It’s over a year into the global pandemic, and we get it—we’re all suffering from “Zoom fatigue” to one degree or another. Lawyers and judges in our notoriously tech-averse profession have had to cope not only with being physically cut off from friends, co-workers, and clients while juggling homeschooling of kids, but also having to deal with these challenges while learning how to use new technologies to continue working. Of course, this adaptation has seen its share of mishaps and snafus. In a recent poll conducted by legal website Abovethelaw.com, at least half of the respondents reported being involved in or witnessing a remote hearing mishap. For most, it might have been nothing more than a lost connection or audio failures. But for many others, it seems to be a breach of “Zoom decorum.”

It’s gotten bad enough that courts have had to weigh in with reminders about things that were once assumed—like wearing pants. In a speech to a bar association, a Florida judge bemoaned the fact that lawyers were appearing for Zoom hearings while poolside wearing swimsuits and while in bed wearing … well, who knows? Administrative judges in New York recently had to issue a memorandum admonishing lawyers to “Dress in appropriate attire, as if you were appearing in-person in court”; yes, that means no faded concert tour T-shirts and SpongeBob SquarePants sweats, no matter how comfy. New York lawyers were also cautioned to “Display an appropriate and professional background,” which rules out that impressively varied assortment of beer bottles or that virtual background of the Death Star exploding, and to avoid “consumption of food or drink during the proceeding.” Closer to home, the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas issued its own notice on “Dress and Conduct in Virtual Proceedings,” reminding lawyers and their clients that “participants must dress and conduct themselves as if in a courtroom.” The court went on to caution lawyers that business attire is appropriate and certain clothing items are not, including “t-shirt, tank top, halter top, athletic wear, loungewear, hat and sunglasses.” If you’re a lawyer who wore a tank top and sunglasses to your Zoom hearing, you clearly mistook your hearing for an episode of “Jersey Shore.”