Exploring Bankruptcy Attorneys' Experiences With Clients Exhibiting Suicidality: Challenges and Recommendations for Suicide Prevention

Bankruptcy and financial distress commonly precipitate suicidal crises, putting bankruptcy attorneys in potentially difficult situations with clients. This qualitative study explored attorneys' experiences with clients' risk for suicide and attorneys' recommendations for suicide prevention. Bankruptcy attorneys and trustees (n = 11) were recruited via outreach to attorney groups (e.g., National Association of Consumer Bankruptcy Attorneys). Semi-structured interviews explored clients' distress, responses to clients' suicidal disclosures, and previous suicide prevention training. The research team established a codebook from transcribed interviews within Dedoose software, using peer debriefing and consensus building to iteratively identify themes. Nearly all attorneys had experiences with clients discussing suicide, but most did not know how to intervene. Common themes included clients' co-occurring stressors (e.g., divorce, unemployment), destigmatizing the bankruptcy process, and navigating attorney-client privilege. Major themes for prevention were correcting misconceptions about and destigmatizing bankruptcy and suicide prevention training that is sensitive to the context of the legal profession.