Little Mangaldases

Amarchand Mangaldas, Delhi, today announced that it would be opening a crèche on the ground floor of its Okhla office. The firm stated that the crèche is "an initiative to support and celebrate all its women lawyers, who have helped script the firm's success story, for over two decades now."

Amarchand's announcement has sparked a debate on resource management in law firms, especially since, both in United States and in India, law firms are not generally recognized as family-friendly work environments.

Amarchand Mangaldas, Delhi, today announced that it would be opening a crèche on the ground floor of its Okhla office. The firm stated that the crèche is "an initiative to support and celebrate all its women lawyers, who have helped script the firm's success story, for over two decades now."

Insofar as we have been able to discover, Amarchand Delhi is the only law firm to provide this facility on-site. The crèche is funded personally by Managing Partner Shardul Shroff, and will be inaugurated on December 12.

Amarchand Partner Akila Agrawal, who launched the initiative, told Bar & Bench that the Delhi office has 10 mothers and several expectant mothers. Agrawal, who has two children, aged 5 years and 6 months, said that the crèche would add value to the firm, since it meant that mothers would not have to take time off if the regular childcare provider was unavailable. She dismissed any suggestion that the working hours for law firms are not conducive to working mothers, saying, "Technology has made many things possible. I can now work from home, and ensure that I am home with my children at a reasonable hour. It is all about time management."

Not every law firm lawyer is in agreement with this sentiment, however. A former AZB associate, who left the firm after her marriage, says, "The working environment in a firm is not conducive to married women, especially to new mothers. You won't find too many working mothers in AZB, and the few who do work there do so on a strict time schedule. This means that they will be there for their families, but it also means that the kind of work they get is not on the same level as people with fewer commitments."

Madhurima Mukherji, Partner at Luthra, Delhi, feels that a childcare centre is a good idea, but perhaps not absolutely necessary if the firm is accommodative and flexible about timing for working mothers. However, she adds a rider, "If I'm working fewer hours, then I think it is only fair that I receive lesser compensation, because otherwise it would be unfair to my male colleagues and the others who are working longer hours."

Amarchand's announcement has sparked a debate on resource management in law firms. Both in United States and India, law firms are not generally recognized as family-friendly work environments. Lawyers who work with corporate entities generally fare better than their law firm counterparts when it comes to benefits like on-site childcare. All major companies in India, including Infosys, Wipro and Tata have on-site crèches for their employees. Perhaps it is time for law firms in India to consider a more personal and considerate relationship with their most valuable resource?