MONDAY (5/5): Physical Well-Being

*SPECIAL DISCOUNT: Massachusetts Lawyers receive a 50% discount on race tickets for Spartan Races in North America, including two races in Massachusetts in August and November, https://www.spartan.com. Use code: MASSLAWYER

• 9:00 AM-9:30 AM: Dr. Meyers Guided Mindfulness (Hosted by Lawyers Concerned for Lawyers and Mindfulness in Law Society).

  Please join Dr. Tracey Meyers, staff clinician at Lawyers Concerned for Lawyers, for a guided mindfulness session tailored for attorneys to enhance their well-being and focus and support emotion regulation. Dr. Meyers will also provide a brief overview of how to start a mindfulness practice or continue to build on an existing one to manage the stressful demands of the legal profession along with a brief overview of how mindfulness can support mental and physical health. This practice will help you cultivate a sense of calm, improve your concentration, and foster resilience against daily stressors. Mindfulness practices can be portable tools to use not only in your personal space but also in brief moments throughout your workday, whether before entering the courtroom or during a pause between meetings. Register Here.

• 12:00 PM-1:00 PM: WWIL 2025 Kickoff: Boosting Well-Being With Connection (Hosted by the Institute for Well-Being in Law).

  Dr. Anne Brafford and Tara Antonipillai, the Well-Being Week in Law Co-Chairs, will kick off WWIL 2025
  with an engaging session that explains this year’s theme and leads activities to bring it to life. More information
  coming soon! This year, we have general registration. When you register for Well-Being Week in Law, you’ll have access to the online event platform where all webinars will be available. Register for WWIL.

• 1:30 PM-5:30 PM: Moving Together: Exploring Connection Through Movement, Exercise, & Dance (Hosted by the Institute for Well-Being in Law).

  Kick off Well-Being Week in Law 2025 with energizing and interactive experiences that highlight the power of moving together. Physical activity is well known for boosting mood, improving cognitive function, and reducing symptoms of depression and anxiety. But when we move in sync with others—whether through dance, exercise, or even a simple walk—it strengthens our sense of connection and belonging. Shared movement has been shown to release neurochemicals that enhance social bonding, reduce stress, and even lower pain levels.

  The Moving Together program offers multiple expert-led movement sessions, so you can participate in whatever feels right for you. No experience is needed, and you’re welcome to turn your camera off if you prefer.

  Choose from the Following Sessions:

  1:30 PM: Yoga

  2:00 PM: Seated Boxing Workout

  3:00 PM: Community Mindful Walk

  3:30 PM: Qi Gong

  4:30 PM: Ballet for Well-Being

  Join us and experience firsthand how moving together can strengthen both body and mind!

  CLE credit will not be available for these sessions.

  This year, we have general registration. When you register for Well-Being Week in Law, you’ll have access to the online event platform where all webinars will be available. Register for WWIL.

TUESDAY (5/6): Spiritual Well-Being

• 11:00 AM-1:30 PM: Work Smarter, Feel Better: Incorporating Well-Being Into a Successful Trial Practice (Hosted by the Massachusetts Academy of Trial Attorneys).

  Location: Keches Law, 2 Granite Ave, Milton, MA

  Featured Presenters:

  Filippa Marullo Anzalone, Boston College Law School

  Christopher Earley, Earley Law Group Injury Lawyers

  Melissa Jones, Planet Depo

  Alan Klevan, Law Offices of Alan Klevan, P.C.

  Rhonda Maloney, North Shore Law LLC (Moderator)

  This program and lunch are free, but we ask that you please register. Register Here.

• 12:00 PM-1:00 PM: Fostering Wellness and Connections in the Workplace (Hosted by the Boston Bar Association). Register Here.

• 12:00 PM-1:00 PM: Fireside Chat: Practicing in Recovery (Hosted by the Institute for Well-Being in Law).

