At Lawyers Concerned for Lawyers of Pennsylvania, when compared with the percentage of lawyers struggling primarily with mental health and alcohol problems who call our Helpline (1-888-999-1941), we may not receive as many calls from someone who says, “I’m a gambling addict” or “I’m calling about a lawyer I know who I think may be a compulsive gambler.” I know that, when I finally visited a lawyer friend of mine in 2008 and told him I needed help, I never mentioned anything about the compulsive gambling that had first led me to resort to the conversion of client funds and a host of other ethical violations. Instead, I chose the obvious. My colleague called LCL and said he was “calling for a friend that had just been arrested for his third DUI.” Teeth falling out, congestive heart failure, alcoholic neuropathy and, after we add in the empty packets of cocaine that police found in my car for good measure, there we have it.
Or do we?? Hopefully, this article will help you look below the surface – beyond the obvious and into the world of the lawyer who is impaired by gambling – the silent or “secret” addiction. And how the hyperconnected world which we rely upon to function daily has lent itself to an even greater threat to not only our profession but to public health itself. Add to that the stress and anxiety that is already a part of the everyday life of a lawyer and we have a perfect storm for a new form of impairment – gambling via the internet and, more specifically, sports betting.
We live in a world where the proliferation of online apps and advertisements now provide a never-ending stream of opportunities to gamble that has opened a “virtual” Pandora’s box of unintended consequences.
Neither I nor Lawyers Concerned for Lawyers are opposed to sports gambling any more than we are opposed to the use of alcohol. However, online sports gambling has rapidly become a normalized and socially acceptable activity. The convergence of gambling advertising, sports gambling partnerships, celebrity endorsements, media relationships, and the recently emerging role of artificial intelligence has dramatically altered how the gambling industry delivers, and the public consumes, increasingly complex gambling products. And those products are addictive.
For decades, compulsive gambling was the proverbial prodigal son of the mental health family. We stood ready to help the compulsive gambler, but what was being done to prevent the harm from happening? After all, it’s simply an impulse control disorder we were told. The onus was clearly being placed on the individual to “fix” themselves. But all of that changed in 2013 when the 5th edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Health Disorders (DSM-5) recognized Gambling Disorder as the very first non-substance-related addiction disorder.
Gambling disorder is an addiction just like heroin, opioids, tobacco, alcohol, and cocaine. It also presents with other mental health struggles which typically include anxiety and depression. Lawyers can be particularly vulnerable because of the often-competitive nature of the practice of law. The risk to lawyers is greatly enhanced because many have access to client funds and/or firm trust accounts. Sadly, untreated gambling disorders may result in lawyers feeding an addiction with behaviors completely inconsistent with ethical duties and responsibilities.
In May 2018, when the U.S. Supreme Court decided Murphy v. NCAA, 138 S. Ct. 1461 (2018), no one could have foreseen what online sports gambling would quickly become. This cleared the way for states to legalize online sports gambling. In fewer than eight years, thirty-nine states and the District of Columbia have done so. And Pennsylvania quickly found itself among the leaders. In 2025, Pennsylvania led the country (other than Nevada) in gambling losses by the public. According to the American Gaming Association, in 2025, people in Pennsylvania lost more than $7.7 billion dollars.
Roughly ten percent of young men under thirty are considered problem gamblers. The ABA-Hazelden Betty Ford study (Krill PR, Johnson R, Albert L. The Prevalence of Substance Use and Other Mental Health Concerns Among American Attorneys. J Addict Med. 2016 Jan-Feb;10(1) 46–52.) found that thirty-two percent of lawyers under the age of thirty were problem drinkers. So, let’s concentrate on alcohol, you might be saying. What about the impact caused by compulsive or addictive gambling? Every problem gambler is estimated to negatively affect the lives of at least ten other people. And for the lawyer who is impaired by a gambling disorder, that clearly opens the door to violations of the Rules of Professional Conduct.
