Brian Cuban’s gripping speech at the ABA 2019 National Conference for Lawyer Assistance Programs chronicled his journey from addiction to recovery and instilled both pride, and hope, that the legal profession’s recent focus on the well-being of lawyers will have profound positive impacts.
Brian Cuban is an attorney, author, advocate, and public speaker who leads an entity that he founded to help other lawyers, The Addicted Lawyer.
In an authentic voice, Brian took us back to his days of being bullied at Mt. Lebanon High School outside of Pittsburgh, and his decades-long addiction to alcohol and cocaine that started during his undergraduate years at Penn State and continued through his graduation from the University of Pittsburgh School of Law.
After graduating law school in 1986, Brian moved to Dallas to take the Texas Bar Exam and to live near his brothers, businessmen Mark and Jeffrey. Among others, he credits his brothers for his recovery, noting they never lost faith in him. The three brothers live within walking distance of each other in Dallas.
Their mother still resides in Pittsburgh, so Brian is a frequent visitor to my hometown. I was pleased to learn that Brian is still a die-hard Steelers, Penguins, and Pirates fan, going back to 1969 to his first Buccos game with his Dad. Brian sometimes went to over 60 home games a season!
More importantly though, Brian is an expert on the issues of addiction and recovery for lawyers, and he is a leader and a role model in the fast-growing field of lawyer well-being. I also would recommend reading his blog and his books.
I was pleased to attend the ABA 2019 National Conference for Lawyer Assistance Programs in Austin, Texas to learn of the good work that lawyers are doing to promote the well-being of both legal practitioners and law students.
The compassion that is needed to effectively promote wellness was palpable at the ABA Conference, and I believe that leaders and innovators are now energized to lead the charge in improving the culture of the legal profession.