Free Mental Health Insurance to Help Legal Professionals Deal with Work Pressure

This article was first published on 7 October 2024 in the Singapore Mandarin broadsheet, Lianhe Zaobao.

SLW obtained permission to reproduce the article to give the legal community a broader view of legal reports for various news syndicates.

From January next year, more than 13,000 legal professionals will be eligible for a mental health and wellness insurance policy free of charge. The scheme covers clinical counselling and behavioural health coaching sessions to help them cope with work pressures and maintain a healthy way of life.

The group insurance policy is jointly offered by the Singapore Academy of Law (SAL) and insurer Singlife, and will be available to all active SAL members (who have paid their annual membership fee and have no outstanding arrears).

The plan offers all insured members benefits such as three counselling sessions and three behavioural coaching sessions a year, and access to a self-care application as well as a 24-hour emergency helpline. Each policy provides mental health services valued at over S$1,000.

Members of SAL include lawyers, corporate legal advisors, judges, faculty members of the law schools in the three universities, and legal service officers.

Lawyers are in a high-stress profession, mental health improves efficiency

The Honourable Justice Valerie Thean, co-chair of SAL’s Ethics and Professional Standards Committee, announced the initiative at the inaugural Legal Professional Symposium on Monday (Oct 7).

She noted that law is a high-pressure profession, and global and local surveys indicate that mental health issues are a significant concern. Given the prevalence of these problems in the field, the initiative is both timely and necessary.

Mr Yeong Zee Kin, chief executive of SAL, said the legal profession plays a critical role in the administration of justice, and having good mental wellness practices can positively impact their quality of life and work efficiency.

“It is an area that can easily be overlooked,” he said. “We hope that this insurance scheme can help our members build resilience and enjoy a fulfilling and sustainable career in the law.”

High Turnover of New Lawyers, Law Firms Need to Increase Support

A survey of 234 young lawyers conducted this year showed that nearly two-thirds were likely to leave the legal profession in the next five years, and more than a third also indicated they were considering leaving the profession altogether.

Justice Thean said law firms had a key role to play in mentoring, training, nurturing, and inspiring lawyers. She also announced that SAL was launching a one-stop resource, the Ethics Repository, on LawNet, which will make available all ethics-related content in one place – including teaching material, training courses, rules, regulations, codes of conduct, practice directions, and key decisions from the disciplinary tribunal and the Court of Three Judges.

More than 160 members of the legal community attended the Legal Professional Symposium held at the State Courts. The event served as a platform for legal professionals to discuss values and standards across criminal law, family law, personal injury and property damage, and ethical issues.

In conjunction with World Mental Health Day on 10 October, this year’s symposium featured the theme “Making Mental Health a Workplace Priority”.

Source: Lianhe Zaobao © SPH Media Limited. Permission required for reproduction.

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