CNDR Hosts The Integrated Lawyer: A Symposium on Well-being and the Practice of Law

There is significant evidence that personal well-being affects the quality of professional legal practice and work life satisfaction. Lawyers are reported to have high rates of anxiety, depression, substance abuse, and dissatisfaction with professional life. There is also evidence that habits and ways-of-being developed during law school are contributing factors.

Based on the model put forth by the National Task Force on Lawyer Well-Being (August 2017), participants explored the domains of emotional, social, physical, spiritual, and cognitive wellness with the overall goal of introducing lifelong approaches for thriving within the legal profession. Content experts from the various domains presented on ways they are using their expertise to develop well-being with law students, practicing attorneys, mediators, and others.

Program Highlights:

Keynote: The Integrated Lawyer: Relational Perspectives and Practices to Foster Wholehearted Legal Professionals by Susan Brooks (Drexel School of Law/ Former Chair AALS Balance Section)

Foundations and Research in Lawyer Well-Being Panel: Moderated by Sheila Purcell (Director, CNDR at UC Law SF)

  • Peter Huang (University of Colorado School of Law)- Lawyer Wellbeing: Mindfulness, Decision-Making, and Ethics
  • Rhonda Magee (University of San Francisco School of Law)- Mindfulness as Social Justice: Foundational Commitments and Experiential Practices
  • Judi Cohen (Chair, Teacher’s Division ABA MILS; Berkeley School of Law)- Wellness as an Emerging Measure of Law Student and Attorney Success

Wellness & Wellbeing in Legal Education Panel: Moderated by Kelly Weisberg (Professor, UC Law SF)

  • Charity Scott– (Georgia State School of Law)- From Thinking like a Lawyer to Thriving as a Lawyer
  • Ken Fox– (Mitchell-Hamline School of Law)- Mirror as Prism: Dimensions of Awareness in Reflective Practice
  • Joseph Bankman– (Stanford School of Law)- Anxiety Psychoeducation for Law Students and Lawyers

Wellness & Wellbeing in Legal Practice: Moderated by Sari Zimmerman (Senior Asst. Dean, Office of Career Development, UC Law SF)

  • Jeena Cho (Author/ Attorney, JC Law Group)- The Anxious Lawyer
  • Nancy Dolan (Wilson Sonsini)- Wellness & Wellbeing in Legal Practice
  • Lita Abella (CA State Bar LAP)- The California Lawyer Assistance Program
  • Lori Stuart (Santa Clara Public Defender’s Office)- Danger Will Robinson! Teacher Pitfalls When Leading Mindfulness

Discovery Breakout Sessions Led By: 

  • Howard Herman, Director, ADR Program, U.S. District Ct, N.D. Cal.
    Adjunct, UC Law SF College of Law- Peer Circles for ADR Panel Mediators (Location: Room F)
  • Jeena Cho, Attorney, JC Law Group – Better Lawyering through Mindfulness (Location: LBM)
  • Kelly Weisberg, Professor, UC Law SF– Barriers to Implementation of the Recommendations of the ABA National Task Force on Lawyer Wellbeing (Location: Room G)
  • Clark Freshman, Professor, UC Law SF- The Alchemy of Wellness Through Lie Detection, Negotiation, Mindfulness, and Compassion (Location: Room C)

Marketplace of Ideas Forum: Participants and speakers hosted table conversations and shared information about current passion projects, research, and emerging idea related to wellness and well-being in the practice of law and legal education.