(Editor’s note: This is the first of a four-part series looking at how actions firms have taken during the pandemic are negatively impacting younger lawyers, the causes and consequences of those actions, and what firms can do to protect their young talent and their futures.)

With associates suffering the brunt of the negative impact of the pandemic—losing work to partners, layoffs, less mentoring, slowed development—it has some industry observers wondering if law firms are sacrificing their futures for short-term gain.