Is working part time an obstacle to attaining partnership? Not at Maddocks, which has just promoted building regulation expert Bronwyn Weir to the partnership in the construction and major projects group. Weir has worked part time at Maddocks for the past seven years and will continue to work part time in her new role as a partner.

"Part time partners are not common, but I think we'll see more of them in the future," says Weir. High expectations relating to billable hours are often cited as a barrier for part timers, but Maddocks has a pro rata billing system which allows part timers to demonstrate high performance against this particular criterion.

The transition to part time can be difficult at first as strong forward planning skills are needed: "You can't simply defer something or say that you'll do it tomorrow because you might not be in the office tomorrow, or you might need to use that time for another task." says Weir, "Developing that kind of efficiency and managing your expectations of what you can achieve is not always an easy adjustment."

Part time work is most commonly associated with women with family commitments, but Maddocks has also seen male lawyers go down the part time route to pursue interests such as travel or learning a new language. "It's a way of holding onto talent which might otherwise be lost," says Weir. 

Retaining talent is a theme which was prevalent during the boom times preceding the credit crunch, but it may be equally relevant in a downturn. Rather than engaging in costly redundancies and equally costly recruitment when good times return, firms may do well to explore the option of job sharing and more part time options to ensure that talent is not lost for good.