Reading Group on Trauma-Informed Lawyering

This course will provide participants with an opportunity to explore the notion of trauma-informed practice from a variety of legal areas. It will address what trauma-informed lawyering requires, from the perspective of criminal lawyers, human rights lawyers, judges, as well as considering what trauma-informed practice means from an intersectional lens. The group will draw from the expertise of professors within the law school who have each grappled with the methodologies of trauma-informed practice and invite different scholars to lead discussions on a specific topic each week. Students will leave the seminar with an understanding of (1) the importance of working with a trauma-informed approach to lawyering; (2) how to incorporate trauma-informed lawyering into their practice; and (3) what trauma-informed lawyering means to different professionals. Methodologically, the course will make use of academic and practical reading materials and take a socio-legal approach to understanding trauma-informed lawyering. Students will learn both the theory and its academic methodology, as well as key skills to identify ways of adapting lawyering to the required needs. Each professor will provide an understanding of why trauma-informed practice is crucial for all lawyering, regardless of the discipline. Overall, the reading group will provide a space to build a trauma-informed community within the law school.