Balancing the Bar

Happiness and the Practice of Law

CBA Health and Well-being Committee

In January 2012, the Cincinnati Bar Association created the Health and Well Being Committee.  The first time in its history the CBA is creating a proactive approach to Mental Health and Well Being.

Our mission is to promote attorney well-being by providing education, peer-to-peer support and resources to attorneys and law students in the areas of mental health, emotional balance, stress management (including physical manifestations of stress) and addiction. To fulfill this mission, we have set the following long-term goals:

  • endeavor to improve the mental and emotional well-being of attorneys through education;
  • educate attorneys and law students about stress and the physical andmental health consequences of the failure to manage or address it;
  • address issues of addictive behavior, its causes and solutions (including but not limited to substance abuse, workaholism and gambling);
  •  provide support to attorneys in crisis or in periods of personal or professional transition;
  • develop a peer-to-peer counseling and/or mentoring program to address all issues;
  • provide community-based resource in­formation to the legal community;
  • assist law students in the adjustment from school to legal practice;
  • interview attorneys to identify best prac­tices for balanced living and to share the results with CBA members
  • address issues associated with malprac­tice and or employee benefit issues arising when a colleague or employee can no longer perform their job due to a mental health crisis; and
  • help senior lawyers transition from active practice to retirement

The Committee is comprised of attorneys from multiple disciplines and backgrounds. In addition to me, the intial members are:

  • Ellen Wolf, magistrate, Hamilton County Municipal Court 
  • Dimity Orlet, CLE director and as­sistant counsel, CBA
  •  Robert W. Buechner, partner, Buech­ner Haffer Meyers & Koenig Co. LPA
  • Patrick J.Garry, associate director, Ohio Lawyers Assistance Program
  •  Sean Mangan, associate professor, UC College of Law
  • Stuart Schloss, partner, Ulmer & Berne and board member at Center­point Healthcare

It also takes guidance from its Advisory Panel of local health professional.  The current Advisory Panel members are

  • John Francis, director, Centerpoint Healthcare
  • Tony Diatillo, director, Greater Cin­cinnati Behavioral Health Services
  • Doug Mossman, M.D., director, UC Law and Psychiatry Institute
  • Lawsin Wulsin, M.D, professor of psychiatry, UC Medical School
  • Richard Sears, Psy.D., president, Cincinnati Academy of Professional Psychology and clinical psychologist, Union Institute
  • Jeremy Bruce, M.D., Internal Medicine, Christ Hospital Medical Associates

Cincinnati area attorneys can take advantage of monthly Articles in a the CBA Report column called Balanced Living, Balanced Living Lectures, CLE Events with the Professionalism committee and etc.   A fund has been established at the Cincinnati Bar Foundation known as the Kenneth D. Jameson Health and Well Being Fund  to support the mission and goals of the committee.

If you would like to be involved with the committee or donate to the fund please contact myself at tmh@hochscheidlaw.com.