How Young Lawyers Can Balance Their Work and Mental Health

After nearly two years of working from home offices and kitchen tables, it has become clear that remote work is a long-term reality for the legal profession.

Yes, lawyers are returning to the office at a higher rate than other professionals. As of August, occupancy rates for law firms sat at 56% versus 34% of businesses nationwide. But a rapid transition to modern technology, fast-tracked by COVID-19, means in-office work is no longer a must-have for some firms. And many lawyers are happy about that fact: More than four-fifths (83%) of millennial lawyers say it’s essential for their law firm to have work-from-home options.

But here’s the other side of the coin: While remote work can set young attorneys up for a better work-life balance and support a greater variety of work styles, it also physically separates attorneys from their colleagues and office at a critical point in their careers. This is especially true at smaller firms where relationships are naturally closer-knit, and colleagues have an intimate understanding of each other’s reasoning process, strengths and moods. Without casual desk drop-bys and long lunches, younger attorneys miss the culture-building moments that boost job security, firm retention and their mental health.

In May 2021, 37% of lawyers reported feeling depressed, up from 31% in 2019, and 71% experienced anxiety, up from 64% in 2019. But younger lawyers may be experiencing these mental health challenges for different reasons than their older colleagues.

Let’s explore a few of those detrimental factors and how technology can play a role in solving them for young lawyers.

Over-Working to Impress

A common issue for younger lawyers since the beginning of their profession is putting in extra-long hours while heading down the partner track, all of which can feel like standard marching orders. And with salaries rising over $200,000 for new hires at top offices, young lawyers may feel the pressure to bill 2,000 hours a year to ensure firms are getting what they pay for.

But an attorney’s salary covers more than just their attention to detail and ability to churn out work. The nuances of law require attorneys to rely on instinct, personal experience, empathy and other human emotions that fall to the wayside when attorneys are depressed or burned out.

Even if clients have a positive reason for retaining your services, such as buying a home or adopting a child, it’s still an extraordinarily stressful moment in their lives. They need their attorney to serve as a steady source of support, the kind of assurance that’s tough to supply when your mental and emotional reserves are depleted. Nearly half (48%) of attorneys in a Bloomberg Law survey reported trouble focusing on work tasks in Q1 of 2021.

Action: Adopt a nonnegotiable mindset for your mental health as an attorney.

Intellectually, it can be challenging for many young lawyers to justify this shift—long hours studying in law school and the profession’s culture have taught them overall to “toughen up” and “push through.” However, what about the client whose success has affected you most personally? If the situation were reversed, wouldn’t you have wanted your attorney to be mentally sharp, healthy and ready to offer emotional as well as legal support?

Technology tools that, among other things, automate repetitive forms and time-tracking, can also help you cut down unnecessary hours, focus on your clients and take care of your mental health.

Firm Culture and Learning Gaps

“Deprived of desk neighbors, impromptu coffees, and any real way to, for a lack of a better term, read everyone’s vibe, new hires and young people who work remotely risk remaining unknown quantities,” The Atlantic’s Amanda Mull wrote last year at the height of the pandemic.

This prediction has proven itself at law firms. Nearly half (48%) of Major, Lindsay & Africa survey respondents either somewhat or absolutely disagreed that associate development is not hampered in a work from home model. Today’s junior associates are no longer most likely to want to make partner; they plan to stay for three to five years. Feeling like a valued part of a strong culture can make or break—extend or shorten—those plans, especially in today’s strong job market.

While formal mentors have always been an important part of any new attorney’s first years at a firm, they’re not always the most effective source of support. While more than 70% of respondents to a Major, Lindsay & Africa survey reported an informal mentor has played either a significant or crucial role in their career, less than 35% said the same of formal mentorships.

In part, that’s because informal mentoring relationships form organically through shared connections. It’s tough to build such natural bonds without hallway chats and casual lunches. And without them, young attorneys can feel adrift and alone at their firms.

Action: Express your needs and ensure they’re met.

Partners and leaders at small firms, especially those who hire new or young attorneys, must create and promote a safe space for conversation. Simply listening to a team is the first step toward a healthier workplace. If attorneys consistently leave due to a lack of support, it creates a revolving-door culture.

It’s likely been a long time since partners were in a first-year attorney’s shoes, and technological opportunities to improve the firm’s culture have greatly grown. Video tools and platforms with built-in communication can be used not only to promote face-to-face learning and clearer conversations, they also can help young attorneys discover and connect with the informal mentors they need to support their mental health.

One part of a strong firm culture is understanding that workloads, client expectations and emotional capacity to complete tasks can vary. When firms use one organized platform to assign and adjust to-do tasks, it’s easy to prioritize, reset and shift projects and deadlines without shame or blame.

Remember that your mental health is paramount to your professional satisfaction and success as a young attorney at a small firm. If you or someone you know is considering suicide, please reach out to someone you trust, or call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline (800-273-8255) at any time.

Ruchie Chadha is president of Smokeball, a company that offers legal practice management software to lawyers. In her role, she oversees the product, marketing, sales and client teams. Before joining Smokeball, Ruchie was a family law attorney serving in the Chicago area. She now focuses her career on delivering innovative solutions to lawyers so they can better serve their clients and build healthier businesses.