Can You Be a Successful Lawyer with ADHD?

If you’ve ever wondered if you or a colleague can be a good lawyer with ADHD, join the club.

This query is sadly very common because of all the misconceptions that exist around ADHD.

In this article, I’ll share a bit of what we know about ADHD from the neuroscience community for some context.

I’ll also share what I’ve observed as a lawyer with undiagnosed ADHD and as a career coach to lawyers with ADHD.

Keep reading to understand what can make or break an ADHD lawyer’s career (or you can read on the blog here).

If you’d rather watch or listen, you can view the video “Can You Be a Successful Lawyer with ADHD?” by clicking here.

KEY TAKEAWAYS

• Lawyers with ADHD have unique strengths such as a strong sense of justice, intense determination, and creative, divergent thinking.
• ADHD lawyers can hyperfocus on tasks of interest, which can lead to increased efficiency.
• The success of ADHD lawyers depends on optimizing their work environment with interest-based dopamine triggers through reasonable workplace accommodations.
• Ditching conventional productivity advice, utilizing executive assistants, and working with skilled managers are keys to success for ADHD lawyers.

The Basics of How ADHD Works

ADHD, which is short for Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, is a genetic, neurodevelopmental disorder characterized by low levels of dopamine.

Dopamine is the neurotransmitter that regulates attention, impulsivity, hyperactivity, and emotions. When there is a deficit in dopamine, those activities are largely unregulated and manifest as symptoms of ADHD.

Here’s why we’re talking about neuroscience and ADHD on a career blog for lawyers…

Approximately 5% of the adult population has ADHD; but an estimated 12-20% of lawyers have ADHD.

Which means as many as 1 in 5 lawyers has it.

(For a more in depth look at ADHD in lawyers click here)

Common Misconceptions About ADHD

Contrary to common misconceptions—and an unfortunate misnomer—ADHD is not a lack of attention, but rather an inability to consistently regulate LOTS of attention.

There is also no correlation between intelligence and ADHD. So while some people with ADHD struggle academically, plenty of people like lawyers are high achievers with ADHD.

While many dismiss ADHD as “fake” or a “handy excuse” (in the opinion of a federal judge), it is indeed a challenging, chronic disorder to navigate each and every day.

That said, I love reframing the way we generally think of ADHD. Instead of scrutinizing idiosyncratic clusters of symptoms, we can look at ADHD as a unique way of perceiving and interacting with the world.

Because what’s really going on is that the ADHD brain is taking in far more stimuli than a neurotypical brain—which means those of us with ADHD are picking up on a lot more social cues, patterns, and other sensory inputs you might never imagine we could perceive.

This kind of reframing also helps in understanding the notably high percentage of people with ADHD who are drawn to the legal field.

Why People with ADHD Make Good Lawyers

While it can not be overstated how debilitating ADHD can be at times, there are very real benefits of having ADHD and working in the legal profession.

1. Strong Sense of Fairness and Justice

People with ADHD tend to have a very strong sense of fairness and are justice-minded. So they can be very passionate about doing something to rectify something that they feel is an injustice.

2. Intense Drive and Determination

Related to that is a very intense determination and drive when someone with ADHD is very interested in something. You can think of them as a dog with a bone—beyond persistent!

The double-edged sword of this is that, of course, it can sometimes lead them down a rabbit hole. But ultimately you better believe they're going to find what they're looking for.

3. Lower Risk-Aversion

Another benefit ADHD lawyers bring to the practice of law is that they are less risk-averse than the average lawyer.

Of course, it's still relative—lawyers with ADHD are still lawyers and aren’t going to be super high on the impulsivity spectrum.

But this is something that can be really helpful in terms of presenting alternative arguments or approaches and when dealing with the business side of the legal profession.

This can look like ADHD lawyers successfully running a law firm or a legal department. Or supporting businesses in their legal practice—clients love a business-minded lawyer who isn’t constantly stymied by perceived risk.

4. High in Optimism

People with ADHD also tend to be more optimistic, which is a nice counterweight to the cynicism everyone in the legal field has.

No judgment—it's just a verifiable observation.

But compared to neurotypical lawyers, those with ADHD tend to be quicker to see potential opportunities or alternatives.

