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It's no secret that managing parenthood and a full-time job can be extremely challenging. Thankfully, many employers are beginning to offer their support, recognising the difference they can make in helping ease the transition back into working life for those returning from maternity, paternity or parental leave.

In this article, we explore the most common challenges faced by those returning from parental leave, with examples from the legal sector to highlight the unique obstacles faced by those in the industry, and celebrate the employers leading the way, exploring the most impactful enhancements to their support systmes we have come across.

We hope you find it helpful!

If you would like to watch a webinar on this topic on which Eileen Burbidge, Medical Director at Fertifa, and Gidon Lieberman, our Medical Director appeared as speakers, you can do so here:

Challenges around attraction, retention, and career progression in the legal sector

It’s no secret that while the legal sector successfully recruits female talent, law firms struggle with retention - you just have to look at the statistics:

• The drop-off: Women make up 63% of newly qualified entrants but only represent 32–35% of partners.
• Flight risk: According to Thomson Reuters, 36% of female lawyers are at risk of leaving their current firms within the next two years.
• The primary drivers: While poaching exists, the exodus is largely driven by perceived work-life balance issues and firm culture.

The cost of motherhood in the legal sector

The cost of motherhood or the "motherhood penalty" refers to the professional disadvantages that female lawyers face after taking time out to have children. This cultural friction often leads senior female talent to feel that a partnership track and parenthood are mutually exclusive, causing them to opt out of the pipeline just as they reach seniority.

Supporting returning parents isn't just a "nice to have" or a tick box, it is a commercial necessity. The cost of failing to retain mid-to-senior associates is significant, typically falling between 1.5x to 2x their fully loaded salary.

These costs stem from:

• Recruitment fees for high-level lateral hires.
• Lost billable hours during any vacancy periods.
• Knowledge drain and the impact on client relationships.

For law firms to protect their partnership pipeline, they must move beyond general support and actively work to reverse the "motherhood penalty".

Navigating career progression and family-forming

One of the most significant challenges in law is that the timeline for promotion typically mirrors the timeline for starting a family. Most female lawyers reach 6–10 years PQE (Post Qualified Experience) between the ages of 30 and 35 - exactly when many choose to have children.

How a firm treats an employee during pregnancy is a strong indicator of whether they will return. There are many ways employers and HR teams can ensure returning parents feel valued and supported when pregnant, including:

• The "Buddy" system: Assigning a colleague to help manage caseloads or step in when the physical toll of pregnancy becomes too much.
• Flexibility: Allowing employees to work at their own pace—or from home during difficult trimesters—without fear of judgment.
• Empowerment: Letting the employee set the boundaries for how much or how little they want to be contacted while away.

Maternity leave and the importance to flexibility

The transition to motherhood is often more isolating and difficult than employees anticipate. The "immediate weeks" can be characterised by:

• Sleep deprivation and hormonal shifts.
• Difficulty accessing quick answers for newborn health concerns.
• The "Returning Brain" Anxiety: A common fear among legal professionals is whether their "brain still works" after months away from complex legal work.

A successful return to work (RTW) isn't just about policy; it's about firm culture. For example:

1. Flexibility: This includes physical office accommodations (like pumping rooms) and schedule flexibility for doctor's appointments without stigmatisation.
2. Trust: When a firm trusts its senior associates to manage their own time and output, those employees are significantly more likely to remain loyal to the firm long-term.

At Fertifa, we have worked closely with leading law firms such as Fried Frank and Hill Dickinson to help them evolve their support systems for employees returning to work from parental leave. By offering their people on-demand access to our clinical team and enhancing their support through our manager training, employers we work with are helping to ensure that paternity, maternity or parental leave does not become a barrier to career progession and growth.

Looking to enhance your support? Start with our free, editable Maternity, paternity and Caregiver leave policy template!

