The statistics on mental health and wellbeing in the legal sector make for difficult reading. According to the Black Dog Institute’s Resilience@Law toolkit, 33% of lawyers and 20% of barristers suffer disability and distress due to depression; they do not seek help and self-medicate with alcohol. Lawyers also report higher than average incidences of depression, anxiety and suicidal thoughts.

Is this surprising? The legal industry is defined by a ‘work-hard-play hard’ culture, where many wear the extreme pressures, long hours and difficult as a badge of honour. The desire for firms to service client on tight deadlines coupled with the demands of the billable hour, make for an environment that is extremely challenging for many. Add a global pandemic and all its associated pressures to the mix, and the current environment is one that many simply cannot cope with.

While EAP, resilience initiatives, and an increasing focus on flexible work have risen in popularity and done a lot of good for the sector, there is much more that can be done.

At the Mental Health & Wellbeing for Lawyers Online Conference, taking place online on 18 November 2021, we are trying to start a new conversation about how we practice law. The conference will discuss the impact of mental health on the legal profession, strategies to promote mental health awareness and the impact of the pandemic on the mental health of the legal sector. Topics addressed include the redesign of legal work for wellbeing, preventing psychosocial risk for the legal sector, creating healthy workplace cultures free of bullying and substance abuse and a lot more.

The conference is for law firms, in-house counsels and members of the bar or judiciary officers. You may have a personal interest in mental health, work in HR or wellbeing, or be responsible for managing lawyers.

We look forward to you joining us.

For any event enquiries, please email eventsanz@thomsonreuters.com

Dates & Locations

Online: 18 November 2021

9:00 AM – 4:30 PM AEST

Your Investment

ONLINE

Early Bird*
$550 + GST

Standard Pricing
$650 + GST

*Early bird closes 7 October 2021

Register Now


For any event enquiries email eventsanz@thomsonreuters.com

Conference attendance earns 2 CPD points in Practice management and business skills and Professional skills.

Agenda

9:00AM

WELCOME FROM THE CHAIR

Genevieve Lancaster, Wellbeing Ambassador, Chair ANZ Mental Health Committee, Australian Case Law Manager, Thomson Reuters

9:05AM

Happy lawyer, happy life – insights from a family lawyer

Tips and tools to help you stay happy and healthy while meeting the demands of being a lawyer.

Clarissa Raywardh,Collaborative Lawyer and Mediator
Podcast and book both titled ‘Happy Lawyer Happy Life’ offer insights and resources for legal professionals seeking fulfilling careers and happiness both in law and in life.

9:45AM

What legal leaders can do to drive mental health and wellbeing in the legal profession

Poor mental health outcomes occur across the legal sector, from the bench to the bar, and from the buy side and sell side. If we want to lift wellbeing across the whole legal industry, we need to critically examine the role that all participants in the legal value chain play – and challenge how we practice law.

  • Addressing the barriers and reluctance to seek help
  • Danger of decision fatigue when too much is being asked of legal practitioners, at all levels
  • Loneliness and isolation and the role of collegiate support for the legal sector during the pandemic

Grant Pritchard, President, Inhouse Lawyers’ Association of New Zealand and legal business partner and workplace mental health advocate at Spark

10:30AM

Break

10:45AM

How to implement a mental wellbeing program for an in-house legal team

  • Building the business case and gaining client buy-in
  • Tailoring an approach to your team and environment
    • Identifying priorities
    • The role of the in-house legal team in the wellbeing value-chain
    • The role of good legal operations in wellbeing
    • The critical role of legal leaders
    • Understanding the value of your contribution

David Field, Chief Legal Counsel, Canon Oceania, Board member, Minds Count Foundation

11:30AM

Lawyer wellbeing and the client relationship

  • How does the mental wellbeing of lawyers impact the client experience?
  • Developing a culture of wellbeing to connect with clients
  • Ensuring shared challenges being experienced across workplaces lead to positive experiences with clients
  • What can organisations do now to ensure maintain resilience in a billable-hours environment?

Nora Chlap, BD Director - Australia, Herbert Smith Freehills

12:15PM

Break

1:00PM

Judicial stress and wellbeing: Insights from ground-breaking Australian research

  • Australia’s first empirical and psychologically grounded research into the sources and nature of work-related stress among the judiciary
  • Which judicial officers experience the most stress, and why
  • Implications of the findings and what they mean for judicial officers and the courts

Carly Schrever, Judicial Wellbeing Advisor, Judicial College of Victoria; Doctoral Researcher, School of Psychological Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, Dentistry and Health Sciences, University of Melbourne

1:45PM

Redesigning legal work to improve mental health and wellbeing

  • Re-designing jobs and roles to improve mental health and wellbeing
  • Building skills and capability to empower team members
  • Considerations for hybrid work and impact of COVID-19 pandemic

Sharon Ponniah PhD, Director Health & Wellbeing, Public Policy & Economics, PwC

2:30PM

Break

2:50PM

Developing and maintaining a healthy mindset for your practice

The legal profession for want of an appropriate description can be justifiably described as a pressure cooker. Undoubtedly, we’ve all seen or even maybe encountered legal practitioners who may operate from what can be described as an unhealthy mindset, in their career or their practice.

  • What can a healthy mindset for a lawyer look like
  • How identity as a lawyer is underpinned by certain beliefs, capabilities, and behaviours
  • What can be done to develop and maintain a healthy mindset.
  • Upskilling in leadership skills and changing beliefs and values

Lara Wentworth, Wellness and Performance Coach

3:50PM

Languishing - the invisible costs to your organisation. How the latest evidence in mental wellbeing can help your workplace thrive

  • What is Languishing and the impact to organisational effectiveness
  • Examples of evidence-based interventions that are proven to be effective in increasing wellbeing and decreasing distress
  • Introduction of basic skills and habits that you can use to improve mental wellbeing

Matthew Iasiello, Researcher, Be Well Co, South Australian Health & Medical Research Institute (SAHMRI)

4:30PM

END OF CONFERENCE