Law firms in NYC have been largely business casual for years now. I've noticed, though, that as the economy got worse, attire got incrementally less casual. I don't think we'll ever see a return to full-time business attire (no one I know wants to wear a tie every day), but people seem to be breaking out the suits more often than they did a few years ago.
Wearing suit jackets to business meetings?
- Thread starter johnmrson
- Start date
Law firms in NYC have been largely business casual for years now. I've noticed, though, that as the economy got worse, attire got incrementally less casual. I don't think we'll ever see a return to full-time business attire (no one I know wants to wear a tie every day), but people seem to be breaking out the suits more often than they did a few years ago.
From a perspective of pure etiquette, your shirt classifies as a piece of underwear. So, outside of an informal contest, taking off your jacket is like taking off your pants. When you seat, you must unbutton it, or it will crease and/or seem too big, unless your suit was made by a very good tailor (I'm talking about Brioni-good).
In the real world, just follow your boss' style. In Italy we say "Attacca il ciuccio dove vuole il padrone" (tie the donkey where your master wants).
In the real world, just follow your boss' style. In Italy we say "Attacca il ciuccio dove vuole il padrone" (tie the donkey where your master wants).
My work measures us up for tailored suits and since they go to the expense of issuing them I go to the trouble of wearing a jacket all the time. It makes having a work wardrobe a lot cheaper since I just need to buy shirts and ties and it makes the whole place look more professional. Aside from that my boss has a personal crusade to personally cause great harm any man who thinks that unpolished shoes, an unshaven face and being poorly dressed are acceptable traits for an employee.
There is a shop here in tiny Canberra on the far side of the world called Roger Bartholomew Menswear that consider it their trademark to only sell 2 pants suits and their stuff is pretty much 99% off the rack suits with adjustments made as needed so surely there are shops in the larger cities up there in the USA that sell them.
There is a shop here in tiny Canberra on the far side of the world called Roger Bartholomew Menswear that consider it their trademark to only sell 2 pants suits and their stuff is pretty much 99% off the rack suits with adjustments made as needed so surely there are shops in the larger cities up there in the USA that sell them.
S
Sydney Guy
I think you need to take into account that the business culture in Australia is generally more egalitarian than either the US or the UK, although from some of the US posters' comments here there may have been some changes since I worked there 20 years ago, at least in some sectors. It's never been common in Australian offices to wear suit jackets in the office and anyone who did would be considered to have tickets on himself. I've been in meetings with CEOs and generally they were in shirtsleeves and therefore so was I. However, as previously noted you need to take your cue from people around you.
I'd also recommend getting two pairs of trousers with the suit if possible and you need to alternate wearing them since the Australian sun will subtly fade the material and otherwise you will wind up with mismatched jacket and pants.
You mention that you approve of wearing cufflinks to work. Well those of us who have to work for a living, as opposed to merely looking decorative, consider french cuffs and cufflinks to be inventions of the devil! The cuffs catch on the edge of the desk every time you move, so you wind up taking the links out and rolling the cuffs back out of the way. Then when you need to go out at lunchtime or go home at the end of the day you roll the cuffs back down and discover:
(1) your carefully ironed sleeves are all creased; and
(2) one or more cufflinks have gone AWOL
French cuffs serve the same purpose as the obscenely long fingernails of Chinese mandarins - to proclaim that their wearers are too important to do honest labour. Stick to button cuffs.
I'd also recommend getting two pairs of trousers with the suit if possible and you need to alternate wearing them since the Australian sun will subtly fade the material and otherwise you will wind up with mismatched jacket and pants.
You mention that you approve of wearing cufflinks to work. Well those of us who have to work for a living, as opposed to merely looking decorative, consider french cuffs and cufflinks to be inventions of the devil! The cuffs catch on the edge of the desk every time you move, so you wind up taking the links out and rolling the cuffs back out of the way. Then when you need to go out at lunchtime or go home at the end of the day you roll the cuffs back down and discover:
(1) your carefully ironed sleeves are all creased; and
(2) one or more cufflinks have gone AWOL
French cuffs serve the same purpose as the obscenely long fingernails of Chinese mandarins - to proclaim that their wearers are too important to do honest labour. Stick to button cuffs.
Since my normal dress code for work is very very casual, I only wear a suit for "high end" situations such as a meeting with a special client, banker or someone else's lawyer. In these situations, I always keep my jacket on and usually wear a white shirt and fairly low key tie. Only if the meeting loosens up considerably would I consider removing my jacket - depending on the dynamics of the situation.
If I wore a salaryman suit to an office job everyday, the jacket would be hanging on a peg most of the time.
If I wore a salaryman suit to an office job everyday, the jacket would be hanging on a peg most of the time.
I am so glad that business casual in my part of the world does not look like this. YMMV.
