Mindful Business Charter’s open letter follows death of City partner
A mental health charity has penned an open letter urging corporate law firms to prioritise the wellbeing of their staff, citing that “the legal profession suffers some of the highest levels of mental distress in society”.
The Mindful Business Charter’s letter states that “the old adage that hard work never killed anyone is simply not true,” citing long working hours, lack of sleep and “disconnection from the ones we love” as contributing factors to poor mental wellbeing in the profession.
It adds that “the tsunami of change that is hitting the legal profession, not least through the impact of AI, runs the very real risk of making the situation worse”. This is because “change is likely to mean more pressure and demands on individuals”.
It follows the death of Pinsent Masons partner Vanessa Ford last year, who was reportedly working 18-hour days and through her holidays on the sale of Everton FC to a private equity firm. A coroner concluded that she had “consumed a significant amount of alcohol while experiencing an acute mental health crisis” before proceeding onto the tracks near the Dalston Lane road bridge, where she was struck by a train.
The charity also notes that the levels of mental distress experienced in the industry is also in part due to the characteristics of those attracted to careers in the law being “diligent”, and “predisposed to overworking” and “subjugating their own needs”.
According to the letter, the legal industry “play[s] to those very personality characteristics”, having ended up with “reward structures which incentivise and champion them”.
As part of its call to action, The Mindful Business Charter urges firms to firstly “actively monitor the risk” posed to lawyers’ wellbeing. It suggests that firms should keep an eye on how many hours their lawyers are working, and whether they are getting enough sleep and downtime.
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Where risk is identified, the charity urges firms to “actively step in, even against the wishes of individual lawyers concerned, to manage that risk”. This could involve “taking people off a project for a period, or adding additional resource to staff the project.” Ultimately, it states, “the project is never going to be more important than the lives of the people involved”.
It adds that “partners in our law firms need to have an honest discussion with each other as to their values and shared purpose and to the balance they are prepared to make between the profitability of the firm and the lives of the people who work in it, including their own.”
To individual lawyers, the open letter says “work is not more important than your health, your family or, for that matter, your integrity. It just isn’t. Be prepared to speak up and ask for what you need.”
If you are struggling with the stress of work you can contact LawCare via its helpline or live chat.