Lawyers in the United States are increasingly burnt out

American lawyers are increasingly burnt out and their well-being is deteriorating, according to a study by Bloomberg Law.

The media outlet asked 614 lawyers – internally and privately – about their workload in the last quarter of 2021.

Bloomberg Law has been asking lawyers about it since 2020, but for the first time respondents report that they experience burnout no less than 52% of the time. This percentage was lower in the previous two quarters: 47% and 44% respectively.

Other survey results indicate that 46% of lawyers surveyed say their well-being deteriorated in the fourth quarter of 2021, compared to 34% in the third quarter and 30% in the second quarter of last year.

Strikingly, lawyers who indicate that their well-being has declined, report an average job satisfaction score of 4.1 out of 10. Lawyers who felt better in Q4 2021, attribute their work an average of 7.3. Colleagues who felt neither better nor worse have an average score of 6.7.

Lawyers who said they were worse had issues such as trouble sleeping (83%), anxiety (81%), relationship issues (47%) and depression (43%). Challenges faced by this group include the inability to disconnect from work (79%), a heavier workload (78%) and problems concentrating (61%).

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