Florida Judicial Wellness Discussion 2/24/26

I was honored to present on 2/24/26 at the first Well Talks session of 2026 for the Florida Judicial Wellness Program, focusing on the intersection of judicial wellness and ethics. Thank you to Judge Alicia Latimore for hosting this event.

I appreciated the interaction with the Florida judges and an opportunity to share my personal experiences, research, and practical strategies to address the unique stressors and ethical obligations faced by judges.

We discussed the importance of self-care, resilience, and community support among judicial officers but is equally applicable to all Judicial employees, including clerks, court reporters, and any support staff that works within them a judicial system.

Unique stressors we identified are:

• Life-Altering Decisions: Judges make frequent, high-stakes decisions affecting others’ lives (e.g., criminal, family, civil cases).
• Workload & Time Pressure: Heavy dockets, including weekends; takes years to become comfortable with decisions.
• Isolation: Judges often lack peers to confide in due to the nature of their work.
• Public Misunderstanding & Media Scrutiny: Decisions are often misunderstood by the public and criticized in the media.
• Community Interactions: Judges in small towns may encounter parties from cases in daily life, leading to discomfort.
• Secondary Trauma: Judges experience trauma from exposure to others’ suffering, leading to physical (chest pains, nausea), mental (overwhelm, depression), and behavioral (anger, withdrawal) symptoms.

We also discussed the intersection between Judicial, well-being and Judicial, ethics by reflecting on those provisions of the model code governing behavior that may be impacted by people suffering from stress, anxiety, and secondary trauma.

I introduced the group to the Nauru Declaration, the international recognition of this issue by the United Nations by establishing July 25 as international Judicial well-being day and resources available through Judicial Well-being Hub.

I always look forward to share my thoughts and experiences with other Judicial officers as a means of encouraging, better systemic support and resources. #judicialwellbeing #judicialwellness #judicialcompassion #proceduraljustice