On top of managing litigation caseloads and expanding families, pregnant lawyers in the Miami area are figuring out how to manage the risks of living and working so close to a neighborhood the CDC has warned expectant mothers away from after an outbreak of the Zika virus.

There are few law offices in the Wynwood arts district, but plenty of attorneys live and pass through the area, making the threat of the virus and its potential impact on unborn children a very real fear for pregnant women.

“I don’t go outside. I’ve pretty much quarantined myself to the indoors,” said Sheila Oretsky, a commercial litigation partner at Miami-based Legon Fodiman. “Literally the only exposure I have to the outside is getting in and out of my car. And I have a toddler. I can’t take her for walks and to the park. I just feel like I’m never going to see the sun again.”

Oretsky, who is 14 weeks pregnant, lives close to Miami’s Midtown neighborhood, near Wynwood. Her neighborhood abuts a body of water, making mosquito infestation a real problem for that community, she said.

There isn’t much Oretsky can do to avoid court appearances or taking depositions, though she said as a partner she has more control over her own schedule than a younger pregnant associate might in this situation.

So for now, it’s all about precaution.

“I drench myself in chemically ridden, DEET-filled bug spray, which generally while you are pregnant you probably would stay away from those kind of chemicals, but I guess when you weigh the risk of ‘do I want to expose myself to chemicals’ versus ‘do I want to expose myself to the risk of Zika,’ you pick the lesser of two evils,” Oretsky said.

For Miami Lakes-based family law solo practitioner Megan Wells, the precaution of choice is wearing multiple mosquito-repellent bracelets on her ankles and wrists whenever outside. Not a look that goes well with a business suit. She wore them during her outdoor gender reveal party in March, well before any reports of Zika in the United States.

Sheila Oretsky, left, and Megan Wells, right.

At 28-weeks pregnant, Wells is just at the time when, according to what she has read, the baby is less at risk of damage if she does contract the Zika virus. But with reports of 14 Zika cases in her area, Wells isn’t taking any chances. She has stopped taking evening walks or sitting out on her balcony. She and her boyfriend are constantly vigilant about water pooling anywhere on their property. When out-of-town guests went to dinner at Gigi restaurant in Wynwood over the weekend, Wells stayed behind.

She’s also staying back when her boyfriend leaves later this month to visit family in Colombia.

“My boyfriend is Colombian. His mom has had Zika twice and he is going there from Aug. 13 to 20. I can’t go,” Wells said, noting it wasn’t worth the risk.

The couple is looking to have another baby shortly after their first is born. Wells had already asked her doctor whether taking her new baby to Colombia to visit family was a good idea considering she didn’t want to get infected with the Zika virus down there. Now she has to worry about it in Miami.

Despite heeding recent warnings, previous travel has been a concern for Wells and Oretsky. Wells had her baby shower in Wynwood just two weeks ago, before any news of the Zika virus in Miami had spread. Oretsky stood outside a new Wynwood bakery waiting in line for a pie a few weeks ago. The CDC has said exposure to the virus could have happened in the area as far back as June 15. Oretsky said she has gone back through her calendar during that time to see if she was ever in Wynwood.

Both Wells and Oretsky plan to get tested for the virus, as the CDC and their doctors have recommended. But Oretsky said her doctor’s office has been so flooded with calls that she’s having a tough time even getting them to send the prescription.

Pregnant women aren’t the only ones figuring out how to handle the threat of the Zika virus. Law firms are figuring it out, too.

Aside from its Miami office, Akerman has a small Wynwood location tied to its start-up incubator.

“As a result of the CDC’s Zika-related travel warning yesterday, we are working with our clients and employees to respond to this growing health issue,” the firm said in a statement. “To help safeguard our employees, we are taking several immediate actions that include providing mosquito repellent to all employees in our Brickell City Centre and Wynwood offices, and working closely with the management of our buildings to ensure that appropriate mosquito eradication efforts are taken.”

As more information becomes available, the firm said, it “will consider all necessary measures to further protect our employees.”

Oretsky said that given an option, she’d rather not be in the city, though she doesn’t exactly have that option. But people have asked her whether she intends to leave.

“It makes you wonder, ‘should I not be staying in Miami? Should I actually leave Miami and work remotely or whatever your capabilities are in that regard?’” Oretsky said. “Yeah, it impacts you because you are responsible for this child from the minute they are conceived and have to protect them and put them first before anything else. It has a profound impact on a day-to-day basis because just one slight mistake and you get bitten, you don’t want that guilt.”

Instant Insights /

&lsquo;I&rsquo;ve pretty much quarantined myself&rsquo;: How pregnant lawyers in Miami are responding to Zika

More From HR Executive

Related Stories

Recommended For You

‘I’ve pretty much quarantined myself’: How pregnant lawyers in Miami are responding to Zika