Laurie Besden is the Executive Director of Lawyers Concerned for Lawyers of Pennsylvania, Inc. (LCL PA). She served as its Deputy Executive Director, overseeing its Helpline operations, serving as primary contact for intervention requests, expanding its law school outreach, and increasing LCL PA’s presence within the organized bench and bar, from 2011-2015. After becoming LCL PA’s Executive Director in 2015, Laurie continued to serve in most of these capacities and assumed responsibility for the organization’s administrative and financial operations, as well as its judges’ assistance program (Judges Concerned for Judges). Read More ›
Attorney Licensure and the Impaired Professional
Substance use disorders and mental health challenges can affect any attorney regardless of gender, culture, ethnicity, age, or socioeconomic status. This program, taught by seasoned attorneys Tracy Kepler and Laurie Besden, instructs attorneys on how to recognize the impaired professional, provides various resources to assist in the recovery and identifies the possible disciplinary implications of impaired attorneys' conduct.
Ms. Besden will share her personal journey from the darkness and depths of despair in struggling with a substance use disorder as a licensed attorney to her path of long-term recovery, where she received a full Governor's Pardon from Governor Wolf in 2020.
Learning Objectives:- Explore substance use disorders and mental health challenges as medical diagnoses and how their prevalence rates affect the legal professional - as told by one of the presenters, who is in long-term recovery, herself.
- Identify warning signs of, and learn how to begin the conversation with an impaired attorney.
- Discern the interface between potential attorney disciplinary action and impairment as well as possible reporting obligations.
- Identify confidential, safe, free, and supportive resources available to the impaired legal professional, their family members, and their colleagues.
- Apply wellness tips that attorneys can apply in daily life, without much effort, that will positively impact mental health, in both the personal and professional realms.
Agenda:
- Setting the Stage: Road to Redemption
- Setting the Stage: Legal Profession Well-Being Studies
- Krill, Johnson & Albert Legal Profession Study
- 2019 ALM/Law.Com Study
- 2021 DC & CA Attorney Stress Study
- 2023 DC & CA Suicide/Loneliness Study
- Who We Are & What We Face
- Risk Characteristics of Attorneys
- Pressures of the Workplace
- Stigma/Conspiracy of Silence
- Attorney Impairment & Regulation Data
- Identifying Impairment Signs in Ourselves & Others
- Contacting LAP for Another/Self
- What to Look for in a Colleague
- Best Practices in Approaching a Colleague
- Responsibilities of a Partner or Supervisory Lawyer
- MRPC 5.1 & 5.3
- MRPC 8.3 (a)
- Formal Legal Ethics Opinions
- The Impaired Lawyer's Responsibilities
- MRPC 1.1
- MRPC 1.16(a)
- Seeking Help
- What is the LAP
- The Law Firm's Responsibilities
- Changes to Rules, Policies & Procedures
- Changes to Firm Culture
- Well-Being Business Plans
- Resources
- What Can One Person Do? Strategies for Improving Well-Being
- Boundaries
- Disconnect
- Manage the Apps
- Unfollow the Unhealthy
- Schedule Self-Care Time
Topics covered include:
Competence Issues
Ethics
Mental Health
Substance Abuse
Duration of this webinar:
60 minutes
Originally broadcast:
December 11, 2023 11:00 AM PT
Continuing Legal Education (CLE) Credits
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California CLE
Status: Approved
Credits: 1.0 Prevention and Detection Competence
Earn Credit Until: December 10, 2025
South Carolina CLE
Status: Approved
Credits: 1.0 Substance Abuse/Mental Health
Difficulty: All Levels
Earn Credit Until: December 31, 2024
North Carolina CLE
Status: Approved
Credits: 1.0 Professional Well-Being
Earn Credit Until: February 28, 2025
Texas CLE
Status: Approved
Credits: 1.0 Legal Ethics/Professional Responsibility
Earn Credit Until: November 30, 2024
This presentation is approved for one hour of Prevention and Detection Competence CLE credit in California, one hour of Substance Abuse/Mental Health CLE credit in South Carolina (all levels), and one hour of Professional Well-Being CLE credit in North Carolina. This course has been approved for Minimum Continuing Legal Education credit by the State Bar of Texas Committee on MCLE in the amount of 1.0 credit hours, of which 1.0 credit hours will apply to Legal Ethics/Professional Responsibility credit.
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Speakers
Tracy L. Kepler
Risk Control Consulting Director
CNA's Lawyers Insurance Program
CNA's Lawyers Insurance Program
Tracy L. Kepler is the Risk Control Consulting Director for CNA’s Lawyers
Insurance Program. In this role, she designs and develops content and
distribution of risk control initiatives relevant to law practice. She
collaborates with the underwriting and claims teams to develop and execute
strategies for the profitable growth of the program. Tracy lectures frequently at CNA-sponsored events, state and local bar associations, and national seminars hosted by industry-leading organizations. She also writes articles focusing on law firm risk control and professional responsibility issues. Read More ›
