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Why law firms need to embrace a holistic service offering
Here, one counsellor and consultant stresses the importance of law firms integrating holistic services into their practice to provide enhanced support for both their clients and legal professionals.
Grace Robbie
As the legal profession increasingly confronts the emotional and psychological complexities inherent in various cases and among clients, Naomi Pearce, the director of wellbeing at TFA Legal and manager of psychological and wellbeing services, emphasised the necessity for law firms to provide holistic service offerings within their practices.
Pearce, a psychological trauma counselling, litigation coaching, and EAP consultant, detailed how TFA Legal has advanced in this regard by integrating “psychological professionals trained in criminology into [its] legal processes”.
She highlighted how these professionals within her practice provide enhanced support to “trauma-affect clients” by delivering “compassion[ate]” explanations of legal procedures and much-needed “support” following court proceedings.
Additionally, Pearce noted that these professionals play a vital role in educating lawyers to recognise and appropriately respond to “trauma responses relevant to litigation”.
The integration of mental health services within law firms is of substantial significance, Pearce emphasised, as this incorporation enables lawyers to “advocate effectively in high-stakes cases like family violence, where poor outcomes can have serious consequences”.
She said: “This approach protects both lawyers’ and clients’ mental wellbeing and the quality of justice delivered by prioritising client advocacy, safeguarding the rights of vulnerable people, and fostering a sustainable work environment for practitioners.”
Small law firms possess a distinctive opportunity to lead the movement towards integrating holistic services within the legal profession.
Pearce explained that these firms “have the power to create meaningful change by fostering a culture prioritising mental health”.
To embrace this model, Pearce outlined one crucial step for all law firms to implement is to “create a wellbeing policy that includes engaging mental health professionals with expertise in psychology and litigation counselling”.
Looking forward, Pearce expressed excitement about the “potential for TFA Legal to influence systemic change and reform” within the legal profession.
