We interviewed selected persons from the economic and diplomatic community, as well as public life, and found out how embassies, institutions, companies and public figures have organized diplomatic and business activities and themselves during the state of emergency, how they contribute to the fight against the COVID-19 virus, as well as, how they spend their free time and what they will do first when the state of emergency is over. Today, we interviewed Mr. Petar Petrić, Attorney at Law, Petrić & Kajić Law Firm LLC.
1.How did you organize your business activities?
Law firms including our Petrić & Kajić Law firm LLC were able to quickly transition to remote work thanks to the mainstream availability of video conferencing technology like Zoom and communications technology like MS Teams and Slack.Petrić & Kajić. Our Head office is also opened and we are accessible to our clients – in the Cloud and on the ground. We are all fully available via email, phone and video links. In these times we are ready for even better communication thanks to new technologies. We are also ready to organize modern online mediaton via Zoom or Skype, as an efficient and quick way of resolving all kinds of disputes . This heralded the first shift towards a more online, digital law firm. While it previously seemed inconceivable to imagine a world where courts are closed and access to justice is severely limited, coronavirus has brought that world about. I hope 2020 will be the year that courts will innovate to serve people at a distance, and lawyers will learn new skills to serve clients remotely in the process. Courts should finally become services, not places. It should be an opportunity for legal professionals to permanently incorporate technology into their practices. Concepts that can fast-track justice, such as telephonic hearings and e-filing, should become more commonplace even after the pandemic is over. Justice will take place in a virtual courtroom sooner than expected. But this is just the beginning. There is no reason that court hearings and trials need to have everyone physically present. Eventually, witnesses, attorneys, the judge and even the jury should be able to convene virtually. This will present both technical and legal challenges. Justice was already proceeding down the path of virtual justice before our recent crisis. However, the pandemic will surely force us to quicken the pace. In short, I expect to see the rise of the tech-embracing, remote-working attorney, which should drive down costs and increase efficiency. Technology-enabled legal services will become important for law firms and clients. The coronavirus has required businesses all around the world to rethink how they will continue to operate in a sustainable, cost-effective way. Law firms are doing the same. Clients are increasingly demanding convenient, affordable legal services that they can access from anywhere, and technology is going to play a critical role in meeting those demands. Winning firms will build top notch IT departments and innovate faster with technology products that drive profitability. Clients are increasingly demanding convenient, affordable legal services that they can access from anywhere, and technology is going to play important role in meeting those demands.
2.How do you comment on the Government’s measures to help and save the economy?
I welcome the first and specially the second package of measures. The Croatian Government’s set of fiscal and regulatory measures to cushion the economic impacts of the COVID-19 virus pandemic is timely and well designed. It seeks to keep small to medium enterprises (SMEs) operating and employing workers during the crisis. By prioritising speed over conditionality, the measures should deliver financial support into the hands of those who urgently need it. As foreshadowed by the Prime Minister, I agree that further measures are likely to be needed as the pandemic and its economic impacts continue to unfold. Both the size and speed of delivery of the package will help cushion businesses, their employees, contractors and Croatian citizens receiving income support, from the worst economic impacts of COVID-19. So I am still optimistic that this is not going to be a depression, though that will depend on how long it all lasts and how policy response looks like. There will be some human capital and financial capital damage, but if it is partially compensated where necessary at the expense of future taxpayers, it need not be devastating. I have already seen some short-term adaptation. Restaurants, switching to take out and delivery. Everybody has been flocking en masse to video-conferencing, sports therapist offers training sessions online. In the longer term we will have slower, but important changes. The economy will adjust. We will fly less. Remote work means less commuting, less driving, more time spent at home. When buying their next home, people will think more about things like this. Alternative modes of transportation – bikes, e-bikes, scooters are potential winners. We just need to make sure that the necessary recession is as short as possible.
3.How are you spending your private time during the pandemic?
I spend most of my free time working. I have to say that work from home is not always easy, you need to have the right technology and adapt the environment to make it productive, you need to find solutions to have kids not intrude, you need to organize your time properly. But in the meantime, I use to have an online social contacts with our friends and family. We get chance to make private plans for the period after pandemic. I write a lot of articles for business magazine and web sites that make me so satisfied and happy. And I am planning to start write my first book.
4.What will you do first after the current condition is cancelled?
It’s a simple dream – just sitting at the beach and listening to sea waves, with my dear family and our dog.
