By Dana Elken Terrell, LCSW, EAC Eye movement desensitization and reprocessing, or EMDR, is a comprehensive therapy approach that has enough research backing to earn the acceptance of the World Health Organization and many other US and international associations. Most practical of all, it has earned coverage by health insurance companies, as an evidence -based […]
By Greg Dorst When great ideas spring forth from a demonstrated need, it is important to support the idea, to nurture it and bring it into being. There is such an idea currently taking shape and crying out for support. Imagine a virtual experience where any issue affecting attorney wellness can be researched, strategized, understood […]
The Lawyer Wellness Library is a digital clearinghouse of wellness information that will bring to all lawyers, from the time they enter law school, an easily navigable website that collects wellness strategies devoted to promoting lawyer contentment. It will succeed at helping lawyers find their balance because it addresses the heart of why lawyers are […]
Book View: The Best Lawyer You Can Be – Curated and Edited by Stewart Levine, J.D. Health, wellness, and self-improvement have become a critical part of the culture we live in. Serving others is a lawyer’s job. Being fit yourself is a necessary foundation for taking care of others. In the highly competitive practice of […]
One thing most law students hope to find after they get licensed is a mentor. Ask any practicing lawyer and they will tell you how little they knew about practicing law when they first sat behind a desk, filled with worry about being hired to handle a client’s matter. For lawyers who hang their shingles […]
The Lawyer Wellness Library is a California nonprofit corporation devoted to ensuring the success of all U.S. lawyers from the first day of their entry into the legal profession and throughout the ups and downs of this difficult job. Although lawyering is almost entirely defined by licensing bodies and law organizations, the right help for […]
Daral Mazzarella died unexpectedly of a heart attack on November 20, 2021, at 69, leaving behind many people to miss him. This Memorial Hall is named in his honor because he epitomizes how a successful trial lawyer can balance a law career, full as it is of daily troubleshooting, with the intrinsic rewards that come […]
The Problem The “Problem” presented in this paper is this: How does a profession as vital to all aspects of American life overcome the fact that psychological safety is absent from the workplace? According to the 2016 study leading to the ABA Task Force, and also according to the recent report by Anker and Krill, […]
Because my expertise is important, let me offer this biographical sketch. I have actively practiced law since 1983, in San Diego, California, starting right after graduating in the top 10% of my class from UCLA School of Law. That achievement was especially sweet because I was fifteen years post-college, with two small children and no […]
Why dealing with clients can make or break you – plus a few magic moves when you need them. Professional Responsibility Part 1: Why following the ABA Model Rules will keep you safe. Professional Responsibility Part 2: How to vet your clients before you take them, plus how to be a good Advisor once you […]
By Alison Schlick Alison Schlick serves with ZeroWaste San Diego as Board Secretary. She has previously served with other meaningful non-profit organizations including the San Diego Unified Council of PTAs as VP of Legislation, and with the Public Interest Law Foundation at California Western School of Law. Alison Schlick studied at the University of California […]
Law schools are independent bodies that can satisfy accreditation and other requirements in their own ways. One thing is consistent, however, across all accredited law schools: Their job is to train people to be lawyers, not to mitigate their emotional distress after they become licensed. For all the core work that law schools do, their […]
One common estimate of the effects of impaired competency due to addictions and mental illness (and suicide) is that something like 60-70% of state bar investigations into lawyer misconduct involve clients that have been injured from behavior-related transgressions. The advantages to a carrier are both economic and humanitarian. The intangible benefit of helping people to […]
On May 1, 2012, the New York Times reported the impending financial collapse of Dewey & LeBoeuf, a mega-law firm considered a “powerhouse” with over 1,300 lawyers in 26 offices across the world. The news was that the firm was crushing under the weight of debt – even despite posh offices, valuable Midtown Manhattan leases, and […]
