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‘It’s the system that needs to change’ for lawyers’ wellness
Here, the founder of Support for Lawyers discusses the mental health epidemic plaguing the legal profession and the solutions.
Jess Feyder
Marguerite Picard, founder of Support for Lawyers, appeared on the Lawyers Weekly Show to discuss the reasons for the mental health epidemic and the ways it can be addressed.
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Ms Picard has had a long career in the legal profession, working in criminal law, community legal services and family law, and collaboration and mediation.
Over her career, she has seen people leave the legal profession upon recognising a divide between their personal values and the dysfunctional systems that sometimes appear in law firms, impacting mental wellbeing.
Host and Lawyers Weekly editor Jerome Doraisamy pointed out the stark reality of the issue; one in three lawyers currently suffers from some form of mental illness, one in two has suffered at some point, and 70 per cent of lawyers know someone in the profession who has suffered.
There’s so much shame and secrecy surrounding it, Ms Picard explained, and work stress is often masked by harmful behaviours, like drug and alcohol consumption.
It was her personal experience that inspired her to become involved with promoting positive mental health for lawyers. “I had seen people become unwell, and sadly seen people end their own lives, that as far as anyone could tell, was in part due to the pressures in the system,” Ms Picard said.
The COVID-19 pandemic has likely exacerbated mental ill health of lawyers; Ms Picard posited, “lack of collegiality, greater isolation, and fewer opportunities for mentorship may feed into stress and a lack of wellbeing”.
The pandemic has also raised questions about why people are so reluctant to come back into offices, Ms Picard speculated, especially considering the advantages of collaboration, learning and social connectedness that offices provide; “what is the lure of the home office?”
Ms Picard explained that it is so important for lawyers to have good mental health, first and foremost, because they have a responsibility to those they serve and because their role is so crucial to society.
“It’s not just about productivity and billing performance,” she said, “but it’s an ethical duty”.
Ms Picard explained that in addressing mental wellbeing for lawyers, “it’s the system and the organisations that need to change rather than the individual needing to manage their own response”.
For this reason, the strategy of Support for Lawyers focuses on organisational change and cultural awareness — encouraging overt discussions about mental wellness and the workplace structures that implicate mental health.
The transcript of this podcast episode was slightly edited for publishing purposes. To listen to the full conversation with Marguerite Picard, click below:
