The easing of COVID restrictions, while occurring in the U.K. and the U.S., is not taking place everywhere. Law firms in Australia have pushed back plans to bring more staff back to the office and are requiring those who do go in to wear masks. The change in plans follows a surge in COVID-19 cases that hit Sydney and Melbourne in January.

Compared with many other nations, Australia had been more successful in containing the virus for the first two years of the pandemic. But the highly contagious omicron variant spread rapidly through the country, particularly in the two largest cities.