Don’t Give Up Five Minutes Before the Miracle

Laurie J. Besden, Esq | Lawyers Concerned for Lawyers of Pennsylvania, Inc

Laurie Besden is the Executive Director of Lawyers Concerned for Lawyers of Pennsylvania, Inc. (LCL PA). She served as its Deputy Executive Director, overseeing its Helpline operations, serving as primary contact for intervention requests, expanding its law school outreach, and increasing LCL PA’s presence within the organized bench and bar, from 2011-2015. After becoming LCL PA’s Executive Director in 2015, Laurie continued to serve in most of these capacities and assumed responsibility for the organization’s administrative and financial operations, as well as its judges’ assistance program (Judges Concerned for Judges).
Laurie is a licensed attorney in Pennsylvania (1999) and New Jersey (1999). She practiced law from 1999 through 2001 and 2009-2011 in several capacities including:

• Attorney-at-law (general civil and criminal practice), East Norriton, PA
• Law Clerk (Pennsylvania Superior Court), Philadelphia, PA
• Law Clerk (Philadelphia Municipal Court), Philadelphia, PA

She received her B.A. in Criminology and Criminal Justice from the University of Maryland, College Park, MD (1995) and her J.D. from The Dickinson School of Law of the Pennsylvania State University (1999).

Laurie was the 2015 recipient of the Montgomery Bar Association’s Henry Stuckert Miller Award for her dedication to public service in the legal profession and the 2019 recipient of Caron’s Legal Professional/Uniformed Public Service Award for the Greater Philadelphia Region.

I. Acknowledge substance use and mental health disorders as a disease | 11:00am – 11:15am

II. Recognize the direct and indirect impact that substance use and mental health disorders have on every single person | 11:15am – 11:30am

III. Appreciate the prevalence of substance use and mental health disorders in the US legal industry | 11:30am – 11:45am

IV. Identify resources that are available and understand that there is always hope | 11:45am – 12:00pm