Legal Speak Podcast: Mental Health in the Legal Industry: How to Mitigate Systemic Challenges and Boost Individual Resilience

O’Melveny partner and chief operating officer George Demos, who leads the firm’s Living Well program and is a recognized champion of well-being in the legal industry, was featured on an episode of Law.com’s “Legal Speak” podcast and discussed mental health in the legal industry, how law firms and lawyers can mitigate systemic challenges, and O’Melveny’s initiatives to promote wellness. “We see wellbeing as essential to our business and what we deliver to our clients,” said Demos, who shared his own personal struggles with mental wellbeing and explained O’Melveny’s efforts to promote change. “The pressures and stress of our profession too often lead to burnout, unhealthy habits, substance abuse, and even suicidal thoughts,” Demos said. “For far too long, speaking out and asking for help has been viewed as a sign of weakness in our industry, and as a result, we suffer in silence. I say ‘we’ because I have been there. Early in my career, I faced my own wellbeing struggles and hit my own rock bottom. So now, I have committed this chapter of my career to wanting to make a difference and become a champion for change. I want wellbeing, and especially mental health, to be a priority at my firm and across the entire industry.” 

Listen to the podcast above or access Law.com’s “Legal Speak” podcast on www.law.com.