Quick links to the top tips
- Respect non-working time and time off
- Plan and manage work effectively
- Be clear and consistent
- Be available and check in regularly
- Create a culture where people feel safe to speak up
- Be understanding and remember people have lives outside work
- Recognise and appreciate people
- Trust your team
- Manage workloads realistically
- Support your team with difficult clients
Working in the legal sector can be demanding, with long hours, heavy workloads and pressure from clients and deadlines. It can be fast-paced and rewarding, but it also means that stress and burnout are real risks if the right support isn’t in place.
As part of Life in the Law 2025 we asked: What is the one thing that you would ask your employer, supervisor, or manager to do to help improve your wellbeing? Or if self employed what measure would help you in your role?
People’s answers focused on simple, practical things that can make a real difference day to day.
A clear message was that managers play a key role. Leading by example, whether that’s respecting working hours, taking breaks or showing understanding, helps them to create a healthier and more supportive environment for everyone.
The tips below can help you be a better manager (and colleague) and support a more sustainable legal sector.
1. Respect non-working time and time off
Avoid sending emails, messages or making calls outside normal working hours unless it’s genuinely urgent. Make sure holidays and days off are properly protected by putting effective cover in place and not contacting people while they’re away. This could include buddy systems and well-planned holiday cover to help ensure people can fully switch off, take leave without feeling anxious, and return to work feeling rested rather than overwhelmed.
2. Plan and manage work effectively
Encourage good diary management, forward planning and prioritisation to avoid last-minute pressure.
Keep meetings focused, protect time to get work done, and support your team to take breaks and finish on time where possible.
3. Be clear and consistent
Be clear about roles, deadlines and expectations, and give people a heads-up if anything changes. Consistent communication and decision-making helps build trust and reduces confusion or uncertainty within your team.
Keep communication straightforward and regular. Be open about goals, targets and progression, and try not to shift the goalposts.
4. Be available and check in regularly
Make a point of regularly checking in with people. Ask how they’re doing and whether their workload feels manageable, and keep those conversations informal so it’s easier to spot any issues early and offer support before things build up.
Hold regular one-to-ones as well as informal check-ins, and follow up on anything that’s been raised. Keep conversations open about workload and pressure, look out for signs of stress, step in early where needed, and most importantly, listen.
5. Create a culture where people feel safe to speak up
Encourage open conversations about workload and wellbeing, and make it clear it’s okay to speak up. When people feel listened to and supported, it builds psychological safety and makes it easier to raise concerns early.
Follow up when someone does raise a concern so people know they’ve been heard and taken seriously. Be approachable, make time for people, and stay open to feedback.
Address poor or toxic behaviour wherever it appears. Lead by example with respect and accountability and focus on learning rather than blame so people feel safe to be honest and open.
6. Be understanding and remember people have lives outside work
Take time to get to know people as individuals, and find out more about their lives and responsibilities outside work. Showing empathy for childcare, caring commitments and other pressures can help create a more understanding and supportive working environment. Taking a flexible and understanding approach helps people manage competing demands and feel valued as individuals.
7. Recognise and appreciate people
Regularly acknowledge effort and achievements, not just results or billable hours. Recognise good work, personal contribution and the effort people put in, including the things that aren’t always visible.
Say thank you and show genuine appreciation so people know their work is valued. Take an interest, stay engaged, and give constructive feedback alongside recognising what’s going well. Consistent, visible support makes a real difference to morale and helps people feel less overlooked or isolated.
8. Trust your team and avoid micromanagement
Give people the autonomy to do their jobs and trust them to make decisions. Be clear on outcomes, but avoid unnecessary checking, constant emails or closely controlling how work gets done.
Offer support when it’s needed, encourage independence, and create an environment where people feel confident taking ownership of their work without worrying about being criticised for small mistakes.
Promote teamwork and connection so people feel supported, not micromanaged.
9. Manage workloads and expectations
Set clear, achievable caseloads and targets, and regularly review capacity. Make sure work can realistically be completed within normal working hours and have open conversations about workload and pressure.
Lead by example when it comes to boundaries, as consistently unrealistic expectations quickly lead to stress and burnout.
10. Support your team when dealing with difficult clients
Recognise that some clients can be demanding or stressful and take an active role in helping manage that.
Check in on how client work is affecting people and ask which clients they find particularly challenging. Help manage client expectations, step in where needed, and make sure your team doesn’t feel like they’re dealing with it alone.
Where behaviour crosses the line into being rude, threatening or abusive, take it seriously. Be prepared to reallocate work, refuse to act, or take other appropriate steps to protect your team’s wellbeing.
Build your own understanding of the challenges your team faces so you can support them more effectively.
Taken together, none of these tips are about doing anything complicated or adding more to your plate. It’s really about the small, everyday things: how you communicate, how you listen, and how you treat people. These things add up.
When people feel trusted, valued and able to speak up, it makes a huge difference to how they experience work. They’re more engaged, more confident and better able to do their jobs well. Getting this right isn’t just good for wellbeing, it also helps build stronger teams and a more sustainable way of working for everyone.
Less micromanagement, more awareness of the need for downtime, less need to be constantly online and checking emails, more encouragement of after work hobbies and less judgement if people leave on time.
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