A survey of more than 200 corporate lawyers by Gartner, Inc in July found the pandemic has left 54% of lawyers exhausted, with 20% ‘highly exhausted’.
Of those who scored as highly exhausted, 41% showed signs of psychological distress, 68% were looking to leave the organization, and 61% frequently delayed or killed projects in which they were involved.
The lawyers’ exhaustion levels were evaluated using a modified Bergen burnout inventory, which is a set of questions commonly used to quantify exhaustion.
The results revealed how even moderate exhaustion can hinder progress―three per cent of lawyers who scored as not exhausted were psychologically distressed, but this figure jumped to 28% for the moderately exhausted. Similarly, nine per cent of not exhausted lawyers were found to frequently delay, scale down or kill projects, but this figure leaped to 34% for moderately exhausted lawyers.
‘The fact that many corporate lawyers are exhausted is probably not that surprising to legal leaders after the pressures of the pandemic,’ said James Crocker, senior principal, research in the Gartner Legal & Compliance practice.
‘But what stands out is the degree to which even moderate levels of exhaustion lead to severely negative outcomes for the individuals themselves, the legal department, and the overall business. The fact that more than two thirds of highly exhausted lawyers are looking to leave the company, and the extent to which even moderate exhaustion is associated with quantifiable psychological distress among corporate lawyers should be a cause for concern for legal leaders.’
According to Gartner’s research, lawyers who were ‘highly engaged’ with their work were less likely to suffer exhaustion. It found just 4% of lawyers were both highly exhausted and highly engaged. Engaged lawyers tended to have personally fulfilling work and be well-rewarded.
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