The growing lateral mobility of lawyers in international law firms cannot be explained solely by strategic or economic reasons. Psychological factors such as stress, burnout, depression, and monotony increasingly drive professionals to seek new environments. This article analyzes the “push and pull” dynamics behind these changes and the challenges firms face globally.

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Why Lawyers Change Firms: Beyond Compensation, the Psychological Triggers Behind Lateral Moves

Introduction

The legal profession has long been associated with prestige, intellectual challenge, and financial reward. In recent years, however, international reports such as “Why Lawyers Move: Factors That Push and Pull” (MLA Global / Reuters) have highlighted an increasingly complex phenomenon: the lateral movement of lawyers between firms. Although compensation and strategic opportunities remain powerful drivers, there is a deeper layer—psychological well-being—that proves decisive in these decisions.

Push Factors: When Pressure Becomes Unsustainable

Lawyers often point to dissatisfaction with firm management, lack of growth opportunities, or cultural misalignment as reasons for changing firms. Yet behind these institutional factors lie personal struggles.

Chronic Stress and Burnout

The constant demand for billable hours, permanent availability, and handling high-risk matters frequently lead to exhaustion. For many lawyers, changing firms becomes a desperate attempt to break a cycle of stress that seems endless.

As one partner at a major international firm told us:
“From the outside everything looks impeccable: skyscrapers, luxurious offices, outward smiles. But the reality is very different. The day-to-day devours you. You don’t have colleagues; you have rivals who compete to outperform you, and you to outperform them. Many nights I wake up in anguish after dreaming that my billings were the lowest on the team. It’s a constant pressure that seeps in over the years like a fine rain. Every day is the same: you come home feeling trapped in an endless loop, in exhausting workdays filled with dull meetings where only truisms are repeated. And in the end, at the cocktails and receptions, everything is dressed up with smiles and superficial conversations in which everyone says everything is fine… when you know it isn’t.”

This testimony starkly reflects an increasingly widespread reality: behind the prestige and sheen of the big firm lies a routine marked by anxiety, fierce competition, and a sense of emptiness. The problem is no longer just physical fatigue but emotional wear that ultimately undermines the vocation and mental health of those who devote their lives to this profession.

Depression and Isolation

The culture of long hours and extreme competitiveness inevitably worsens loneliness. After a day marked by pressure and excessive stress, coming home is not a relief: the accumulated tension often spills over into personal life. When one’s partner faces a similar work situation, cohabitation often turns into constant arguments. In less conflictive cases, exhaustion leads to taking refuge in alcohol or in a silence that, far from soothing, deepens isolation. In this context, changing firms is not merely a professional move in search of better conditions; it becomes a genuine survival strategy. For many lawyers, it is the only way to avoid a spiral of depression and solitude that ends up eroding both personal life and professional career.

Monotony and Lack of Purpose

For many professionals, the workplace becomes a stagnant space devoid of stimulation. The absence of novelty or genuine intellectual growth gradually extinguishes motivation. This day-after-day monotony sometimes leads to fantasies of leaving the profession altogether: moving to the countryside, launching a personal project, or simply seeking a simpler, idyllic life. Reality, however, intrudes harshly. The high cost of living, mortgages, family obligations, and the weight of commitments mean those ideas are discarded almost immediately. Thus the routine persists and the sense of emptiness intensifies. Faced with this crossroads, many end up seeing a change of firm as a seemingly viable escape route. But it is not always the solution: in many cases, the problem lies less in the specific firm than in a model of professional practice that, by its very dynamics, drags lawyers toward demotivation and disenchantment.

Pull Factors: Seeking Renewal and Balance

On the other hand, firms that successfully attract talent do not limit themselves to offering higher salaries. They also respond to lawyers’ psychological needs. A culture of belonging, expressed through inclusion, mentoring, and recognition, weighs as much as financial incentives. Work–life integration has become a decisive criterion: firms that show genuine respect for boundaries and well-being become true magnets. Intellectual challenge and growth opportunities also play a central role. Participating in cross-border matters, emerging sectors, or innovative areas acts as a powerful draw for professionals seeking meaning and projection in their legal work.

The Psychological Dimension of Mobility

Unlike other professions, in the legal sector professional identity intertwines with personal worth. For many lawyers, changing firms is not merely a tactical decision but a form of self-care. The transition represents a reset button that allows them to escape toxic dynamics and regain confidence. It also provides a narrative of renewal—an opportunity to reorient a career in positive terms—and, above all, a chance to regain control over one’s life, moving from reactive survival to proactive choice.

Challenges for Law Firms: Concrete Measures

This phenomenon invites reflection on the internal life of law firms. It is not enough to deliver technical answers to clients; nurturing human talent is essential. Retaining lawyers in a global market requires addressing the psychological and personal dimensions of professional practice. First, monitoring well-being through mandatory interviews with occupational psychologists for all staff helps. Because it is universal, the stigma of “seeing a psychologist only if you’re unwell” disappears. If the professional is fine, the session will confirm it and still offer a space to vent; if signs of stress, depression, or anxiety are detected, early intervention enables a more effective recovery. In this way, mental health becomes a structural and normalized element of firm culture.

Second, it is crucial to reduce stigma and combat stress with concrete actions. Beyond talks or symbolic campaigns, firms can create practical, accessible spaces: set aside an area for physical activity or low-cost stretching/yoga classes; encourage active breaks during the workday; subsidize mindfulness or sports programs; and organize well-being weeks with workshops, team health challenges, and talks where partners openly discuss how they manage stress. Such initiatives normalize the conversation about mental health and show that the firm views it as an integral part of work.

Finally, offer flexible, modular career paths that allow advancement without being tied exclusively to billable hours. Options include partial or full remote work depending on life stage; staggered schedules or reduced hours during certain periods; and career plans that value teaching, research, or internal management in addition to billings. Modular career models—alternating high-intensity phases with lighter ones without penalizing development—reinforce the idea that the firm values long-term talent, not just immediate productivity.

Benefits of These Measures for Firms

Examples of Good Practices in Spain and the U.S.

Spain:

AGM Abogados has publicly supported mental health by partnering with specialized organizations. Cremades & Calvo-Sotelo has brought to the fore the need for a “humanistic management” of mental health in the legal profession. The Fundación Bienestar Despachos actively promotes the implementation of well-being measures and grants a specific certificate to firms that adopt them.

United States:

Morgan Lewis runs its ML Well program covering emotional, physical, and intellectual health with ongoing training and support. Latham & Watkins offers 24/7 confidential counseling and resilience programs tailored to the legal environment. O’Melveny & Myers provides a comprehensive employee assistance program with psychological counseling and self-care resources. Orrick Herrington & Sutcliffe grants billable-hour credit so lawyers can “disconnect” for at least one week a year, normalizing rest as part of firm culture. These examples show the measures are not utopian: firms have already implemented them and serve as benchmarks for the broader sector.

Conclusion

Tax residence is not a mere administrative formality but a legal concept with criminal and economic consequences. The Ancelotti case reminds us that, beyond advisers and structures, what is decisive are the facts: where one lives, works, and generates income. In parallel, firms must understand that the global mobility of lawyers is not driven solely by financial incentives. Underneath lies a psychological truth: when stress, depression, or monotony overflow, changing environments becomes both a professional step and a personal necessity. Firms that embrace this challenge and make well-being part of their culture will not only attract but also retain the talent essential to thrive in a highly competitive international market.