Lawyer Wellness: Shifting the Lawyering Paradigm

A professor at The Colleges of Law has created a comprehensive course in lawyer wellness that she hopes to be at the forefront of a movement.

Robin Oaks, professor at The Colleges of Law, recently taught a new course aimed at changing the way attorneys approach the profession, as well as their daily lives.

“Wellness and Lawyering Competence” may be a relatively new idea in the legal profession but is one that is gaining acceptance.

In a field that requires a confident public posture and an air of certainty, some attorneys may be reluctant to admit that they need emotional support or self-care. This commitment to self-reliance often begins in law school, where cultural norms at many institutions favor competition over collaboration, a mindset that can continue into practice. Further complicating this reality is the stigma among attorneys, as is the case in many professions, about seeking emotional, physical, or cognitive support. The Colleges of Law, on the other hand, promotes collaboration over competition, and hopes to change the narrative surrounding mental health and wellness in the field.

The American Bar Association weighs in

Recognizing the challenges facing the profession, the American Bar Association (ABA) assigned a task force to address “Lawyer Well-Being.” Their report, issued in 2017, identified five areas of focus:

• Understanding the role each of attorney can play in reducing the level of toxicity in the profession
• Eliminating the stigma associated with seeking help
• Emphasizing that well-being is an indispensable part of a lawyer’s duty of competence
• Educating lawyers, judges, and law students on lawyer well-being issues
• Taking positive steps to change how law is practiced and to instill greater well-being in the profession

While the ABA report focuses largely on mitigating the negative factors affecting lawyer well-being, Oaks sees her class as being about more than simply reducing stress. She believes the concept of well-being is a continuous process, one in which lawyers strive for thriving in all dimensions of their lives: occupational, intellectual, spiritual, physical, social, and emotional.

Changing the conversation

The ABA report findings and recommendations put the impetus on members of the legal profession to commit to the promotion of wellness, and forward-looking law schools, such as The Colleges of Law, are leading the way.

“I see it as part of creating a whole-lawyer paradigm,” Oaks says. “I designed this course to help law students function at their best with energy and peak performance as well as to promote wellness and foster well-being. It’s about re-envisioning what it means to be a competent legal professional.”

The insight Oaks has gained into wellness evolved out of her own health challenges. Fifteen years into her career as a litigator, she suffered from exposure to environmental toxins. Because her condition did not respond to conventional medicine, Oaks explored the latest research in neuroscience, medicine, and practices for promoting healing, wellness, and well-being. She also shifted her legal practice to focus on workplace mediations, conflict resolution, and workplace investigations, all while developing a parallel career path as a well-being coach for professionals.

The Colleges of Law embraces a comprehensive approach

When Oaks approached Jackie Gardina, dean of The Colleges of Law, about the course, she found an enthusiastic ally in the cause of lawyer well-being. Gardina agreed the time was right to add this elective course to the curriculum. “The Colleges of Law has been a leader,” Oaks says.

The course, consisting of 10, three-hour sessions, involved class discussion, weekly assignments focusing on evidence-based practices, landmark research on lawyer well-being, positive psychology, mindfulness practices, and financial well-being and competency. Several prominent lawyers spoke of the importance of wellness and fostering well-being for a successful, rewarding, and happy career.

Lawyer wellness is “imperative for the future of the profession”

The response from students was overwhelmingly positive. Several said the course changed their lives. “I only wish I had this my first year of law school. What a difference it would have a made,” one student says.

Many said they had their eyes opened to the prospects of this new paradigm. They explain that the course changed how they looked at stress and their responsibility to take charge of their mind, body, and cognitive wellness.

Another student points out that “there’s a stigma in the legal profession around self-help, but asking for help is essential to human growth. Law students are taught the tools of argument and persuasion, but they aren’t taught how to deal with their stress.”

The cohort agreed that courses devoted to attorney health should be a permanent in fixture in every law school. Another student says, “The fact that the legal profession is substantially suffering from a lack of wellness and competence makes requiring the class imperative for the future of the profession itself.”

Just how many schools do open their curricula to incorporate this subject matter remains to be seen, but the groundwork has been laid at The Colleges of Law for others to follow.

A path forward

“I designed and launched this course with the hope that it would not be about remembering information but about transformation,” Oaks says. “If it empowered, inspired, and opened minds to new possibilities that contribute to wellness and well-being for those on the journey of lawyering, I’m happy.”

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