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If everyone else has their door open, I would follow suit.
The boss likely cares.
So trash. It’s actually the culture of nonsensical uniformity that drives me insane in the legal profession.
I used to close my door a lot for the same reasons and it got back to me that the managing partner didn’t love it.
I eventually sought an accommodation for ADHD and being able to close my door was part of that. No one ever said anything after that
Good communication solves so many "problems."
My bosses don’t care whether I come into the office, so no.
Can you close it halfway? More privacy for you, yet still somewhat open.
People in our office have door hangers. They say you're in and busy, or come on in depending on their projects. Might be a good compromise.
I think my boss would prefer that everyone kept their door closed at all time lol
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My 2 cents: door closed for the duration of calls +15 minutes. If you want some privacy to do non-work related items, use that 15 minute window. Otherwise leave it open, given that’s what your company does.
It’s an old school cultural thing, if your door is closed when you’re not on a call, they assume you’re goofing off.
If you want to listen to music, get some over-ear headphones.
Saying that having the door open is a distraction (while maybe true) isn’t compelling to the powers that be.
They also assume you are busy.
I have always had mine open (except for sensitive internal calls) because (i) I prefer it and (ii) I remember the absolute anxiety it gave me to have to knock on a senior‘s door only to mishear and stumble into an ongoing call.
I wanted to add that the “door open” policy may be particularly intrusive for women. I am a woman and worked in an all-male group with this policy, and caught a partner looking down my shirt.
I don’t think an “open door” policy inherently encourages leering, and I think it would be very difficult to argue and prove a disparate impact claim based upon the existence of an open door policy.
Not even sure how it could argued to be a contributing factor absent some absurd other policies (eg - must have back to the doorway, etc) . I’m guessing there must be more to the story.
Most people keep them closed in my office but our front walls are all glass so it’s not like you get any privacy. Just dampens the sound.
Yep. We used to have frosted film on the glass but apparently firm leadership decided that privacy coating had to come down. So now it’s like we’re all in zoo enclosures.
I have the same issue (though other ppl keeping their door open isn’t as uniform in my office). I keep my door mostly shut, just cracked, 95% of the time, and I leave a sticky note on the door at eye level that says “Come on in!” I swap that w/a sticky note that says “On a call” and shut the door when I have a call. Works well for me, and I’ve even seen others copy it. Maybe your team would be okay with something like that?
I would try putting in-ear headphones to play music.
Some employers do care about keeping the door open but you may be able to work out an accommodation if you need it.
Lawyers have their own office to have control and privacy in their work space, following the crowd to keep yours open when you prefer it closed is not necessary
Idgaf if anyone cares. My office is right next to the conference room and elevator lobby and if I leave my door open I get too many people trying to chit chat with me as they wait for their meeting to start or head out or whatever. Plus I don't want to hear their meetings. If I am particularly slammed I'll leave the light off too.
My main partner cares, which I don’t mind bc hers is always open unless on a sensitive call. I play music all day and no one cares. If you get distracted, just close your door halfway.
These trivial, nitpicky control issues are just another reason I left private firm practice and haven’t looked back.
If we're being asked to come to the office 3-5 days a week so people can collaborate and ideas can be sparked, what is the point of doing so if everyone's door is closed? If we're to work together better, then having doors that are open or cracked ajar facilitate that. Otherwise people at the firm should just (be allowed to) work remotely most of the time. An office where all the doors are closed is not very welcoming or collaborative. I'd rather work remotely most of the time if in the office everyone's doors were closed most of the time.
At my current firm, doors are open unless people are on calls or in meetings or really need maximum concentration to knock something out. But generally, since people can work remotely twice a week, and partners are coming and going from hearings and trials, it's generally relatively calm and people can concentrate even with their doors open (especially when their desks are positioned so that they don't constantly see everyone who may be walking past their door on their way to somewhere else in the office).
No, my bosses and teammates all close their doors and also work with the lights off (with a window or a lamp lighting the office, but you can’t see it from outside) so no one has any idea if they’re in or not lmao I don’t think they like the RTO policy from higher ups and this is their form of rebellion
Having no doors to close kind of solves this dilemma. At my previous firm, even Partners sat on the open floor — everyone could hear each other on calls. In my current in-house role, only senior leaders have offices, and the rest of us are on the open floor, music on headset, with taps or calls to get attention. The biggest surprise? The top boss sits out there too — he’s just really chatty and approachable, and seems to genuinely enjoy collaborating. It actually makes the floor feel more open and connected.
Everyone here leaves doors open except when on a private or particularly noisy call, or in a meeting (and even then, sometimes just ajar). Except one associate. She keeps her door closed 95% of the time. Nobody tells her to close it, but they sure talk about it. It's not going to get her fired, but it's also not a great look.
Fair enough
Sometimes I do close my door, but I try to keep it open most of the time. Many attorneys in our office do it and frankly, I dislike it although I have not made an issue out of it with anyone. It isolate them from others who might want to seek their advice or ask for assistance on cases.
I’d say if you have something important that you need to complete or people are making a great bit of noise then sure but I would be selective about doing it because it does appear that you are isolating yourself.