5. Creative, Divergent Thinkers

Lawyers with ADHD are by definition divergent thinkers, and they tend to be more creative and imaginative as a result.

They simply see things in a different way. Often this looks like spotting different patterns and connecting dots in ways that sometimes neurotypical lawyers may not have thought of—or just haven't thought of yet. ADHD lawyers can often get there quicker.

6. Hyperfocus

Arguably one of the most storied advantages of someone with ADHD is their ability to hyperfocus. It’s like being in a state of flow but on steroids.

When certain conditions are met (i.e., strong interest-based triggers are present—see below section), the ADHD brain is able to zero in and focus very intensely on a project or activity for hours at a time. And we can't be torn away from it.

We don't get distracted. We forget to eat. We forget to go to the bathroom.

It's the complete inverse of what you would expect based on our common understanding of ADHD—that we can't pay attention for long periods of time.

But when hyperfocus is engaged and directed at an important task, this can be really beneficial. For ADHD lawyers, this means they can crank out a brief or an agreement or some other project in a very condensed timeline.

(Which is great from an efficiency standpoint, but sucks if you're on a billable model.)

After learning about all those strengths, you might be wondering why so many of us question whether lawyers with ADHD can be successful.

The issue lies in the way the ADHD nervous system is wired.

How ADHD Lawyer Brains Focus

The ADHD brain only gets dopamine when at least one interest-based trigger is present.

These would be things that an ADHD brain considers interesting, novel, urgent, or challenging.

In contrast, neurotypical brains release dopamine in response to importance-based triggers—priorities, rewards, or consequences.

And, of course, neurotypical people also respond to interest-based triggers!

But neurotypical people can generate the dopamine they need to complete an important task even if they otherwise don’t want to.

That’s not true for people with ADHD.

We understand that something is important. We like rewards and want to avoid consequences, too.

But that isn’t enough to get the dopamine flowing and our attention directed toward an important but uninteresting task.

And yet we can work with this.

The Key to Success for Lawyers with ADHD

What will make or break an ADHD lawyer’s career is whether or not their work environment is optimized with those interest-based dopamine triggers in mind.

There are virtually unlimited approaches for appealing to interest-based brains, but there are two particularly actionable ways to achieve this with respect to lawyers.

The first intervention is one ADHD lawyers can do for themselves.

Ignore Conventional Productivity Advice

Because the overwhelming majority of productivity “hacks” are designed around importance-based triggers—priorities, rewards, consequences—these techniques don’t work long-term (or at all) for the ADHD brain.

At best, these tips will work until the novelty wears off.

1. EAT THE FROG FIRST

This advice instructs us to tackle our most dreaded task first so we can get it out of the way.

Nope. Doesn’t work for an interest-based nervous system.

No matter how hard we try to force ourselves to do the task that is the least interesting to us, our brain won’t give us the dopamine we need to do it.

Instead, we’ll spin our wheels and procrastinate as we wait for the motivation to strike.

Worst case scenario? We aren’t able to start anything else for the rest of the day if we insist on doing this awful task first.

We need to start with something that gets our dopamine flowing—interesting, urgent, challenging, or novel. Then we can ride that wave of dopamine we’ve created into tackling that very necessary, but very uninteresting task that’s in front of us.

2. USE A PLANNER

Ughhhh, this one's so challenging.

Because we love the idea of using a planner. And we will use a planner.

Until we forget to check it. Or update it.

Or forget where we put it. Or it's no longer fun and novel for us to use it anymore.

What about using a digital planner, you ask? Ha!

Opening up a computer or a phone to find an app or software is basically like opening Pandora's box for us.

By the time I get my phone unlocked, I either forget why I'm on the phone or I get distracted by something else that has popped up or a different app that I see.

But listen, eventually we will find something that works.

It just takes a lot of experimentation along the way to figure out if what we've found is something that's actually going to work for us long-term or if the novelty is going to wear off.

Whether you have ADHD or you work with someone who does, a little compassion will go a long way when figuring out the best productivity systems for any given situation.

The second intervention that can set ADHD lawyers up for success requires employer participation.

Reasonable Workplace Accommodations

Reasonable workplace accommodations for lawyers with ADHD can be an absolute game-changer.

And yes, I'm using the term "reasonable accommodations" straight from the Americans with Disabilities Act because ADHD is indeed a protected disability.

