Systemic Pressure Points
Women lawyers face about 80 percent higher odds of high burnout than men, even after accounting for hours and practice setting. The usual advice puts the fix on women: set better boundaries, meditate, find balance. This program makes the case, with data, that the causes are structural, built into the way legal work is organized, and shows what lawyers and firm leaders can change.
Earn CLE credit with research you can put to work.
Only $95 for 1.0 hour of professional responsibility credit (up to 1.2 in Colorado), on demand.
Inside Systemic Pressure Points
A 61-minute continuing legal education (CLE) program on why women lawyers burn out at higher rates, and the structures behind it.
The program traces how the billable hour and law firm career paths developed around an "ideal worker" with a partner at home, and how far today's profession has moved from that model, including the second shift of childcare and eldercare that most lawyer caregivers carry. Using Christina Maslach's six areas of worklife, it identifies the stressors that fall hardest on women, including women of color, LGBTQ+ women, caregivers, and women at midlife, and explains how implicit bias shows up in evaluation.
The program takes no position in the current debate over workplace diversity programs. Its recommendations involve no preferences or quotas for any group. They are practices open to every lawyer: realistic workloads, transparent pay and credit, flexibility without career penalty, consistent evaluation criteria, and safe reporting channels.
What you'll learn
Why burnout is defined as an occupational phenomenon, and the difference between stressors and stress.
How the billable hour model and law firm structures developed around assumptions about who lawyers were, and how those assumptions affect women today.
How to use the six areas of worklife to spot structural stressors, including implicit bias, that fall disproportionately on women.
The legal floor for employers: Title VII, the Equal Pay Act, the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act, the PUMP Act, and Model Rule 8.4(g) and its state versions.
Six practical bias interrupters, and structural changes, open to every lawyer, that reduce burnout and improve retention.
Available 24/7, no scheduling required.
Start, pause, and pick up where you left off. Earn credit whenever it suits you.
What's included
A 61-minute on-demand video
All written materials you need to self-report credit in your state
A certificate of completion
Who it's for: lawyers of every gender and at every level, including firm leaders, supervisors, in-house and government lawyers, and solo practitioners.
CLE Credit
This program is currently approved for continuing legal education credits in the following states.
California: accreditation pending
Colorado: accreditation pending
Illinois: accreditation pending
New York: Experienced attorneys may claim 1.0 credit in Ethics and Professionalism under New York's approved-jurisdiction policy. Newly admitted New York attorneys are not eligible.
Texas: accreditation pending
Credit rules vary by state. Before you buy, check your state's requirements to confirm whether this program qualifies.
Financial Hardship Policy: Illinois attorneys facing financial hardship may request a full or partial fee waiver at support@helenodom.com.