The power of having visible role models in your firm

A recurring theme among lawyers is the perceived need to choose a "primary focus." While some see career progression and parenthood as parallel tracks, many feel that they have to prioritise one over the other at certain milestones:

• The intentionality gap: For many associates, the path to partnership is viewed as a high-effort, intentional sprint. If that coincides with starting a family, the individual may feel they have to "pick a lane" for their mental focus, even if the firm’s policy doesn't explicitly require it.
• Promotion during pregnancy: Career growth doesn't have to stall; lawyers are being promoted to Partner while pregnant with their third child. This serves as a powerful counter-narrative to the "motherhood penalty."
• Role models: Seeing senior partners—both men and women—openly prioritise family moments is more impactful than any written policy.
• Normalising boundaries: Hearing a partner say, "I’m unavailable between 5 PM and 7 PM for bedtime," or leaving for a school play, signals to more junior staff that a successful career and an active home life are compatible.
• Building a positive culture: It is these small, daily examples of work-life integration that reassure returning parents they are in the "right place" and that a long-term future at the firm is possible.

Common health issues – from pregnancy to post-birth

Key physiological shifts include:

• Cardiac overdrive: A pregnant person’s cardiac output doubles, and they carry an additional six litres of fluid.
• Respiratory and renal burden: Ventilation increases by 20%, and kidneys must filter waste for two beings simultaneously.
• Hormonal changes: Post-birth isn't just a "crash" but a massive physiological recalibration as the body sheds fluid and organs return to their original size. This can significantly impacts psychological and physical wellbeing.

Sleep depravation

According to Fertifa’s Medical Director Gidon Lieberman, sleep deprivation is perhaps the greatest hurdle for returning professionals.

• Cognitive impact: It can create a gap between what a lawyer knows they are capable of and what their exhausted brain can actually execute.
• This "holding back" of one’s cognitive abilities is often the primary source of stress for high-achievers returning to a demanding legal environment.

Other challenges faced when returning to work

A critical psychological challenge discussed was the internal pressure employees feel upon their return.

• Perception vs reality: While firms are often simply happy to have the talent back, returners often suffer from "paranoia," fearing they are being judged for their new boundaries or perceived "brain fog."
• Undermining vs supporting: There is a fine line between offering help and accidentally undermining someone’s confidence. Support systems (like buddies) should be implemented carefully to ensure they empower the employee rather than making them feel "less than."

Empowerment through education

When firms educate themselves and their employees on these biological realities, it removes the stigma. By understanding the "new normal," firms can better retain talent by promoting self-advocacy and realistic expectations during the transition back to work.

Guidance for new parents returning to work

In a recent webinar hosted by People in Law, two members of the Fertifa and the wonderful Megan Hiluta, Of Council at Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan, LLP, discussed the compromises legal professionals still feel they have to make if they want to start a family.

During the webinar, Megan spoke about the difficulties she encountered when returning to work and support she received from HR that helped ease the transition, before offering her advice to new parents, managers and HR professionals working in the legal sector. This included:

Reassurance from leadership: Megan mentioned that a turning point in her return was hearing senior partners explicitly say: "Take it at your own pace; there is no pressure." This verbal green light helped address some of the returner paranoia she was feeling.

Finding a balance between easing back in and challenging yourself: While a slow start is usually necessary, staying in a "low-pressure zone" too long can actually damage confidence. Megan found that being invited onto complex cases after the first month proved to her that her "brain still worked," helping her regain her professional identity.

The impact of support from both HR and senior leadership:

• HR's Role: Provided consistent "check-ins" and structured support during pregnancy and leave.
• Partners' role: Acted as the daily "face" of the firm’s supportive culture, modelling flexibility and trust.
• Alignment: When HR and senior partners are aligned, the employee feels supported by the firm as a whole, rather than just a specific individual.

Maternity support through Fertifa

At Fetifa, we provide employees with inclusive pregnancy, postpartum, and maternity support to help employees make medically-led and informed decisions every step of the way.

If you are looking to enhance your organisation's maternity, reproductive health, or neurodiversity support, please don't hesitate to reach out by submitting the form below - we are always here to answer any questions you may have!

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