10 October 2019
Legal Mental Health Charity Lawcare Launches Champions Scheme
Legal mental health charity LawCare has launched a new advocacy scheme
‘LawCare Champions’ to coincide with World Mental Health Day, 10th
October. The programme aims to appoint legal professionals in the UK to act as
mental health and wellbeing advocates within the legal community.
Fourteen champions, including
Charles Jacobs, Senior Partner and Chairman at Linklaters, James Pereira
QC, Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer’s Lloyd Rees, Herbert Smith Freehill’s
Samantha Brown, David McCahon from Barclays and IP inclusive lead executive
officer Andrea Brewster OBE have been appointed with more to follow next year.
Elizabeth Rimmer Chief Executive of LawCare said: “We are very proud to launch
this new scheme on World Mental Health Day. This is a cross-jurisdiction,
cross-profession initiative and our new champions have all been carefully
chosen for their commitment, passion and enthusiasm in raising awareness about
the importance of good mental health and wellbeing in the legal community. We
hope our champions will help us to drive positive change in the culture of law.
The theme of this year’s World Mental Health Day is suicide prevention, and we
must all come together in the legal community to improve dialogue on mental
health issues.”
The charity has also launched a new animated video highlighting the support
they offer – available to view at www.lawcare.org.uk
The full list of champions are:
-
Andrea Brewster OBE, Lead Executive Officer, IP inclusive
-
Samantha Brown, Partner, Herbert Smith Freehills
-
Joanna Fleck, Co-founder Claiming Space
-
Clare Good, Solicitor, Capital Law and Wellbeing Officer, Cardiff Law Society
-
Catherine Hart, Partner and Professional Support Lawyer, Digby Brown
-
Jodie Hill, Managing Director, Thrive Law
-
Karen Jackson, Solicitor and Managing Director, didlaw
-
Charles Jacobs, Senior Partner and Chairman, Linklaters
-
David McCahon, Global Head of Commercial, Innovation and Technology Legal &
Wellbeing Leader at Barclays
- James Pereira QC,
Barrister and Coach
- Nick O’Neill, Governance
and Practice Manager, Wirral Borough Council
-
Lloyd Rees, Knowledge Lawyer, Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer
-
Anna Robinson, Senior Solicitor and Psychotherapist
-
Joanne Theodolou, General Counsel at Simply Business and Trustee of Mind, the
mental health charity
ENDS
For all media enquiries and photos of the champions contact
Gemma Matthews, Communications Manager on gmatthews@lawcare.org.uk or 0208 777 2176 /07813 949633
NOTES TO EDITORS
Information on the champions
Andrea Brewster, OBE
Andrea is a
Chartered Patent Attorney and European Patent Attorney, a former President of
the Chartered Institute of Patent Attorneys (CIPA) and a member of the
Institute’s governing Council. She now leads the IP Inclusive initiative, which
she established in 2015 to promote diversity and inclusion throughout the IP
professions. Promoting mental wellbeing is a key part of IP Inclusive’s
agenda, and Andrea has worked with LawCare on a number of related projects.
Samantha Brown
Samantha is a partner at City firm, Herbert Smith Freehills, which she joined
as a trainee in 2003. Sam is Head of Pensions and has a wide ranging practice,
involving transaction, advisory and contentious matters. In addition to her
legal practice, Sam co-chair's the Firm's Ability Network. She is a
trustee of the mental health campaigning charity United for Global Mental
Health and an advocate for mentally healthy workplaces.
Clare Good
Clare is a Commercial Disputes solicitor at Capital Law in Cardiff.
As chair of the Cardiff JLD wellbeing was top of her agenda and she
planned a number of fully booked events for Mental Health Awareness Week. As
Clare stands down from chair she will take the role of Wellbeing Officer with
both the JLD and the local Cardiff Law Society.
Joanna Fleck
Joanna Fleck practiced as a solicitor in civil liberties and
inquests. She now teaches yoga and meditation. She also works with a mental
health charity to deliver specialist support and mental health awareness
training. She recently completed a Master’s degree in psychology, researching
secondary traumatic stress in the legal profession.
Catherine Hart
Catherine is a partner at Digby Brown LLP, a Scottish firm that specialises
in pursuing personal injury claims. She has been in practice for over 25 years
and for the past 12 years has been a professional support lawyer. She heads up
a team who provide professional support and oversee risk and compliance across
Digby Brown’s seven offices. Catherine is a member of the Lawscot Wellbeing
Steering Group, which was set up to provide strategic direction to Lawscot
Wellbeing, a Law Society of Scotland initiative that provides resources
promoting positive wellbeing in the Scottish legal community.
Jodie Hill
Jodie Hill trained as a barrister,
cross-qualified as a solicitor and is the founder and Managing Director of
Thrive Law, headquartered in Leeds City Centre. Jodie has specialised in
employment law throughout her career, and has a keen understanding of this
complex legal sector, together with all HR related issues.
