Bar Associations
Florida Bar takes over lawyer addiction program
The Florida Bar is in-housing a program that had a long history of aiding attorneys experiencing addiction and mental health issues, raising questions about how lawyers will navigate their need for support services. (Illustration from Shutterstock)
The Florida Bar is in-housing a program that had a long history of aiding attorneys experiencing addiction and mental health issues, raising questions about how lawyers will navigate their need for support services.
Florida Lawyers Assistance, a volunteer-led program that has existed for decades, has facilitated access to treatment, sobriety monitoring and strategies to help lawyers remain in practice as they struggle with addiction and mental health. The program costs about $700,000 per year and faces uncertainty after the bar did not renew its contract, according to coverage by Bloomberg Law.
According to the Florida Bar, one-third of practitioners abuse alcohol, over a quarter suffer from depression, and the legal field ranks the fourth highest in suicide among professions.
At issue is whether the 115,000-member mandatory state bar—under the authority of the Florida Supreme Court—would transfer treatment records or if lawyers in need of help would come forward because it has the authority to suspend lawyers’ licenses.
“There is conflict and tension when you interject the Florida Bar in the role of helping people with those mental health and substance abuse issues. I don’t know how it’s going to work,” John A. Yanchunis, a former member of the Florida Board of Bar Examiners, told Bloomberg Law.
The bar said it budgeted $736,760 for programs to help about 100 lawyers referred through discipline proceedings in the 2026-2027 fiscal year.
See also:
Under Pressure: Understanding alcohol addiction in the legal profession
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