Status of Stress in the Legal Profession
By Dennis W. Kozich
The past 10 years have seen a multitude of articles in both the
popular and legal press on the stresses lawyers experience. There also
have been serious studies conducted that have attempted to understand
what is happening and why.
The American Bar Association's Young Lawyers Section surveyed more
than 3,000 lawyers in 1990 and found that "[a] significant number of
them were increasingly dissatisfied with their careers. To a great
extent, lawyers linked their career dissatisfaction to increased levels
of mental and physical stress." 1
The work of Elwork and Benjamin also concluded "[t]hat lawyers'
profession-specific occupational stresses are what causes such high
levels of mental illness and substance abuse ... [as well as being] a
major contributing factor to physical illnesses such as coronary heart
disease." 2
The earlier findings were again confirmed in an extensive study on
this subject reported in the 1995-96 Journal of Law and Health
. It stated that "One professional group, lawyers, is particularly
subject to psychological distress which can manifest in a variety of
counterproductive actions and impairments." The study found that "The
data and analyses presented ... manifest a highly alarming fact: a
significant percentage of practicing lawyers are experiencing a variety
of significant psychological distress symptoms well beyond that
experienced by the general population." 3
Dennis W. Kozich, U.W. 1970, is vice
president and general counsel of MetaStar Inc., Madison, and a
consultant to WisLAP. He also coordinates WisLAP's Stress Helpline. In
addition to his law degree, Kozich holds a Ph.D. in
counseling.
Endnotes
1 Amiram Elwork, G. Andrew, H.
Benjamin, "Lawyers in Distress" in Law In a Therapeutic Key:
Developments in Therapeutic Jurisprudence, at 572 (David B. Wexler et
al. eds.) (Carolina Academic Press, 1996).
2 Id., at 578.
3 Beck, Sales and Benjamin, Lawyer
Distress: Alcohol-related Problems and Other Psychological Concerns
Among a Sample of Practicing Lawyers, 10 J.L. & Health (1995-96) at
1-2.
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