Law firms across the City of London are doubling down on client entertainment, pushing junior lawyers to take contacts out for meals and drinks.
The long lunch has long been considered a dying tradition, with hybrid working, tighter budgets, and younger professionals choosing alcohol-free lifestyles all seen as factors in its decline.
But rather than retreating from the practice, law firms are actively ramping it up, using financial incentives to get associates out from behind their desks and in front of clients.
Eversheds Sutherland is giving each of its lawyers a £350 budget specifically earmarked for client entertainment, as the firm looks to balance its growing use of artificial intelligence with human relationship-building.
Senior office partner for London Chris Halliday said the firm is “seeing the benefits of AI adoption” across the business, but also recognises the need for its next generation of lawyers to build trusted client relationships.
“We feel that this is best achieved through face-to-face interactions, not just at a senior level, but at all levels in the firm,” Halliday said, adding that juniors need to build confidence independently as well as alongside senior colleagues.
Halliday said the firm is “encouraging them to spend as much time as possible with clients and contacts, building and maintaining their networks” whether over coffees, lunches, dinners, conferences, or events.
Other firms including Quinn Emanuel, Winston Taylor, and Baker McKenzie have confirmed they have similar policies in place to support junior lawyers with client entertainment.
City firm Mayer Brown has operated a structured programme for years, with London managing partner Dominic Griffiths pointing to its NextGen initiative, launched around eight years ago, which lets associates organise client events and speakers.
“I will always seriously consider any associate request to entertain core and target clients,” Griffiths told City AM, adding that the initiative has received “universally positive feedback” from clients since its launch.
It is not just lunch driving this resurgence, with client breakfasts at Mayfair members’ clubs and hotels also seeing a notable uptick as lawyers seek creative ways to connect with contacts.
The push comes amid broader concerns about younger professionals’ communication habits, with senior partners at Winston Taylor saying many junior staff are “hesitant to pick up the phone to call clients” when working from the office.
However, those same partners noted that Gen-Z lawyers are “very keen” to meet clients in person, partly driven by anxiety about AI’s growing role and an awareness of why human relationships matter more than ever.
Business leaders cited in Deloitte’s 2026 Gen Z and Millennial survey warned that “early reliance on technology could hinder human capabilities such as critical thinking, communication, empathy, influence, and social skills” in younger workers entering the workforce.
Law firms appear to be responding to that challenge directly, treating the client lunch not as a relic of a previous era but as an essential investment in the lawyers of the future.