About me
Anne Brafford
After practicing law for nearly 20 years, Anne left her job as an equity partner in employment litigation at Morgan Lewis, one of the nation’s largest law firms, to study with world class experts on workplace thriving. She left behind the practice of law but not her love and respect for the legal profession and a desire to help it grow into the best version of itself. Her aim is to help build healthy, inclusive, engaging workplaces where people and businesses can grow and succeed together.
When Anne was 15 years old, she wrote a note that said “I will change the world!! (for the better I hope)!,” which a close friend kept and gave her at their 20-year high school reunion. She continues trying hard to live up to that promise. As part of that effort, she recently restarted a limited law practice focusing especially on pro bono matters that are meaningful to her.
Research, Scholarship, & Publications
Anne’s research focuses on lawyer holistic excellence—especially the intersection of inclusion, mental health and well-being, and engagement. Some of Anne’s major academic papers can be downloaded here.
Some of Anne’s more significant publications (including writings, videos, and podcasts) related to holistic excellence in law can be found here.
Excellence In Law Activities
Anne’s major contributions to holistic excellence in the legal profession include:
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- 2014: Founded Aspire, an education and consulting firm for the legal profession.
- 2015-2020: Helped conceive and launch the American Bar Association (ABA) Law Practice Division’s Lawyer Well-Being Committee. Anne initially served as the Committee’s Vice Chair (2015-2016) then as its Chair (2016-2020).
- 2016-2017: Served as the Editor in Chief and co-author of the National Task Force on Lawyer Well-Being’s 2017 landmark report, The Path to Lawyer Well-Being: Practical Recommendations for Positive Change. Many point to this Report as a key catalyst for the profession’s increased focus on lawyer well-being.
- 2017: Authored the ABA-published book, Positive Professionals: Creating High-Performing, Profitable Firms Through the Science of Engagement.
- 2017-2019: Appointed to the ABA’s Presidential Working Group formed to investigate how legal employers can support healthy work environments. Her primary contribution to this Working Group was authoring the popular and freely-available ABA Well-Being Toolkit for Lawyers and Legal Employers. Another important product of this Working Group was the ABA Well-Being Pledge.
- 2020: Created and launched Well-Being Week in Law (“WWIL,” originally called “Lawyer Well-Being Week,” which was renamed in 2021 to be more explicitly inclusive of all of the important contributors to the legal profession who are not lawyers). The week-long event occurs the first week of May to align with Mental Health Awareness Month. WWIL is a popular event across the legal profession that is now organized by the Institute for Well-Being in Law. Anne continues to Chair it.
- 2020-Present : Co-founded the Institute for Well-Being in Law (“IWIL”) in 2020-2021, which evolved from the National Task Force on Lawyer Well-Being. Anne helped develop the original structure, mission, and Board for IWIL and was its first Vice President and Vice President of Programming. Anne now serves on the Advisory Board and remains a Co-Chair of Well-Being Week in Law.
- 2025: Creation of The Excellence Project [hyperlink] to boost the impact of her work by joining forces with other like-minded professionals. The Project brings to life the African proverb, “If you want to go fast, go alone; if you want to go far, go together.” It highlights the balance between individual effort and collective strength—a theme of The Excellence Project.
Education
Anne has earned a PhD in positive organizational psychology from Claremont Graduate University (2024) and a Master of Applied Positive Psychology (MAPP) from the University of Pennsylvania (2014), where her Capstone earned special honors. Anne was an award-winning teaching assistant, serving in that role for both Dr. Martin Seligman and Dr. Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi, the co-founders of positive psychology.
Anne graduated from University of Iowa Law School in 1996 with high distinction and special honors. She has a B.S. in Journalism from Iowa State University. (She remains loyal to the ISU Cyclones with the exception of her passionate support for former U of Iowa Hawkeye Caitlin Clark!).
Law Practice
After clerking for a federal district judge in Missouri (1996-1998), Anne began her journey as a practicing employment litigator for Bryan Cave (1998-1999) and Morgan Lewis (1999-2014). Anne’s practice focused on employment litigation on behalf of corporations in state and federal court at the trial and appellate levels—including several briefs before the U.S. Supreme Court. She was elevated from associate, to partner, to equity partner while at Morgan Lewis, held multiple leadership positions over the years, and was involved with the women lawyers’ initiative and well-being promotion.
Anne recently restarted a limited law practice, focusing especially on pro bono matters that are meaningful to her.
Experience
ASPIRE VALUES
Recent Professional Activities
- Chairperson of the American Bar Association (ABA) Law Practice Division’s Attorney Well-Being Committee
- Member of the National Task Force on Lawyer Well-Being
- Editor-in-Chief & Co-Author of the National Task Force’s 2017 Report: The Path to Lawyer Well-Being: Practice Recommendations for Positive Change
- Appointed by two ABA Presidents to a special Working Group to Advance Well-Being in the Legal Profession
- Author of Positive Professionals: Creating High-Performing, Profitable Firms Through the Science of Engagement
- Author of the Well-Being Toolkit for Lawyers and Legal Employers
- Author of book chapter Transform Lawyer Well-Being Into a Team Sport in the ABA-published book The Best Lawyer You Can Be
With this groundbreaking work, Brafford demonstrates that she is one of the United States’ foremost thought-leaders on how to move our profession to the condition where thriving is the norm rather than the rare exception.
I really liked this book and its important themes, which haven’t gotten enough attention in the legal profession. I hope Big Law is ready to listen.
As a partner who practices in Big Law (with limited free time), I love that the book’s advice is practical. It has made a positive impact on my life, and has already started to better the experiences of those I work with.