
Your pandemic planning should include:
- Identifying critical components of your employees’ job functions, and the immediate cross training of all employees, so that critical functions are not left unattended
- Identifying who would monitor your files and meet your client commitments if you were unable to come to work
- A plan for hiring and training temporary employees to replace those who may not be able to come to work
- The development of leave policies for those affected by the virus, including ones which set out clearly when employees are expected to stay home (to avoid infecting others)
- Employee education on precautions to take to help safeguard everyone’s health
- Discussions on what functions could be done by some employees at home, together with what equipment would be needed to allow for this;
The Library and Information Services department of the Nova Scotia Barristers’ Society has put together an excellent Resource List to assist you in your pandemic planning. These resources include checklists and other tools that will help in your planning, communication and employee education.