Minnesota Supreme Court taking aim at mental health 'crisis' in legal profession
Star TribuneMar 02, 2019
"The practice of law in the 40 years since I went to law school has become more stressful and, in some ways feels more toxic," said Justice
Lillehaug and his fellow justices were stunned by findings in a recent study of the profession that documented the fallout of the pressures facing practicing attorneys, many of whom struggle with drugs and alcohol.
Now, the Supreme Court is applying its stature to a mission to draw attention to the issue in
Lillehaug put this new focus on a par with the court's longstanding roles of regulating the practice of law and disciplining attorney misconduct in the state. Last week, the court convened a seminar in
Attorneys working in small private firms on up to their peers representing some of the country's biggest corporations listened as justices and legal experts warned of the stakes of letting one's health lapse in a job that can demand long hours, often away from family and while under intense pressure.
The
"How could the public trust lawyers if we're not taking care of ourselves and not doing the job well?" said
Wake-up call
Last week, Lillehaug, a former
Earlier that day, nearly all of the seminar's 245 attendees raised their hands when a speaker asked if they knew someone who struggled with mental illness or substance abuse. Lillehaug wanted his group to ponder how they would want that friend or colleague to be treated at work.
The justice was himself thinking of a good friend who took his own life after suffering from untreated depression while working in private practice in
"Everybody knew there was a problem but there wasn't really anyone intervening," Lillehaug said. "I don't think there was an appreciation of what was happening to him until it was too late."
Lillehaug, who is the court's liaison to the state board that disciplines lawyer misconduct, has also noted just how often some combination of drugs, alcohol or mental illness lingers in the background of so many lawyer discipline cases the court considers.
When
The new findings were grim: Researchers for the
Speaking before the lawyers assembled at
"It's almost as if there was a pent-up desire to talk about these problems and people now feel as if they have permission to talk about what has been an elephant in the room for decades," Krill said.
Before Krill's 2016 report, there hadn't been a study on behavioral health in the legal profession for more than 25 years. Krill helped launch a national task force in response to the report that outlined steps for improving attorneys' lifestyles and developed action plans for law firms and schools to adopt, something Lillehaug described as "a turning point" for the profession.
Fighting stigmas
Last year, the
Underlying it all is a drive to reduce stubborn stigmas against opening up.
"To have it possibly become public, either in a petition or an opinion, that this person has a mental health issue is seen as far worse than hiding it," said
Bibelhausen, who helped counsel a group of lawyers from smaller firms last week, pointed to the
"We've almost glorified being unwell," said Wolpert, who joined Bibelhausen and Justice
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