Practicing Gratitude and Service
LIFESTYLE
THE ADDED BENEFIT OF PRO BONO SERVICE ‒
A HEALTHIER LIFE
By Dawn Smith
Smith & Lake LLC
[email protected]
P
ro Bono March Madness is upon us again. During March,
the Atlanta Bar Association and partner organizations
offer over 15 substantive training sessions in areas in
which the under served in Atlanta are in need of legal assistance. While March is the month designated to highlight pro
bono service, the need for civil legal assistance for the most
vulnerable in Georgia does not confine itself to a calendar
month. Similarly, the professional responsibility of lawyers to
provide pro bono legal services to persons of limited financial
means or organizations serving the economically d isadvantaged is an ongoing obligation. Rule 6.1 of the Georgia Rules
of Professional Conduct directs that lawyers should aspire
to provide at least 50 hours of pro bono legal services in a
given year without fee or expectation of receiving a fee.
the pro bono lawyer is frequently provided the opportunity to
develop or hone underused skills (e.g. depositions, arguing
motions, trial work) and to meet lawyers and judges they
otherwise would not have an opportunity to network with.
Pro bono work also can offer lawyers the ability to pursue
an area of the law for which they are passionate (e.g. protecting domestic violence victims, assisting needy artists).
Influence
While the benefits to one’s professional toolbox are many,
the influence on a lawyer’s mental and physical health from
pro bono service may be the most important. Recent alarming research indicates that lawyers who do not find an outlet for stress and meaning in
their work may face serious
health consequences. A recent
Develop
study commissioned by the
Underused Skills
ABA Commission on Lawyers
Whether aspirational or not,
Assistance Programs and the
many lawyers feel overHazelden Betty Ford Foundawhelmed at the thought of
tion provides some concernadding another obligation
ing, if not unexpected, results.
to the list of “should” and
Mental health issues and po“musts.” While appealing
tentially alcohol-dependent
to our higher selves to endrinking occur at an alarmcourage pro bono service
– U.S. Supreme ingly higher rate in lawyers
is effective in theory, such
than in the general populaCourt Associate Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg (March 2014)
lofty ideals frequently fall
tion. Out of 13,000 licensed
to the wayside when comand employed attorneys
peting with billable hours, business generation, and family in the study, 36.4% qualified as problem drinkers
obligations. Rather than seeing pro bono service as yet an- and 28% reported having experienced depression 1 .
other demand on precious free time, lawyers should consider
the positive effects of pro bono service. Free service is the 1
P.R. Krill et al., The Prevalence of Substance
very definition of pro bono; however, there are many ways Use and Other Mental Health Concerns Among American
in which pro bono lawyers are enriched by their service. In Lawyers, 10 Journal of Addiction Medicine 46-52 (2016).
addition to providing access to justice for the underserved,
“ Lawyers
have a license to
p r a c t i c e l a w, a m o n o p o l y o n
certain services. But for that privilege
and status, lawyers have an obligation
to provide legal services to those without
the wherewithal to pay, to respond to
needs outside themselves, to help repair
tears in their communities.”
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March 2016
Depression and substance abuse are complex issues that
frequently require a multi-modal response and, depending
on the severity, professional intervention. There is increasing
evidence, however, that practicing gratitude and service to
others can have a positive impact on stress and a person’s
overall sense of value and mood. A national survey by United
Health Group indicates that service improves mood, lowers
stress levels, and contributes to an overall feeling of good
heath2. A 2006 study from the National Institutes of Health
found that in the subjects who practice altruism, brain imaging revealed activation of the pleasure and social connection
area of the brain creating the “warm glow” effect often known
as the “helper’s high”3. There is evidence as well that giving
of oneself can have positive physiological effects. One study
found that subjects gave social support to others had lower
blood pressure, greater self-esteem and less depression. 4
The Gift of Your Time
The bar card possessed by every practicing lawyer uniquely
qualifies him or her to provide services to the needy that no
other group or profession is able to provide. Pro bono service
is our obligation as members of this noble profession and as
citizens seeking to secure a strong and healthy community.
Such service is a win/win for the community and for the
individual lawyer. The feeling of usefulness, meaning and
community engendered by pro bono service can provide
a light in a sometimes dark professional life and positively
can impact the mental and physical health of the provider. In
March and every month, take your unique talent as a lawyer
and give of your time so that you can receive the variety of
benefits that stem from pro bono service. Our community
has a wide range of pro bono opportunities for lawyers that
cover a myriad of subject areas. If you do not know where to
begin, ask a fellow lawyer, go to www.georgiaadvocates.org,
Google your area of interest or go to the pro bono opportunities section of the Atlanta Bar Association website. Your community and your health will benefit from the gift of your time.
“For it is the giving that we receive.” Prayer of St. Francis of Assisi. ■
FOLLOW US ON
2
United Health Group, Doing Good is Good for You,
2013 Health and Volunteering Study.
3
Elizabeth Svoboda, Hard Wired for Giving,
www.wsj.com (August 13, 2013).
4 Rachel Piferi et al., Social Support and Ambulatory Blood Pressure: An Examination of Both Receiving
and Giving, 62 International Journal of Psychophysiology 2
(2006).
@atlantabar
The Official News Publication of the Atlanta Bar Association THE ATLANTA LAWYER
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