ABA Study Shows a Gender Gap in Lawyer Anxiety, Sleep and Workplace Trust

On September 3, the Illinois Supreme Court Commission on Professionalism summarized an American Bar Association study of 2,915 lawyers and 12 focus groups showing higher stress, anxiety and depressive symptoms, and lower overall wellbeing, among women than men. Among respondents completing the PHQ-4, 36.9% of women versus 22.7% of men reached the study’s threshold for further anxiety evaluation; women also reported greater financial strain, sleep disturbance and family-relationship stress. The operational implication is to test workload allocation, billable-hour expectations and protected time by demographic group rather than relying on firmwide averages that can conceal unequal burdens. Leaders should also note that participants’ distrust of workplace wellbeing resources makes confidentiality assurances and visible non-retaliation by partners part of program design.