Justice Monica M. Márquez and five other attorneys received awards on Thursday night for their efforts to foster wellbeing in the legal profession, at a ceremony hosted by the Colorado Women’s Bar Association Foundation.

In her acceptance speech, Márquez observed the COVID-19 pandemic had changed the world, “and, frankly, not necessarily for the better.”

“I feel like the world has been a little bit meaner than it used to be,” she said. “I have seen the toll that takes on those around me and I have certainly experienced it personally. And it’s exhausting. Especially when you’re working so hard to bring positive change.”

Consequently, Márquez has herself changed from a self-care skeptic to a “true convert.”

The “Raising the Bar” ceremony took place at the Denver Athletic Club and recognized female attorneys who pursued “concrete steps to enable lawyers to thrive.” The other recipients of this year’s award are:

? Kyriaki “Kiki” Council, legal counsel for pro bono initiatives at The Lawyering Project

? Lisa Hogan, partner at Brownstein Hyatt Farber Schreck

? Alexi Freeman, director of externships and social justice initiatives and the associate dean of diversity, equity and inclusion at the University of Denver Sturm College of Law

? J. Ryann Peyton, executive director of the Supreme Court’s Colorado Attorney Mentoring Program

? Sarah Myers, executive director of the Colorado Lawyer Assistance Program

Multiple members of the Supreme Court were in attendance, including Justices Richard L. Gabriel and Maria E. Berkenkotter, plus Court of Appeals Chief Judge Gilbert M. Román and other judges. Justice Melissa Hart was the emcee for the evening and is a member of the foundation’s board of directors.

She spoke of various initiatives in the Judicial Department to improve the wellbeing of lawyers and judges, such as a website where attorneys can obtain resources or peer support, as well as awards for those who promote professional wellness. Virginia was the first state to establish a wellbeing task force. Colorado and others have followed suit.

“We really fronted the importance of wellbeing in the department,” Hart said. “Turns out, an award brings out the competitive spirit in all of us. So, we’ve encouraged people to think about how we can do better.”

In 2021, the Colorado Task Force on Lawyer Well-Being, which Márquez chaired, released a report with recommendations about how employers could structure their law practices to avoid adverse effects on their attorneys. The report recognized the sources of stress in the legal profession, such as 24/7 work schedules, problems setting boundaries, hostility from opposing counsel and rising requirements for billable hours.

Wellbeing is “the ability to deal with all of those challenges. To be able to face them with some degree of confidence that you’ve got this. You’ve got what it takes and you’ve got the right people around you to make it happen,” said Hogan. “It’s not one steady state. I guess ‘resilience’ is the best way to put it.” 

A 2016 survey of more than 12,000 lawyers found that 46% had concerns about depression at some point in their careers, while more than three in five experienced anxiety. In the past two years, trial judges in Nevada and New York have died by suicide.

Working in an adversarial career, Myers said, means it is “important to take care of that nervous system, and to allow it to slow down.”

Peyton, who is overseeing the first official year of the Colorado Supreme Court’s wellbeing recognition program for employers, thanked Márquez for being “in the trenches, working on these issues,” and demonstrating leadership on wellbeing from the top.

Márquez, in turn, voiced her appreciation for Jim Coyle, the former head of attorney regulation, who enlisted her for the “overwhelming” mission of trying to change the culture of the legal profession.

“His vision made sense. It didn’t make sense to me at the time, but now it does,” she said.

Freeman advocated for looking outside of the legal profession to learn lessons about happiness.

“Sometimes, I think lawyers forget we’re in really privileged positions,” she said. “It’s such a privilege and such a duty to be a lawyer that I think sometimes we need to have a little bit of perspective. … Perhaps some of that vulnerability and authenticity that we require of our clients, we need to bring also to the profession.”

Financial sponsors of the event included large law firms that have brought cases before Colorado’s appellate courts, including Holland & Hart, Wheeler Trigg O’Donnell, Brownstein Hyatt Farber Schreck, Davis Graham & Stubbs and Sherman & Howard. Sponsorships ranged from $250 to $5,000.

Recent recipients of past “Raising the Bar” awards include Megan Ring, the state public defender; Natalie Hanlon Leh, the No. 2 official in the Colorado Attorney General’s Office; and, now-U.S. District Court Judge Charlotte N. Sweeney.

If you are thinking about suicide, or are worried about a friend or loved one, help is available 24/7 by calling or texting the Lifeline network at 988. Live chat is available at 988lifeline.org.