The Next Big Health Secret Why Seeing an Attorney May Be Good for You!
Consulting with an attorney when you are facing legal trouble allows you to have an advocate and expert in your corner who is fighting for you and your rights. And according to recent studies, it may be good for your health too!
For example, in Colorado, some chronically ill patients are struggling with immigration issues or problems as a result of losing their jobs in the COVID-19 pandemic. By consulting with lawyers — in addition to psychiatrists, social workers, and medical doctors — patients are lowering their stress levels, improving their physical well-being, and staying closer to their families. But how does this work? To answer that question, we have to examine the toll stress takes on our bodies. Constant stress, like concerns about visitations or deportation, can cause our bodies to fail. This often leads to headaches, heartburn, a weakened immune system, insomnia, stomach problems, and more. These problems then compound into other issues, causing the body to spiral when intervention isn’t possible. However, when the source of stress is relieved, the side effects are eliminated as well. This can powerfully help people who are facing potentially life-altering legal situations. So, while your attorney may not be able to perform heart surgery or help alleviate your knee pain, their expertise may be just what you need to feel better in the long run.
According to NPR, a 2017 study of Veterans Affairs offices in Connecticut and New York found that veterans who saw clinic attorneys reported improved mental health within three months after their initial meetings. Additionally, in Colorado, a five-year survey of 69 patients from 2015 to 2020 found that patients in Medicaid programs who saw attorneys at their clinics had a decrease in the amount of physical health problems they were facing. While further studies are needed to corroborate this evidence, the message is clear: Finding solutions to your legal concerns through an attorney is healthy!
This idea has led to several states permitting Medicaid patients to use some of their health care dollars toward legal clinical programs.
Katy Perry’s Legal Battle With Nuns
Fighting for Convent Real Estate
Katy Perry is known around the globe for having multiple No. 1 hits, including “I Kissed A Girl,” “Teenage Dream,” and “Firework,” but two nuns in Los Angeles know Perry for a completely different reason. They were in a multiyear legal battle with Perry and the Archdiocese of Los Angeles over the purchase of a convent. In 1972, the Sisters of the Immaculate Heart of Mary pooled their money and purchased an 8-acre, French-style chateau in Los Angeles. Sisters Rita Callanan and Catherine Rose Holzman lived in the chateau-turned-convent until 2011, when the Archdiocese of Los Angeles reportedly forced them to relocate. Two years later, Archbishop José Gomez sold the property to Perry without any input from the sisters, but the nuns felt that the archdiocese did not have the right to do this. Gomez accepted a $14.5 million cash offer from Perry, but the nuns refused to sell to her. Believing they had sole ownership of the convent, they instead sold it to restaurateur and developer Dana Hollister. The archdiocese and Perry both sued Hollister for her involvement, claiming she took advantage of the nuns, and a judge invalidated her purchase months after it was made. A Los Angeles Superior Court judge ruled in favor of the archdiocese, creating an opportunity for Perry to buy the estate due to the fact that the nuns did not have the approval of the pope, the Holy See, or the archbishop.
In 2017, a jury found that Hollister intentionally interfered with Perry’s legal purchase. She was ordered to pay both Perry and the archdiocese millions of dollars. The sisters continued to support Hollister, and they both accompanied her to bankruptcy court, where Sister Holzman collapsed and died during the court proceeding. Sister Callanan blamed Perry for the death of Holzman.
The convent is back on the market, and it does not appear that Perry will move forward with the purchase.
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