Reed Smith has launched a new task force for attorneys and staff to focus on mental health issues, the firm announced Wednesday.

The new mental health task force is an initiative of LEADRS, a business inclusion group at Reed Smith for people with disabilities and part of the firm's broader diversity initiative.

Kimberly Gold, a partner in Reed Smith's New York office, co-founded the task force and will serve as its first chair. In an interview, she said the drive to start the group stemmed from personal experience and a desire to speak out.

"Early in my career, I was in a situation where I could have used some mental health resources, but due to the stigma, I felt like I couldn't even ask for help," she said. "I wanted to change that paradigm, and [the mental health task force] will further address mental health issues faced by Reed Smith lawyers and professional staff."

Gold added that it was important for both attorneys and staff at the firm to participate in the task force. Since it was announced internally, it has received an "overwhelmingly positive response," and more than 100 people across various positions and offices have joined the group, she said.

The task force includes five advisory teams focusing on different aspects of mental health in the legal profession. A stigma and culture team will focus on increasing awareness of mental health issues at the firm and promote help-seeking behaviors; the policies and practices team will review how current firm policies can better serve those with mental health and substance abuse issues; the education and resources team will develop programming about mental health issues; the mental health and substance use team will focus specifically on substance use issues both within the firm as well as providing support for struggling family members; and the outreach team with look for opportunities to collaborate internally and externally.

Gold said that much of the work is already in motion, and the task force is already working to team up with internal Reed Smith affinity groups as well as clients and external groups. The task force is also planning programming for the firm's mental health awareness week in March, and she said the group is also interested in exploring ways in which it can de-stigmatize mental health issues in the legal industry.

"At some point in everyone's life, it's likely that everyone will have to deal with some sort of mental health or substance use issues," she said. "We hope to eventually reach a preventative capacity, and Reed Smith's leadership is fully behind the effort."

Reed Smith's move comes at a time when more and more people in the legal profession are raising awareness about mental health issues in the industry, as documented recently in Law.com's Minds over Matters series. Gold said that when her colleague Mark Goldstein wrote about his experience battling depression while working at a large firm, it served as another catalyst to get the task force going.

"There's been a movement over the past five to 10 years of people being more vocal about their mental health struggles, including within the legal profession," she said. "Mark going public last year showed tremendous bravery in doing so."

Gold added that Reed Smith has been wholly supportive as its attorneys have championed mental health issues in the legal profession.

"[The task force] fits within Reed Smith's broader focus on diversity and inclusion, and we've made this particular issue a priority at the firm because we understand how tough it can be," she said. "We have a caring culture and value our people, and [the task force] is a response to that. I'm really excited about all of the initiatives and the opportunity to challenge the stigma around mental health issues."

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