Emma Jones & Caroline Strevens 
Wellbeing and Transitions in Law [PDF ebook] 
Legal Education and the Legal Profession

This book examines transitions from law school to the legal profession, and their impact on wellbeing. There is a significant body of evidence that suggests law student wellbeing is particularly problematic, partially due to the distinctive nature of law as a discipline. Similarly, there is a growing body of international evidence demonstrating poor levels of wellbeing within the legal profession, with lawyers suffering higher levels of stress, anxiety and depression than the general population. To date there has been no detailed consideration of the impact of these transitions on wellbeing, or discussion of the best ways to ameliorate any negative effects. This edited collection will explore a range of transitions, from entry into law school through to progression to managerial roles within the legal profession. Rather than focusing on discrete areas or chunks of time, this book focuses on the process of transitioning holistically.

Table of Content

Chapter 1. Introduction: Synthesising and developing work on wellbeing and transitions.- Chapter 2. Wellbeing and transition to law school: the complexities of confidence, community, and belonging.- Chapter 3. The Transition to Law School: A case study.- Chapter 4. A broken profession both mentally and physically: Is well-being the foundation to a healthy and resilient future?.- Part 2: Moving through Law School – Professional formation and academic study.- Chapter 5. The Virtual Happy Hour for Contract Law students: reflecting on an unplanned transition.- Chapter 6. Lessons from online pandemic pedagogy in North American law schools: Towards law student wellbeing.- Chapter 7.Student transition, sense of belonging and habitus.- Part 3: From Student to Lawyer – Vocational education and wellbeing.- Chapter 8.Transitioning to an understanding of the Autonomic Nervous System in Law.- Chapter 9. The law school and the psychology of belonging.- Chapter10. From Student to Practitioner: Exploring the transition into legal practice and the opportunity offered by self-coaching in the management of rejection.- Chapter 11. Wellbeing and vicarious trauma: Personal reflections on support for students, practitioners and clinicians in family law.- Chapter 12. Trauma Informed Legal Education: Rejecting the Stigma in Caring for Self, Client and Workplace

About the author

Emma J. Jones is Senior Lecturer in Law at the University of Sheffield, UK.




Caroline Strevens is Head of Department at the Portsmouth Law School, Portsmouth University, UK.