Coping with challenges: lawyer assistance programs

Tight deadlines, the conflict-driven nature of the legal profession and arduous billable hours are all reasons for depression in lawyers, according to a recent article published in Business Law Today, “Coping with Challenges” by Ellen Murphy.

In the January/February 2008 article, Murphy cites a 1991 Johns Hopkins University study that reported that lawyers are “3.6 times more likely to have depression over the course of a lifetime and have depressive episodes than any other profession.”

In her article, Miller also discusses increased substance abuse among lawyers, and lists a host of other issues that lawyers may want to consider seeking assistance, including: financial problems, work-life balance, anxiety, stress and burnout.

Lawyer assistance programs are staffed with trained professionals and may offer help through group meetings, individual consultation and referrals.

Murphy also provides tips on law office management assistance programs, which address practice management issues, such as:

• Billing and collecting
• Technology consulting
• Malpractice insurance
• Time-keeping systems
• Trust accounting instruction

To read Murphy’s article and learn more, visit the section’s Web site.

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