Lawyers Concerned for Lawyers of PA is a leader in helping lawyers, judges, their family members, and law students who may be struggling with compulsive online sports gambling. We are the only lawyer assistance program in the United States that has a national leader in this field in its peer volunteer base. Harry Levant holds a master’s degree in professional clinical counseling from La Salle University, a doctorate in Law and Public Policy from Northeastern University, and a juris doctorate from Temple University School of Law. He is a valued LCL colleague, peer volunteer, and friend. He is also a disbarred Pennsylvania lawyer who stole money from clients, friends, and family members to fuel a gambling addiction. He made his last bet on April 27, 2014, and on that same night nearly took his own life in a suicide attempt.
Dr. Harry Levant is now Director of Gambling Policy with the Public Health Advocacy Institute (PHAI) at Northeastern University School of Law. He is an Internationally Certified Gambling Counselor (ICGC-I) and mental health therapist in private practice with a focus on treating people and families struggling with gambling disorder. In the past two years, Harry has emerged as the nation’s leading public health advocate and media expert on sports betting. He has testified as an expert before the US Senate Judiciary Committee and helped author federal legislation known as the SAFE Bet Act aimed at the regulation of online sports betting which was introduced in both the US Senate and House of Representatives. He is also most proud of his role as an LCL Peer Volunteer.
In writing this article, I asked Harry to describe some of the most pressing issues that could lead to a lawyer violating the Rules of Professional Conduct and, indeed, committing a financial crime. “Online gambling now occurs at light speed and ensures that access to sports gambling action never stops. This new and AI-fueled business model will inexorably result in increased gambling addiction and gambling-related harm.”
“The ‘chasing’ of action and/or losses is part of the diagnostic criteria for gambling addiction. Chasing action is also the symptom most closely related to suffering harm. Chasing action is something I see every day when meeting with clients and families suffering the most dire and devastating effects of gambling and gambling addiction. The effects I see in my clinical work include financial ruin, desperation, suicidal ideation, depression, anxiety, career loss, divorce/separation, criminal behavior, homelessness, cooccurring alcohol and drug disorders, and deep despair.”
Keeping in mind the high prevalence rates of alcohol and substance use disorder and mental health issues revealed in the ABA-Hazelden Betty Ford study, the impact on the legal profession of compulsive online sports betting cannot be overlooked. Dr. Levant said, “Younger adults are fixated on the fast-paced action of in-game micro sports betting. And younger lawyers, who are already experiencing higher prevalence rates of issues with alcohol and distressed mental health, are at even greater risk.”
Gambling takes place on every micro-event within sporting events, from the speed of the next baseball pitch to every football snap, basketball shot, tennis serve, and even ping pong points from Russia and Eastern Europe. Live sports for gambling happen around the globe and around the clock so that the action never stops. If it sounds as if sports has become the equivalent of a non-stop slot machine, it’s because it has. My kids used to ask me questions like, “Hey Dad, what’s a double play?” Now the only question about a “double play” my grandkids may ask is, “Hey Pop, what’s a Parlay?
Lawyers are notoriously reluctant to ask for help with any of their problems. They see themselves as “problem solvers” who would never dare reveal that they might need help with their own problems. The fear associated with a possible disciplinary action as the result of an admitted violation of the Rules of Professional Conduct heightens that fear and can delay what we at LCL call “The Big Ask.”
Rule 8.3(c) of the Pennsylvania Rules of Professional Conduct does not require disclosure of information otherwise protected by Rule 1.6 or information gained by a lawyer or judge while participating in an approved lawyers assistance program. LCL-PA is the only approved lawyers assistance program in Pennsylvania. YOU ARE SAFE when you call us. The Supreme Court wants to encourage lawyers to seek assistance through LCL-PA. As LCL Peer Volunteer Harry Levant explains, “Gambling disorder is a progressive disease which, left untreated, can become pathological. In my present work as a therapist and policy advocate, I advance the message that prevention of harm is the best form of treatment. With early intervention, gambling disorder can be treated, and recovery is within reach. We do not want to see lawyers suffer in silence and this speaks to the importance of the work that Lawyers Concerned for Lawyers of PA does for members of the legal profession and their families.”
LCL-PA saves lives. If gambling or the desire to seek action with gambling is impacting your personal or professional life, please reach out to LCL for help and support. Treatment is available, and recovery is within reach.
March is Problem Gambling Awareness Month.
Call LCL-PA’s 24-hour helpline and speak to a PERSON 365 days per year at 1-888-999-1941.