ABSTRACT
Law is a stressful profession with high rates of depression and suicide, including alcohol and substance abuse, and high turnover and attrition. A common source of stress for many lawyers is trauma: working with distressed, injured and traumatised people as clients, parties and witnesses, including people with PTSD. Lawyers who are unaware of trauma theory or who feel unsupported can be affected by their clients’ distress and may experience secondary trauma, which can cause a range of symptoms leading to burnout, compassion fatigue, secondary trauma stress or vicarious trauma. Common aggravating problems in legal practice reflect a stigma against mental health concerns and poor leadership with an adversarial and competitive ‘law-as-business’ approach in many workplaces. Most lawyers are not adequately trained or supported to work safely with distressed or traumatised people, and most law schools provide no education on trauma theory, allowing graduates to enter the profession believing they can ignore or repress their emotions in order to ‘think like a lawyer’. This book offers solutions and is an essential resource for lawyers, law firm managers and supervisors, as well as law schools, teachers, librarians, researchers and students. It is evidence-based and fully referenced, with tools and resources for lawyers wanting to improve their psychological resilience, and workplaces intending to adopt trauma-informed systems including strategies for supervisors. It includes guides for law school curricula and strategies for law teachers, as well as skills and habits for students seeking to enhance their resilience and self-awareness in readiness for legal practice.
James, Colin G, Vicarious Trauma and Burnout in Law: Managing Psychological Stress to Promote Safety, Performance, and Wellbeing in Legal Practice (October 11, 2025).
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