Legal Education For Wellbeing

Bringing together the current international body of knowledge on key issues for educating for well-being in law, this book offers comparative perspectives across jurisdictions, and utilises a range of theoretical lenses (including socio-legal, psychological and ethical theories) in analysing well-being and legal education in law. The chapters include innovative and tested research methodologies and strategies for educating for well-being. Asking and answering the question as to whether law is special in terms of producing psychological distress in law students, law teachers and the profession, and bringing together common and opposing perspectives, this book also seeks to highlight excellent practice in promoting a positive professional identity at law school and beyond resulting in an original contribution to knowledge, and new discourses of analysis.

This book aims to assist legal educators and law schools in integrating wellbeing within the design and delivery of the legal curriculum. It also encourages the evaluation of wellbeing-related initiatives, to develop an evidence-based, sustainable approach to its inclusion. The contributions to this volume each focus upon different aspects of wellbeing and the curriculum, including the applications of vulnerability and social identity theory, the role of transitions and inductions, the implementation and evaluation of law school wellbeing initiatives, reflections on both the Socratic method and assessment, the results of a longitudinal student study and a consideration of the legal profession's perspective. They contain both theoretical and empirical evidence to support the development of wellbeing-informed teaching and learning and foster positive interactions and experiences for both staff and students. Taken together, and coupled with international perspectives, they provide evidence and examples to support a holistic approach to wellbeing in legal education which moves beyond simply ameliorating damaging impacts and instead identifies meaningful routes to fostering positive wellbeing. This volume will be of interest to legal academics and others with an interest in legal education, including legal professionals and law students. It will also appeal to those who have an interest in integrating wellbeing into the curriculum within higher education. This book was originally published as a special issue of The Law Teacher.

This How to Guide will provide readers with information and insights which will better equip them to support law students in a higher education setting. Featuring contributions from an array of eminent academics and student support professionals, this book includes personal reflections, example scenarios and practical tips for those seeking to improve support for student wellbeing.

This book provides a novel contribution to the wider bodies of literature on student and academic wellbeing by including a series of rich and nuanced discussions of specific aspects of the wellbeing of legal academics. It contains original research contributions on this topic drawing on insights from law, education and psychology and throws a spotlight on an emerging field of interest. In particular, it focuses attention on the need to understand the implications of workload, communication, competence, and community for academic wellbeing with the collection providing insight as to the amelioration of stress linked to these themes. Reference will be made to the key factors which influence each of these themes, such as the neo-liberal academy, the contours and staffing of the law school, the impact of COVID-19 and the role of values and ethics. Relevant theoretical perspectives relating to these themes, including self-determination theory and the notion of an ethic of care, will also be discussed.

University can be a psychologically distressing place for students. Empirical studies in Australia and the USA highlight that a large number of law students suffer from psychological distress, when compared to students from other disciplines and members of the general population. This book explores the significant role that legal education can play in the promotion of mental health and well-being in law students, and consequently in the profession. The volume considers the ways in which the problems of psychological distress amongst law students are connected to the way law and legal culture are taught, and articulates curricula and extra-curricula strategies for promoting wellbeing for law students. With contributions from legal academics, legal practitioners and psychologists, the authors discuss the possible causes of psychological distress in the legal community, and potential interventions that may increase psychological well-being. This important book will be of interest to legal academics, law students, members of the legal profession, post-graduate researchers as well as non-law researchers interested in this area.

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.

This book aims to assist legal educators and law schools in integrating wellbeing within the design and delivery of the legal curriculum. It also encourages the evaluation of wellbeing-related initiatives, to develop an evidence-based, sustainable approach to its inclusion. The contributions to this volume each focus upon different aspects of wellbeing and the curriculum, including the applications of vulnerability and social identity theory, the role of transitions and inductions, the implementation and evaluation of law school wellbeing initiatives, reflections on both the Socratic method and assessment, the results of a longitudinal student study and a consideration of the legal profession’s perspective. They contain both theoretical and empirical evidence to support the development of wellbeing-informed teaching and learning and foster positive interactions and experiences for both staff and students. Taken together, and coupled with international perspectives, they provide evidence and examples to support a holistic approach to wellbeing in legal education which moves beyond simply ameliorating damaging impacts and instead identifies meaningful routes to fostering positive wellbeing. This volume will be of interest to legal academics and others with an interest in legal education, including legal professionals and law students. It will also appeal to those who have an interest in integrating wellbeing into the curriculum within higher education. This book was originally published as a special issue of The Law Teacher.