  Speakers:
  James D. Lawrence, Partner, BCLP
  Casey L. Miller, Associate, Dechert
  Steven R. Wall, Global Managing Partner, Morgan Lewis

  Join us for an insightful and candid conversation with a distinguished panel of legal professionals who have
  successfully navigated their careers while embracing the journey of recovery. Our panelists will share their
  personal stories, challenges, and triumphs.

  In addition to discussing the resilience and self-awareness that recovery fosters, the panelists will offer practical advice for those currently practicing law in recovery. We will also explore insights from recent IWIL research on long-term recovery in the legal profession, shedding light on key factors that support sustained well-being.

  As part of the discussion, panelists will reflect on this year’s Well-Being Week in Law theme of
  connection—examining how social support, community, and professional networks play a critical role in
  recovery and long-term success in the legal field.

  Through this open dialogue, attendees will gain a deeper understanding of the impact of recovery on career
  progression, strategies for cultivating a supportive work environment, and evidence-based guidance on
  maintaining well-being while practicing law.

  We will apply for CLE credits, which will be dependent on individual states MCLE requirements.

  This year, we have general registration. When you register for Well-Being Week in Law, you’ll have access to the online event platform where all webinars will be available. Register for WWIL.

• 2:30 PM-4:30 PM: Exploring the Connection between Well-Being and Identity in the Legal Profession: The Importance of Supportive Workplaces and Allyship (Hosted by the Committee for Public Counsel Services)

  Exploring the Connection between Well-Being & Identity in the Legal Profession: The Importance of Supportive Workplaces and Allyship will focus on recently released proposals from the Affinity Bar Associations that provide practical ways to improve well-being in the profession and to dismantle systemic inequities. This program will feature a roundtable conversation comprised of various members and focused on public service and government workplaces.

  CLE Approved for:
  CAFL, CAFL Appeals, YAD, YAD Appeals, Adult Criminal Trials, Adult Criminal Post-Conviction, Mental Health Litigation, MHLD Appeals, SORB/SDP

  Register in advance for this meeting:

  https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/GYyYywSwSGW9QjMvx4Dg4w

  After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the meeting.

WEDNESDAY (5/7): Career and Intellectual Well-Being

• 12:30 PM-1:30 PM: The Power of Us: Uniting the Legal Community in Turbulent Times (Hosted by the Institute for Well-Being in Law).

  More details coming soon.

  This year, we have general registration. When you register for Well-Being Week in Law, you’ll have access to the online event platform where all webinars will be available. Register for WWIL.

THURSDAY (5/8): Social Well-Being

• 9:00 AM-10:00 AM: Community Connections Breakfast (Hosted by the Boston Bar Association).

  Join the Well-Being Advisory Committee for a revitalizing morning at their Well-Being Week in Law Community Connections Breakfast! For this breakfast, we will be exchanging well-being tips with one another. Attend and share how you prioritize your well-being while also learning from others. 

  What to Expect:

  • Networking: Meet and mingle with like-minded professionals dedicated to fostering well-being in the legal field.

  • Insights: Learn well-being tips that can enhance your personal and professional life.

  • Support: Engage in meaningful conversations that can help you build a healthier work-life balance.

  Don’t miss this opportunity to expand your network and discover how prioritizing well-being can benefit you and your practice! Register Here.

• 11:30 AM-12:45 PM: Uniting the Legal Community in Turbulent Times: Fostering Resilience, Purpose, & Well-Being (Hosted by the Institute for Well-Being in Law).

  Speakers:

  • Prof. Stephen I. Vladeck, Georgetown University Law Center and CNN contributor (Bio)

  • Neel Chatterjee, Founder of Law Firm Partners United (Bio)

  • Prof. Kendall L. Kerew, Georgia State University College of Law (Bio)

  • Moderator: Dr. Anne M. Brafford, JD, PhD, Behavioral psychologist and founder of Aspire (Bio)

  With constant news about threats to law firms, courts, and the rule of law, many lawyers are feeling disoriented and anxious. The unprecedented turmoil seems uncontrollable, unpredictable, and likely to persist—all factors that amplify stress and heighten the risk of anxiety, depression, and hopelessness. However, cultivating resilience can help lawyers navigate this “existential crisis” and maintain their strength, vitality, and well-being.

