Marion Baker (left) and Suzanne Jacobs (right) both qualified as lawyers at Herbert Smith Freehills Kramer and spent over 20 years at the firm as commercial litigators, in professional development and partnership management. Marion subsequently re-qualified in executive and leadership coaching, developing a coaching practice focussing on legal, educational and business leadership. Suzanne went on to take up major leadership roles in the not-for-profit sector. Both now specialise in Balint group work for lawyers.
Barristers are trained to be resilient, to compartmentalise and to quickly move on. But what happens to the emotional weight of the work — the difficult interactions, the challenging professional relationships, the moments of self-doubt or uncertainty that are never properly ‘digested’? For most, the stress simply accumulates.
In 2025, the Bar Council set out to investigate whether structured reflective practice — long embedded in medicine — could support barristers by offering them a confidential, professionally-facilitated place to process the interpersonal aspects of practice.
This led to the Bar Council partnering with Balint Legal to run the first reflective practice Balint group pilot at the Bar. The results offer a compelling case for making reflective practice a cornerstone of the Bar’s professional culture.
What is a Balint group?
Balint groups are facilitated peer-discussion sessions in which participants explore the emotional and relational dimensions of their professional work. They are not therapy groups and they do not discuss personal issues. Originally developed for doctors more than 70 years ago, they provide a structured, psychologically safe space to reflect on and better understand the interpersonal predicaments which can affect work. Groups are run by Balint-trained former lawyers who understand the pressures of legal practice from the inside.
The pilot involved two groups: one for Chancery and Commercial practitioners in London, and one for Criminal and Family barristers on the Western Circuit. Each group met for six 90-minute sessions between June and December 2025. The process was evaluated throughout.
What the data shows
The evaluation results are striking:
- 100% of respondents were comfortable with confidentiality in a group setting.
- 95% said working in a group was helpful for learning from each other’s experiences.
- 95% said mixed seniority worked well.
- 84% found the sessions helpful for their wellbeing.
- 84% said they would or were open to continuing with Balint group sessions in the future.
- 84% of respondents found the sessions helpful for their interactions with professional and lay clients.
- 79% found the sessions helpful for their day-to-day legal practice.
In participants’ own words
The following are quotes from participants, shared on an anonymised basis with their consent:
“It’s really been life-changing in terms of work and challenged my internal monologue that this is just the way things are and I need to just put up with it/work harder/do better.”
— Crime & Family barrister, attended 6 sessions
“Hearing from other (more experienced) practitioners about their outlook on things, as well as hearing about the issues they face in their practice, normalised a lot of my own fears and worries and also helped me gain better perspectives and boundaries about my own issues.”
— Crime & Family barrister, 4 sessions
“The weight that was lifted after I shared scenarios with the group was crazy. I didn’t realise the stress, anxiety and trauma I was carrying around due to certain experiences within this career.”
— Chancery & Commercial barrister, 4 sessions
“The sessions were exactly what I needed… The Bar needs something like this to address the ongoing issues with wellbeing and the difficulties that come with private practice.”
— Chancery & Commercial barrister, 4 sessions
A profession that doesn’t talk honestly enough — and a space that lets it
One of the clearest findings from the pilot was how much barristers valued simply not being alone with their experiences. As one participant put it: “We don’t talk enough with other barristers about the concerns in our working lives.” The groups offered a rare, structured space to do exactly that.
Mixed seniority proved a particular strength. Junior barristers found it grounding to learn that senior colleagues face similar challenges; senior practitioners valued the fresh perspectives of those earlier in their careers. The result was a sense of shared professional humanity that transcended hierarchy.
Notably, those who attended four or more sessions were significantly more likely to report meaningful benefits — confirming that reflective practice is a skill that deepens with sustained engagement.
What we learned — and how the model evolved
The pilot was designed not just to test Balint groups, but to adapt them in real time to the realities of practice. This led to the model being expanded to cover the myriad of professional relationship stressors at the Bar: instructing solicitors, lay clients, opposing counsel, Judges, other team members and clerks.
As one participant observed: “It is non-judgmental and reflective — a welcome antidote to being in a profession where we are expected to produce answers.”
The follow-up programme — and how to get involved
Given the positive data from the first pilot, the Bar Council is planning a further programme, with a view to promoting Balint groups as a valuable, permanent resource to support barristers.
For those interested in learning more, the Bar Council is hosting an online introductory session and Q&A on 2 July at 5:15pm. Please visit the Bar Council website to sign up.
Subsequently, there will be an opportunity to sign up for the next Balint pilot in the autumn, which will include both the self-employed and employed Bar.
Balint Legal is also running groups at individual sets of chambers, indicating growing appetite within the profession. Please contact us at [email protected] if this is of interest for your chambers.
Why this matters
The profession has long expected barristers to absorb the pressures of practice, regardless of the mental and emotional cost. This pilot suggests there is a better way: that barristers, when given the opportunity to decompress with others, can get back to doing the work with clarity while better tolerating the relational strains of practice.
The nature of practice at the Bar engenders particular stresses and strains at all levels of seniority, often exacerbated by the isolation, lack of social connection and support that can arise from remote working. Balint groups provide a valuable opportunity for barristers to offload, in a confidential, structured environment, and find collegiality among like-minded colleagues.