Lest anyone think this is some kind of millennial snowflake crap, let us not forget how an entire generation of lawyers refused to learn how to use a word processor and instead required secretaries to transcribe their dictation. Which is totally fine, btw. That can actually be a reasonable accommodation to this day. However, that accommodation wasn't due to a disability but rather a preference to not learning how to use a word processor.

There are two straightforward ways to support an ADHD lawyer in the workplace: executive assistants and skilled managers.

ADHD Lawyers Need Executive Assistants

For ADHD lawyers, executive dysfunction is a very common problem.

Having a dedicated executive assistant can help them be accountable for deadlines, fill out their time sheets, turn their time sheets in on time, get to meetings on time, follow up on important projects or with different people, et cetera.

For the record, every lawyer should have access to an executive assistant that can be assigned to them. The trend toward pooling assistants in law firms makes it nearly impossible for any assistant to learn how individual lawyers work and support them in a meaningful way.

That said, ADHD lawyers cannot be truly successful without executive assistants (or someone else who can support them in a similar fashion).

Which leads me to the next workplace accommodation…

Attorneys with ADHD Need Skilled Managers

ADHD lawyers with skilled and engaged managers are also better set up for success.

This is especially important for ADHD lawyers whose executive dysfunction makes it difficult to prioritize and then initiate tasks before they become urgent.

I offer a couple of suggestions here and am not pulling them out of thin air. These are actually from a specific page of the EEOC website that sets forth guidance for accommodations on lawyers with disabilities. Pretty handy!

1. CHUNKING ASSIGNMENTS + SHORTENING DEADLINES

So here's a fantastic one that helps with executive dysfunction. When partners or managers of ADHD lawyers are giving assignments, they can break them up into smaller chunks with shorter deadlines.

While it may seem counterintuitive to give someone less time to do something, with a shorter time horizon those tasks feel urgent to a lawyer with ADHD, and that will trigger their nervous system to get to work.

There's also the added benefit of helping them to prioritize tasks by assigning the most important part of the process first with the earliest deadline.

It’s a win-win for everyone involved!

2. WRITTEN INSTRUCTIONS INSTEAD OF (OR IN ADDITION TO) VERBAL ONES

One of the most frustrating symptoms of ADHD is working memory deficits. Pair that with a common auditory processing disorder comorbidity, and you’ve got yourself a recipe for miscommunication.

I remember when I was a lawyer and how I’d scribble down notes as someone rattled off verbal instructions for an assignment. Even though I was paying attention, I wasn’t able to catch all the details. When I’d ask for clarification, sometimes I’d be scolded for not listening the first time. Or I’d be ridiculed for misunderstanding the assignment.

A reasonable accommodation could involve an ADHD lawyer’s supervisor(s) providing written instructions for assignments.

This could be in addition to verbal instructions, but with the ultimate goal of having instructions formalized in writing.

If a manager is reluctant to put assignments in writing (which is not uncommon, sigh…), the accommodation could include the ADHD lawyer confirming their understanding of the assignment in an email and having the manager confirm or clarify.

Honestly, if these accommodations were just provided to all lawyers as best business practices, I don't think there would be any complaints.

The result would be less frustration in the workplace generally and for individual lawyers—especially if they have ADHD.

Career Coaching for ADHD (and Neurotypical) Lawyers

If you're an ADHD lawyer who has not found a supportive work environment and instead are being labeled as lazy or otherwise incompetent in some way, I can help. (And neurotypical lawyers, same thing. I can help you with toxic workplaces, too.)

My signature career coaching framework has been designed specifically for lawyers, and it will help you to find and land a job you genuinely like.

Importantly, this framework also includes how to identify a workplace environment that's going to be accommodating for whatever your specific needs may be.

I work with tons of ADHD lawyers and neurotypical lawyers alike.

And if you work with me in the Make Your Next Move? program, you’ll join a community of like-minded lawyers who are all on their way to landing a job they like and in which they will be truly supported.

Annie Little, JD, ACC is an ICF-certified career coach and former lawyer. After practicing law for seven years, she founded JD Nation in 2012. Since then, Annie has helped hundreds of lawyers land, lead, and succeed in the legal profession and beyond.

You can access the original article and accompanying video at https://thejdnation.com/blog/adhd-lawyers-success.