  In turbulent times, four key resilience factors are especially vital:

  • Comprehensibility: Making sense of events—creating order, predictability, and understanding

  • Manageability: Recognizing our capacity to cope, influence outcomes, and access needed resources

  • Meaningfulness: Seeing challenges as worth our time, energy, and commitment

  • Community: Drawing strength from trusted relationships and collective engagement

  So far, there’s been more outrage than action—partly due to threat rigidity effects, a psychological response to threat that narrows thinking and leads to clinging to the status quo. In contrast, psychological flexibility supports more adaptive responses, allowing us to notice our thoughts and emotions without being controlled by them so that we can more authentically choose actions aligned with our values and goals.

  Even small, purposeful steps can begin to restore a sense of agency. Passive coping—such as disengagement or downplaying the crisis—often fails to relieve anxiety. Active coping, on the other hand, builds confidence in our ability to make a difference and a sense of control and purpose.

  The benefits of action go beyond reducing anxiety. When we engage, we feel valued while adding value to our community, forge meaningful connections, and reinforce our shared identity and values.

  In this webinar, a panel of professionals will explore how lawyers can foster these resilience factors to stay well while taking purposeful action:

  • Comprehensibility & Meaningfulness: Prof. Stephen Vladeck will help make sense of current threats to the legal profession, placing recent executive actions and attacks on the rule of law in historical context. How bad is it, really? Are we facing an “existential crisis” or not? What does that mean—and why does it matter?

  • Manageability, Meaningfulness, & Community: Prof. Kendall Kerew will address questions like: What are the legal profession’s values and duties as it relates to protecting the rule of law and democracy? Why does that matter? What are things the legal community can do right now to foster and protect such values?

  • Manageability, Meaningfulness, & Community: Neel Chatterjee will talk about how and why he formed Law Firm Partners United (a community of AmLaw 200 partners), what its plans are, and how others can get involved. Neel didn’t wait for others to fill the gap–he created something he felt was missing, inspiring us all to be the change we want to see.

  Building our collective resilience will enable us to stay healthy, connected, and psychologically flexible and choose values-aligned action in the face of ongoing threats. Together, we can meet this moment with clarity, courage, and community.

  (See Literature References for the Webinar Framework Here)

  CLE credit will not be available for this session.

  This year, we have general registration. When you register for Well-Being Week in Law, you’ll have access to the online event platform where all webinars will be available. Register for WWIL.

FRIDAY (5/9): Emotional Well-Being

• 12:00 PM- 1:00 PM: Polyvagal Theory in Lawyering: Cultivating Support for Ethical Decision Making (Hosted by Lawyers Concerned for Lawyers)

This is the second presentation of a two-part series. The first presentation was held in February 2025 entitled “What is Polyvagal Theory? Applications for Navigating Stress & Resilience in the Legal Profession” which provides a helpful a foundation to continue this conversation.

This latest session is designed to provide legal professionals with valuable insights into how understanding and applying Polyvagal Theory can enrich their professional skills, promote integrity and resilience in their legal practice.  

Polyvagal Theory, developed by scientist and researcher Dr. Stephen Porges, revolutionizes our understanding of the autonomic nervous system by highlighting how its three key branches—ventral vagal, sympathetic, and dorsal vagal—affect our responses to stress, safety, and social engagement. This presentation provides insights into how our physiological states influence emotional regulation and interpersonal connections which can significantly impact a lawyer’s ability to handle challenging situations in professional and personal settings.  

Dr. Tracey Meyers and Stacey Best, Esq. will:

• Provide a brief overview of polyvagal theory and how the autonomic nervous system influences stress, resilience, and social engagement which is crucial for legal professionals.

• Provide a fresh framework through which lawyers can better understand or achieve best ethical practices.

• Talk about supports to enable lawyers to enhance resilience through a deeper understanding of the nervous system and polyvagal theory.

  Register here.