Jodie also has a passion for helping to encourage understanding
around mental health, and has a strong desire to help end stigma surrounding
the subject, to create a happier, healthier workforce. This passion can be seen
in her campaign to bring mental health to the top of the business agendas, with
her campaign being featured by Sky News, the BBC, The Times, The Law Society
Gazette, Yorkshire Post and other key media.
Jodie’s campaigning led to her being shortlisted for the Law
Society Gazette Legal Personality of the Year 2018 at The Law Society
Excellence Awards 2018, as well as being awarded a fellowship of the Royal
Society for Public Health.
Karen Jackson
Karen Jackson is a leading expert in disability
discrimination law. She has a particular interest in mental health and is also
a fierce advocate for equality and freedom from discrimination and harassment
for women at work. Karen’s firm, didlaw was established in 2008 following
Karen’s successful recovery from a heart transplant. Didlaw advises across all
areas of employment. Karen is an outspoken commentator on disability and sex
discrimination issues in the press, broadcast and social media.
Charles Jacobs
Charlie is Linklaters Senior
Partner and Chairman and is a leading high-end M&A practitioner. He
is passionate about creating a culture that supports good mental health in a
demanding environment. Most recently he championed the introduction of an
onsite psychologist service in Linklaters London office.
David McCahon
David leads the Global Commercial, Innovation and Technology Legal
team in Barclays and leads the Legal Department’s work on Wellbeing.
Prior to that he held several General Counsel roles within
Barclays UK. He originally joined Barclays as Assistant General Counsel in
Barclaycard in 2008, and became General Counsel of Barclaycard in July 2010.
Previously he was MD and General Counsel of the cards business in Morgan
Stanley and spent two years in the banking group of the law firm, CMS Cameron
McKenna. He also worked as a Government lawyer at the Office of Fair Trading
and the Home Office, and as a lawyer at Which?
He qualified as a barrister after getting his law degree
from Reading University and a Master of Law degree from Cambridge. He is chair
of trustees of a counselling charity in Suffolk, a Governor at Goodenough
College in London and on the board of Now Teach.
Nick O’Neill
Nick is a solicitor 20 years PQE, who has worked in a management capacity
for the last 8 years. After a 20 year career as a litigator in the private
sector, he moved to the public sector and is currently the Governance and
Practice Manager for the Wirral Council. He is a LawCare volunteer, mental
health first aider and OU student coach / mentor.
James Pereira QC
James is a tenant at Francis Taylor Building, practising in planning and
environmental law. He proactively engages in learning, practicing and teaching
techniques to support professional performance and wellbeing within the legal
profession. He strongly believes that the best lawyers are well lawyers.
He is also a professional organisational and systemic coach and a licensed NLP
Master Practitioner, and has trained in creativity, meditation, hypnosis and
non-violent communication.
Lloyd Rees
Lloyd Rees is a Knowledge Lawyer in the Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer London
office. Lloyd’s main specialism is Brexit and its implications for business.
Lloyd has spoken and written extensively about his own mental health conditions
to help raise awareness in the legal profession.
Anna Robinson
Anna retrained as a psychotherapist (and soon to be clinical supervisor)
following a long career as a senior immigration solicitor in the City.
She has since practised in both careers; working with a range of emotional
issues in her private therapy practice and leading wellbeing initiatives at a
highly acclaimed boutique law firm. Anna regularly presents on mental health
issues within the legal profession and is a Mental Health First Aid
Instructor. Anna is passionate about therapy and dedicated to enhancing
emotional wellbeing in the workplace and beyond.
Joanne Theodolou
Joanne is the General Counsel
of Simply Business, the UK’s largest business insurance provider where she is a
passionate advocate for workplace wellbeing. She sits on the board of trustees
of Mind, the mental health charity, bringing a compassionate understanding
of mental health problems based on experience, and with it the vital message of
hope.
About LawCare
·
LawCare is an independent charity offering
emotional support, information and training to the legal community in the UK
and Ireland. We work to promote good mental health and wellbeing in legal
workplaces.
·
We’re here to help
through our confidential helpline, email, webchat and one-to-one peer
support network. We offer a safe place to talk in confidence without judgement.
We’re here to listen.
·
As well our
support service, LawCare provides information, resources and factsheets at www.lawcare.org.uk
·
We are here to help all branches of the legal profession:
solicitors, barristers, barrister’s clerks, judges, Chartered Legal Executives,
paralegals, trade mark attorneys, patent attorneys, costs lawyers, and their
staff and families.
·
Our support spans the legal life from student to training
to practice and retirement.
·
We work with the legal
community to promote and support good mental health and wellbeing and drive
change in education, training and practice.
·
The helpline number is 0800 279 6888 (1800
991 801 in Ireland) Mon-Fri 9am – 5.30pm or you can access webchat
or email support through our website www.lawcare.org.uk