Nov. 19, 2025 – The work of a lawyer can sometimes collide with the values that first drew us to the profession. Maybe it’s being asked to take a course of action that feels ethically wrong, or realizing the justice system itself has failed someone you’re trying to help.

Appleton attorney and Wisconsin Lawyers Assistance Program (WisLAP) volunteer Jennifer Lee Edmondson explored moral injury – the distress that occurs when our moral or ethical values are compromised – during a session at the State Bar of Wisconsin’s 2025 Annual Meeting & Conference.

Drawing from decades of practice experience, she discussed how attorneys can recognize moral injury, respond to it, and find hope moving forward.

What Is Moral Injury?

“Moral injury is the distress that a person feels when their moral or ethical values have been compromised or violated,” Edmondson explained. It’s similar to – but distinct from – burnout or post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). While burnout stems from exhaustion and overwork, moral injury arises when your conscience or sense of justice is shaken.

Originally studied in combat veterans, the concept today helps explain a growing sense of unease among legal professionals.

Lawyers often enter the profession motivated by ideals like fairness, service, and helping others – only to encounter systems that sometimes conflict with those values.

“The legal system being an imperfect system, and the individuals within the system being imperfect humans,” exposes lawyers to moral injury, said Edmondson.

“Lawyers deal with conflict on a regular basis. When the system falls short of our expectations … that’s what moral injury within the legal system looks like.”

She pointed to studies from the Hazelden Betty Ford Foundation that found lawyers had a higher incidence of substance abuse than any other profession as well as a higher rate of suicide than the general population.

“Lawyers and the legal system that we work within already are facing more intense challenges than the general population,” said Edmondson.

A Personal Example

Early in her career, Edmondson experienced moral injury firsthand. As a young associate, she was instructed by senior partners to advise a client’s fiancée to sign a prenuptial agreement – a situation that she felt compromised her moral values.

The fiancée was “an African American woman about my age,” said Edmonson. “All of the attorneys in my firm were white. I was the only racial minority,” she recalled.

“They wanted me to tell the young woman it was okay to sign this prenuptial agreement. I did not do divorce law, I did not do family law. We actually had another attorney in our firm who specialized in family law. They did not choose her to talk to this fiancée.”

Faced with a directive that conflicted with both her ethical obligations and her personal values, Edmondson made a choice. She told the fiancée that while the firm wanted her to sign, if she was advising her sister on what to do, she would recommend seeking her own counsel. The woman declined to sign the agreement, and Edmondson soon began looking for another job.

The experience, she said, revealed how moral injury can arise when institutional pressures collide with an attorney’s internal moral compass.

How Moral Injury Shows Up in Law Practice

Lawyers routinely navigate emotionally charged and ethically complex situations – representing difficult clients, enforcing unpopular laws, or working within systems that feel unjust. Over time, repeated exposure to these conflicts can take a toll.

According to Edmondson, signs of moral injury may include:

• Persistent anxiety, stress, or depression

• Anger or irritability

• Withdrawal or emotional numbing

• Reliance on alcohol or other substances to cope

Don’t Ignore Moral Injury

The consequences of ignoring moral injury can be serious, said Edmondson.

From negatively impacting a person’s mental and physical health, to harming their relationships with others, moral injury “will affect everyone who comes in contact with that individual.”

For firms considering their bottom line, moral injury means attorneys with diminished work product and productivity. “It will affect the atmosphere at work,” said Edmondson.

“It will affect their ability to zealously represent their clients,” ultimately impacting the financial well-being of the firm.

Best Practices: Responding with Awareness and Support

Despite its seriousness, Edmondson emphasized that moral injury is a fact of life, not a personal failure. The key is to recognize it early and respond with awareness and compassion – both for yourself and for colleagues.

The question is not whether moral injury will occur, but rather “how will the person respond to the moral injury,” she said.

Education and open conversation, she added, are essential first steps. Law firms and courts can reduce the risk by creating cultures of respect, civility, and support – where it’s safe for lawyers to talk about emotional or ethical stress without stigma.

For individual lawyers, that means reaching out before problems escalate. “We’re fortunate in Wisconsin,” she said, pointing to the Wisconsin Lawyers Assistance Program (WisLAP).

“Their programs and services are free and confidential to State Bar members and their colleagues. It’s just a call away for assistance and information.”

Finding Hope

At the heart of Edmondson’s message was one word: Hope.

“There is hope,” she said. “Moral injury is … something that everyone will be experiencing at some time in their life.”

“The question is, what can we do for ourselves and for others to help manage and navigate those situations when moral injury occurs?”

Edmondson emphasized that there are resources available to help and that attorneys should recognize “the feelings people experience from moral injury are completely valid and normal.”

For lawyers, recognizing moral injury early can mean the difference between long-term burnout and a sustainable, fulfilling career. It’s not weakness to admit distress – it’s a sign of integrity.

For Edmondson what matters most is that we respond with awareness, reach out for help, and never give up hope.