You are watching a webinar preview. To view the full webinar, log in to your Justia Connect account or sign up for free.

Breaking the Silence: Confronting Stress, Substance Use & Burnout in Law

Lawyers are busy zealously taking care of clients, but who is taking care of them? In the high-pressured, fast-paced world of law, mental health and wellness suffers. Not allowed to show any weakness or vulnerability, lawyers soldier on and put up a good front while issues with stress, anxiety, depression, and burnout fester. The legal profession struggles with how it handles the pervasive issues of substance and alcohol misuse, self-harm, suicidal ideation, and other destructive behaviors, diseases and disorders. Denial and stigma stop lawyers from seeking help. This seminar encourages us to confront these issues directly and remain silent no more.

Duration of this webinar: 60 minutes

Originally broadcast: October 9, 2025 9:00 AM PT

Webinar Highlights

This webinar is divided into section summaries, which you can scan for key points and then dive into the sections that interest you the most.

00:00 Introduction and Speaker Background

Lenor Marquis-Segal, the speaker, is introduced as a seasoned attorney with a focus on diversifying and humanizing the legal profession. Lenor plans to discuss stress, substance abuse, and burnout in law, aiming for open conversations on these often overlooked topics. She shares her extensive experience in various legal settings and emphasizes the importance of dialogue in addressing professional challenges.

05:17 Stress and Mental Health Challenges in Law

Lenor highlights the caring nature of the legal profession, which often leads to stress due to constant client concerns and tight deadlines. Lawyers face stigma around mental health, fearing that admitting to struggles could disadvantage their clients or be used against them. The profession's high rates of substance abuse and mental health issues are supported by statistics, showing a need for open discussion. Lenor explains the archetype of lawyers as perfectionists and people pleasers, contributing to stress and mental health challenges.

31:31 Substance Use and Legal Culture

Substance use is prevalent, with legal events often centered around alcohol, contributing to dependency issues. Lenor discusses why lawyers in particular experience substance use issues. She highlights the ethical consequences of failing to address substance use issues in the legal profession.

38:03 Burnout and Neurodiversity

Lenor discusses how burnout arises for lawyers. She addresses the intersection of neurodiversity and mental health, noting higher depression rates among neurodiverse individuals. She emphasizes the importance of individualized care for those who are not neurotypical, highlighting the stress of masking.

43:48 Path to Wellness and Self-Care

Self-care strategies are discussed, including sleep, exercise, and engaging in hobbies and social activities. Lenor advocates for exploring health insurance benefits and engaging in activities like yoga and meditation for wellness. External resources like therapy and lawyer assistance programs are recommended for mental health support. Volunteering and mentoring are recommended for their positive impact on mental well-being. Lawyers are encouraged to take breaks, say no to excessive demands, and advocate for their own needs.

57:30 Q&A and Professional Strategies

Lenor suggests alternatives to alcohol-centered legal events, promoting mocktails and non-alcoholic options. Bar associations and licensing bodies are seen as both part of the problem and solution in addressing mental health stigma. Untreated burnout can affect an attorney's competence, leading to exhaustion, cynicism, and a lack of agency. Firm-wide strategies to reduce attrition include promoting healthier work environments and modeling better behavior from leadership.

Please note this AI-generated summary provides a general overview of the webinar but may not capture all details, nuances, or the exact words of the speaker. For complete accuracy, please refer to the original webinar recording.

Speaker

Jennifer A. Riley Vice Chair, Class Action Defense Group
Duane Morris LLP

Jennifer A. Riley, Vice Chair of Duane Morris’ Class Action Defense group, has defended companies faced with significant complex litigation matters for more than two decades. Ms. Riley regularly defends companies facing class actions, collective actions, pattern or practice lawsuits, and other types of representative proceedings, ranging in size from dozens to tens of thousands of claims. Working on the forefront of the developing law in an ever-changing arena, Ms. Riley regularly develops strategies for navigating some of the largest challenges faced by corporate America today and counsels employers confronted with a range of complex theories that span from claims of discrimination or sexual harassment to myriad types of alleged wage & hour and statutory privacy violations. Read More ›

Continuing Legal Education (CLE) Credits

*CLE credit is only available to Justia Connect Pros. Not a Pro? Upgrade today>>

California CLE

Status: Approved

Credits: 1.00 Prevention and Detection Competence

Earn Credit Until: June 30, 2026

New Jersey CLE

Status: Approved

Credits: 1.20 Ethics/Professionalism

Earn Credit Until: October 8, 2026

Texas CLE

Status: Approved

Credits: 1.00 Legal Ethics/Professional Responsibility

Earn Credit Until: September 30, 2026

This presentation is approved for one hour of Prevention and Detection Competence CLE credit in California. This program has been approved by the Board on Continuing Legal Education of the Supreme Court of New Jersey for 1.20 hours of total CLE credit. Of these, 1.20 qualify as total hours of credit for Ethics/Professionalism. This course has been approved for Minimum Continuing Legal Education credit by the State Bar of Texas Committee on MCLE in the amount of 1.00 credit hours, of which 1.00 credit hours will apply to Legal Ethics/Professional Responsibility credit.

Justia only reports attendance in jurisdictions in which a particular Justia CLE Webinar is officially accredited. Lawyers may need to self-submit their certificates for CLE credit in jurisdictions not listed above.

Note that CLE credit, including partial credit, cannot be earned outside of the relevant accreditation period. To earn credit for a course, a lawyer must watch the entire course within the relevant accreditation period. Lawyers who have viewed a presentation multiple times may not be able to claim credit in their jurisdiction more than once. Justia reserves the right, at its discretion, to grant an attendee partial or no credit, in accordance with viewing duration and other methods of verifying course completion.

At this time, Justia only offers CLE courses officially accredited in certain states. Lawyers may generate a generic attendance certificate to self-submit credit in their own jurisdiction, but Justia does not guarantee that lawyers will receive their desired CLE credit through the self-submission or reciprocity process.

Looking for CLE credit? Visit CLE Dashboard