Leadership in law
Ron Davison, Managing Director of Gamlins Law, shares his insights on the importance of mental health and wellbeing in the legal sector. Drawing on his 20 years of experience, he emphasises the need for a supportive workplace culture to help legal professionals overcome challenges. By sharing his personal journey and Gamlins Law's initiatives, Ron encourages a shift in how the industry addresses mental health issues.
My name is Ron Davison, and I am the Managing Director of Gamlins Law, the largest Law Firm in North Wales.
Despite my youthful looks, I have been a solicitor for over two decades, having started my training at Gamlins in 2000. I became a partner in the firm just prior to the “credit crunch” in 2007 (that was fun). I became the MD in 2014 and have led the firm in its development and growth.
I believe that as a leader, it would be foolish to believe that the 100 human beings that make up Gamlins Law do not struggle throughout the year to cope with the challenges of not only the law, but of everyday life. That they do not experience periods of extreme anxiety and pressure. To ignore this issue is to ignore possibly the most considerable risk we face.
Conversely, in the right environment, many of those individuals not only cope with such demands but in fact become increasingly resilient to life’s setbacks and ultimately flourish. Building that environment is key.
My early life
Up to the age of 17, I had lived a great life. I was protected largely from the outside world. I had a loving family, was doing well with my A-levels, captain of the rugby team. I had a beautiful girlfriend, a Thor like physique! Ok, not all that is true. I was only vice-captain of the rugby team!
Life could not have been going any better. It could however get an awful lot worse. And it did.
My dad was a tiler. My absolute hero. He worked extremely hard. He would be gone before I woke up in the morning and would return home late, covered in grout, desperate for his tea and to nod off in front of the fire. He was a great worker. What he wasn’t, was a businessman and when his father, died, leaving him with double the amount of VAT to pay, he simply couldn’t do it, and he was made bankrupt.
This happened 3 months before my A-Levels. The following months were a living hell, listening to my mother cry herself to sleep, desperately trying to help her to find a solicitor who could protect her family and our home. No-one was willing to help, and this largely became the catalyst for my wish to become a lawyer. It has served me well.
My father lost everything. I lost my emotional security. Nothing felt safe from then on. Such trauma doesn’t vanish, regardless of any success that is achieved. University became an escape for me, and I worked tirelessly to achieve my degree and raise the funds to put myself through law school.
Starting work
There was only one law firm for me, and I was happy to accept a position at Gamlins Law in 2000.
My experiences had made me an extremely hard worker, and this helped me immeasurably.
However, the environment in 2000 was not one of openness and support. It was one of masculinity, of testosterone fuelled aggression. The words anxiety, depression were treated as dirty words- synonymous with weakness. And weakness simply could not be shown. It was impossible to let your guard down. I knew that if I had an opportunity of leading a law firm, that I would deal with matters very differently. I mean absolutely no disrespect to the partners of Gamlins at that time. It's just how things were, it's as simple as that.
In the rare moments that I was provided with support, praise or constructive criticism, I would feel seven feet tall. My work would improve, and I would become more efficient. I was happier and work became enjoyable. I would feel at ease. The benefit to me and the firm was mutual. It was very clear to me: productivity improves in a supportive, encouraging environment.
Mental health challenges
My family’s experiences of loss manifested themselves in real challenges to my mental health after my father died some years later. Approximately a year after he passed away, a fear of financial ruin which had always been in the background came to the forefront of my everyday thoughts. Despite my successes, an irrational fear of financial ruin would take over my life. It was often crippling, sucking the joy out of what, from the outside, looked like a wonderful life. There was no rational evidence of any threat, but I would worry incessantly for myself and for every member of Gamlins.
I functioned, and I believe functioned well, but I was not happy and was not working at my optimum levels. I had more potential.
It was around this time that I reached out to LawCare and spoke to a very experienced ex-solicitor who could not have been more supportive. He listened attentively and gave me great advice that allowed me to see things for exactly what they were. In the years that followed, I worked on my own mental health, collecting tools that have helped me immeasurably, but I will always be grateful to LawCare.
Changing the work culture
When I became Managing Director of Gamlins Law, I knew we needed to change the environment we were working in. We needed to create a safe, nurturing environment that managed risk and provided support for our teams and individuals to flourish.
There is no one solution to this issue. I believe that perhaps the most important step is to be a leader who is honest about their own fallibilities and to be open and approachable. I hope to set an example and help remove the stigma attached to mental health issues.
We have implemented several positive steps to support our staff, including:
- Firm-wide wellbeing events and access to counselling.
- Wellbeing apps that provided invaluable support during the pandemic.
- Real-time staff surveys to gauge mental health within the firm.
Wellbeing remains a top priority for us, and we encourage community engagement through our “Give with Gamlins” initiative. I took two weeks off last month to climb Mount Kilimanjaro for Prostate Cancer UK and LawCare, raising thousands of pounds. I will also be running the London Marathon in April next year for the same charities. We also have four qualified Mental Health First Aiders, including myself, and encourage fitness initiatives such as weekly Pilates classes.
What is important to me is not just completing tick box projects. It's about fostering openness and honesty. Together, we can challenge the norms in our industry and build a law firm that everyone can genuinely take pride in.
We're here to listen...without judgement
Contact our free, confidential, emotional support service for the legal sector
0800 279 6888
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