The Illinois Supreme Court Commission on Professionalism released a report on the prevalence and impact of bullying in the Illinois legal profession and recommended best practices for preventing it.
The report, “Bullying in the Legal Profession: A Study of Illinois Lawyers’ Experiences and Recommendations for Change,” shows data from a study of more than 6,000 Illinois lawyers—and it is believed to be one of the first wide-scale research projects in the country on the topic.
The information shows that, while bullying impacts lawyers from all backgrounds, it disproportionately affects female attorneys, lawyers with disabilities, attorneys of color, younger individuals and LGBTQ+ attorneys. For example, the report shows that 38% of female lawyers were bullied, compared to 15% of male lawyers; 29% of LGBTQ+ lawyers were verbally bullied related to their sexual orientation, compared to 3% of heterosexual lawyers; and 32% of multiracial lawyers were bullied.
Regarding the most common types of bullying, they were verbal intimidation, such as insults, name-calling or shouting; harsh, belittling or excessive criticism of work; demeaning non-verbal behaviors; and imposing unrealistic work demands. Cyberbullying, physical intimidation and even physical contact were also mentioned.
Some of the proposed recommendations for preventing bullying include developing and enforcing anti-bullying policies; training in legal workplaces; courts enforcing anti-bullying policies in courtrooms and litigation activities (such as depositions); and bullied lawyers responding in ways that best benefit their rights, well-being and careers.
This report and recommendations are part of the commission’s larger initiative to address bullying in the legal profession, which will include additional educational tools that build upon this research. The advisory council included Ray J. Koenig III—an openly gay attorney who is a partner at Clark Hill PLC and immediate past president of the Chicago Bar Association.
The post Report shows extent of bullying among Illinois attorneys appeared first on Windy City Times.