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Lawyer Wellness

1090 ABA Journal Lawyer Wellness articles.

The 16-Pager: How to avoid boredom in retirement with the greatest of ease

What are you going to do when you retire? That's usually the first question after the big announcement comes out. Everyone has plans, but retirees often discover that these were not as sustainable, lasting or rewarding as they'd thought, and they have empty hours to fill. At this point, developing meaningful alternatives can be overwhelming. Time passes, and opportunities are lost.

Apr 9, 2025 2:04 PM CDT

Managed Care: When dealing with a serious illness, lawyers should attend to themselves and clients

Lawyers who discover they have a serious or terminal illness face a slew of emotions, along with a list of decisions they must make, including whether and under what circumstances to continue working. For some, health insurance and a paycheck are powerful motivators for staying in their jobs; but lawyers with terminal diagnoses also cite continued purpose, concern for their clients and a fondness for their colleagues.

Apr 1, 2025 3:30 AM CDT

Calming down situations in a respectful way is a useful skill for lawyers, former DOJ counsel says

While working at the U.S. Justice Department, lawyer Katharine Manning helped victims of the 2013 Boston Marathon bombing, the 2016 Pulse nightclub shooting in Florida and the investment fraud case involving Bernie Madoff. Now a consultant, she advises entities on creating compassionate work environments where employees and clients feel comfortable sharing difficult experiences.

Apr 1, 2025 1:20 AM CDT

Downtime: Proposal encouraging lawyers to unplug from work sees debate in the House

What can make the ABA House of Delegates have an hourlong lively debate? Apparently, it’s a resolution aimed at helping ease lawyer stress and achieve a better work-life balance.

Apr 1, 2025 12:35 AM CDT

How to negotiate mental health challenges in the law

“Even after having lived with major mental health issues, I can’t shake my outmoded ways of thinking about them and the people they afflict—myself included. We’re all judging people with mental health issues because we’ve been trained to.”

Mar 27, 2025 9:13 AM CDT

How thinking like an athlete can make you a better lawyer

Peak performance in high-stress environments. It’s the goal for the basketball players taking the court during March Madness but just as much for players on a different kind of court. Lawyers can and should learn a lot from elite athletes.

Mar 19, 2025 11:00 AM CDT

When policies afford legal professionals discretion, they should choose to be trauma informed

Lawyers are big on adhering to statutes and caselaw precedents, contractual provisions and the clauses of internal governance documents, employee handbook policies, and terms from codes of conduct. But what happens when there is ambiguity?

Mar 17, 2025 3:01 PM CDT

The Art of the Pause: The secrets of yin yoga in legal practice

"When you lose touch with inner stillness, you lose touch with yourself. When you lose touch with yourself, you lose yourself in the world." —Eckhart Tolle

Feb 19, 2025 2:56 PM CST

Federal appeals judge, 97, loses bid to unseal documents about her suspension

Federal law does not permit a 97-year-old federal appeals judge to unseal documents about her suspension absent consent of the chief judge of her circuit, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit ruled Monday.

Feb 4, 2025 9:30 AM CST

Should lawyers get billable-hour credit for time off? It should be encouraged, ABA House says, but not before debate

What can make the ABA House of Delegates have an hourlong lively debate? Apparently, it’s a resolution aimed at helping ease lawyer stress and achieve a better work-life balance.

Feb 3, 2025 6:58 PM CST

Moms in Law: Millennials demand work-life balance more than their predecessors, but challenges persist

Millennials tend to emphasize a healthy work-life balance when choosing employers. That includes lawyers with young children. According to a 2023 ABA study, 61% of the mothers surveyed said they experienced demeaning comments about being a working parent, compared with 26% of fathers. But a growing number of young lawyers are pushing back.

Dec 1, 2024 12:00 AM CST

Under Pressure: Understanding alcohol addiction in the legal profession

It’s no secret that lawyers have a high rate of problem drinking. According to data from the ABA, “as many as one in five lawyers is a problem drinker—twice the national rate.” These drinkers are able to keep their jobs because they’re considered to be either gray area drinkers or functional alcoholics. The former display early signs of an alcohol use disorder, while the latter appear to be somewhat in control of their drinking.

Nov 25, 2024 8:53 AM CST

Lawyer suspended after arguing cocaine enhanced his cognition

A former public defender accused of representing a client at a November 2022 preliminary hearing while under the influence of cocaine has received a suspension of a year and a day.

Nov 7, 2024 11:55 AM CST

Only 36% of young legal professionals say work has positive impact on mental health, new survey finds

Half of surveyed male lawyers in larger law firms report that work has a positive effect on their mental health, but only 35% of female lawyers feel the same.

Oct 28, 2024 11:09 AM CDT

Hazed and abused, some lawyers see bullying as part of job while others leave, new study says

Bullying experienced by lawyers is causing increased turnover and “a talent drain from the profession,” according to a new Illinois survey and study thought “to be one of the first wide-scale research projects” of its kind in the United States.

Oct 2, 2024 12:03 PM CDT

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