City law firm tests burnout warnings after partner's death

Pinsent Masons is testing burnout alerts for overworked employees following the death of one of its partners who suffered a severe mental health crisis.

The law firm has implemented a new time tracking system that notifies supervisors when employees regularly work overtime.

It is part of a package of internal changes made by Pinsent Masons to help lawyers cope with intense workloads and reduce stress following the death of partner Vanessa Ford last year.

In February, the inquest ruled that Ms Ford was hit by a train in Hackney after she had “consumed a significant amount of alcohol while experiencing an acute mental health crisis”.

The inquest heard that Ms Ford worked 18 hours a day as a consultant on the “all-consuming” sale of Everton FC in the months leading up to her death in September 2023.

This sparked a widespread debate about burnout in the legal industry, where lawyers in the City of London are often expected to work overtime and weekends for six-figure salaries and bonuses.

Pinsent Masons employs 3,000 people worldwide and is convinced that the alert system will help improve working conditions and better distribute cases among lawyers.

A spokesperson said: “It's early days, but using technology like this will help us get a better overview of our colleagues' workloads, the time they spend working with clients and who has capacity and can help busy teams.”

Other changes included improved training on mental health and wellbeing and greater promotion of external support available to workers.

This is a response to consultations with clients and employees about ways to better balance work and family life following the coroner's ruling.

Laura Cameron, Managing Partner at Pinsent Masons, also discussed with other law firm leaders how to respond to work-life balance challenges.

The London-based organisation has also held discussions with rival firms, which have reaffirmed their commitment to the Mindful Business Charter, which pledges to manage lawyers' unpredictable working hours and avoid unnecessary stress.

The mental health charity was launched in 2018 by lawyers and bankers at Pinsent Masons, Addleshaw Goddard and Barclays.

In March, the Mindful Business Charter warned that lawyers were twice as likely to have suicidal thoughts as the general population, and that lack of sleep and separation from loved ones could lead to mental health problems.

It said: “The old saying that hard work never killed anyone is simply not true.”

A spokesperson for Pinsent Masons said: “We are pleased that the initial response to this industry-wide challenge has been positive.”

In the meantime, the company is testing a new compressed working week that allows all employees to finish by Friday lunchtime without a reduction in pay, depending on customer and team requirements. The results of the flexible working model will be reviewed at the end of August.

Pinsent Masons was founded in 1769 and has over 27 offices worldwide. Its clients include HSBC, the Post Office and Google.

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