Every year the Mental Health Foundation raises awareness of mental health and this year’s theme is anxiety. 

Lubna Shuja

Lubna Shuja, Law Society president

Mental Health Awareness Week (15-21 May) encourages us to think about mental health and take action. How can we create a society that prevents mental health problems from developing and protects our mental wellbeing?

We know that legal professionals are thought to experience higher levels of anxiety, depression, stress and lower levels of mental wellbeing than the general population.

LawCare’s Life in the Law report found that 61% of participants had often experienced anxiety over the last 12 months.

The experience of living and working in a post-pandemic world has had many positive but also some negative impacts on the sector.

On the one hand, we now have greater flexibility, new ways of working and a great leap in technology adoption. However, on the other hand, there has also been a blurring of boundaries between life and work, social isolation and increased anxiety.

The International Bar Association’s Mental Wellbeing in the Legal Profession: A Global Study report, found that 56% of legal professionals had experienced anxiety.

The Law Society’s 2022 PC Holder Survey found a 30% increase in members reporting that their work goes beyond their contracted hours and therefore impacts on their personal life.

We call on the profession once again to use Mental Health Awareness Week to take stock and consider carefully the culture within which some solicitors are working.

The onus is often on the individual to ‘fix’ their mental ill-health. In truth, we have a collective responsibility to create and sustain positive work environments for everyone.

We need to start examining how some working practices contribute to an increased risk of poor mental health and how we can work together to change things.

Tackling excessive working hours and workloads, as well as ensuring better supervision and support, especially for younger lawyers, is essential.

I encourage solicitors who are struggling to reach out to LawCare, which provides free, confidential, peer support to legal professionals working in the UK, the Isle of Man and the Channel Islands.

Since its inception in 1997, LawCare has helped more than 10,000 legal professionals to find support with their mental ill-health or wellbeing.

They have a helpline, offer a live online chat and can be contacted by email. There are 90 peer-supporters who currently work or have helped in the profession.

More than one week

Awareness weeks provide a valuable opportunity to highlight issues affecting the profession.

We must do more to make strides for better mental health and wellbeing during Mental Health Awareness Week. However, changes to working practices need to happen throughout the year and not just during this particular period.

The Law Society has helpful guidance for employers looking to safeguard and promote employees’ wellbeing in the workplace. It includes a focus on support, culture, education and training, as well as case studies from firms including Farrer & Co, Giles Wilson, Freeths, Thrive Law and Pinsent Masons.

The guidance is relevant to all types of firms and has specific recommendations for different sizes of firm. I encourage our members to make use of this to ensure their colleagues can have a rewarding career in a supportive workplace.

Our wellbeing hub is also a valuable resource for legal professionals who are facing overwhelming workloads and emotionally challenging cases.

The hub includes helpful tips on how to manage stress and heavy workloads, as well as links to supportive organisations such as LawCare and the Law Society’s pastoral care helpline.

The onus is on all of us to be the change we want to see.

 

Lubna Shuja is president of the Law Society of England and Wales

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