Biglaw, Health / Wellness

Biglaw Partner Wants The World To Know He Suffers From Depression

He has an important message to convey to all other attorneys with mental health issues of their own.

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Lawyers are more likely to suffer from depression than any other profession, but they often suffer in silence for fear of alerting their colleagues about their mental illness and being stigmatized for the rest of their careers. One Biglaw partner recently stepped out from behind the dark veil that is depression to let the world know that not only is it possible to survive with the disorder, it’s possible to thrive.

Meet Joe Milowic, a partner at Quinn Emanuel. Milowic recently published a piece in the New York Law Journal about his battle with depression. Milowic was first diagnosed with major depression more than a decade ago, but he didn’t say a word to his colleagues about it until very recently. “As a young associate, I was worried people would be less likely to entrust me with important matters if they knew that I sometimes go through periods where I lose motivation and focus,” he writes. “So, I said nothing.” He found everything meaningless, from his job to even his own life.

It was only after Milowic started taking Lexapro that he stopped questioning the purpose of it all. He found meaning in things again, and realized that “when your mind is ill, you can actually believe there is no point to anything, including living.”

Milowic is now going public with his mental illness because he has an important message to convey to all other attorneys with mental health issues of their own.

I put financial security above the possibility that speaking up could alert a young attorney unknowingly suffering from depression that what he is suffering through is an illness that is treatable. I feel badly for staying quiet for so long—but I also believe that speaking out now as a partner at Quinn Emanuel could be more impactful. The fact is we should be talking about this, because you can succeed in Big Law, and at a top law firm, even if you suffer from depression. I’m writing this in hopes that someone who is unknowingly suffering from depression, like I was, will read this and get help.

Milowic has some advice for associates everywhere who may be struggling with depression: although you may think it seems impossible, you must prioritize your health and your well-being over your work. You must take care of yourself, because you are more important than your cases, no matter how important those cases are.

Milowic invites those dealing with depression to contact him via email or phone (212-849-7225) if they have any questions, or if they’d be interested in joining an online support group for attorneys who suffer from depression.

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We’d like to extend our thanks to Joe Milowic for his selflessness and his willingness to be the face of this important issue in the legal profession. Because of him, we’re sure that many more lawyers will find the courage and confidence to step forward and share this part of themselves with their colleagues in the legal profession. Thank you.

Quinn Emanuel Partner Suffers From Depression and He Wants Everyone to Know [New York Law Journal]

Staci ZaretskyStaci Zaretsky has been an editor at Above the Law since 2011. She’d love to hear from you, so please feel free to email her with any tips, questions, comments, or critiques. You can follow her on Twitter or connect with her on LinkedIn.

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