How Trauma-Informed Training Can Transform Your Family or Criminal Law Practice
- themothercorp
- Oct 6
- 5 min read
Behind every legal case is a human experience — often, one that’s full of pain. And, as a legal professional, you help people work with, and carry, those experiences every day. There’s an emotional intensity to the family and criminal law industries in particular that you deal with – think: navigating fierce arguments between ex-partners, or the stressful terrain of crime. And one complexity of being a professional in the family law or criminal law industries is the extra layer that trauma adds to cases (and everyday interactions).
While trauma-informed training is beneficial in any industry or sector, working in the legal profession makes you especially well-positioned to benefit from trauma-informed workplace training. It’s not just the compassionate and empathetic thing to do, but also a strategic choice to make for your business and its sustainability. This type of professional development can be absolutely transformative, especially for legal professionals in the family and criminal law sectors.
Trauma-informed training is rooted in principles of:
● Safety & trust
● Choice & collaboration
● The empowerment of the individual
● The development of coping skills
○ Including: holistic trauma recovery skills (which can lessen trauma exposure and vicarious trauma exposure – more on that later!)
So, How Does Trauma Show Up in a Legal Context?
There are some behaviours your clients may exhibit in their words or actions as a direct result of their traumas (i.e. domestic violence, gender-based violence, hidden abuse):
● Avoidance – of you, their case, the situation
● Emotional dysregulation – i.e. getting easily overwhelmed in difficult situations, becoming easily upset
● Sometimes, anger or rage
● Memory gaps (a normal, neuro-biological response that can arise during trauma, helping the mind protect and sustain itself)
Secondary or Vicarious Trauma and How It Impacts Legal Professionals
Those of you working in the legal profession are also prone to what’s called secondary or vicarious trauma. The Department of Justice (DOJ) defines secondary/vicarious trauma as, “an occupational challenge for people working and volunteering in the fields of victim services, law enforcement, emergency medical services, fire services, and other allied professions, due to their continuous exposure to victims of trauma and violence.”
(It’s worth nothing that transition house workers are also first responders – as are violence support centres. Stay tuned for a blog digging into that a little bit deeper, later this month!)
Regular exposure to emotionally-charged cases can take a serious toll on your mental state over time.
The DOJ also cites that there are several different ways that people may respond to vicarious trauma, like “a change in their world-view…people can either become more cynical or fearful, or they can become more appreciative of what they have, or both.” Additionally, the Lawyers Association Program of British Columbia (LAPBC) mentions, “alcohol and drug dependence, stress and anxiety, depression and other issues,” as personal problems lawyers may face.
In order to build protective mental health and resilience, developing trauma-informed legal practices is key, like through encouraging effective coping and self-care for team members.
[Article continued below]
Have you gotten my free Guides? Get them now
But What Does Trauma-Informed Training Actually Look Like?
My trauma-informed workplace training approach is holistic, evidence-based, and educational. Each and every workshop that I give is aimed at being practical, relevant, and designed to fit your professional realities – drawing from my academic, professional, and lived experience.
The core principles that I teach are:
● The acknowledgement that trauma can happen to any one of us
● The belief that having trauma-informed skills helps us, our families, our networks, and our communities
● How to build safety, security, and trust
During workshops, you’ll learn hands-on practical strategies, techniques, and tools, like:
● Grounding techniques
● Trauma-informed communication
● De-escalation of emotional states and/or tense situations
And note: this training is applied, embodied, and grounded in theory and evidence. It’s taught in plain language – not complex jargon. The training is perfect for family or criminal law offices.
What Type of Transformations Can I Expect?
There are so many positive benefits of transforming your practice through trauma-informed workplace training. Here are just a few of my personal favourites:
1. Increased trust and cooperation throughout client relationships
2. Reduced burnout and turnover, improved morale across the workplace
3. Strengthened communication, emotional intelligence, and leadership skills in professionals
4. Fewer complaints and conflicts overall; better ethical compliance and risk management
Trauma-informed training is clearly necessary across industries. And, it can help prevent missteps, which helps workplaces avoid labour and resource losses (which have an economic impact)..It’s a no-brainer.
It’s Not Just the Right Thing to Do; It’s the Smart Thing to Do, Too
Getting trauma-informed workplace training for your employees isn’t just the right thing to do for them. It’s also the smart thing to do for your business as a whole. Trauma-informed approaches can even act as a differentiator and set you apart.
It meets a growing, increased demand for trauma-aware and trauma-informed services. It also aligns with ethical obligations. It’s simply the most sustainable thing to do, as well, as it will only become more and more necessary (as the need for these services rise).
How to Get Started With Trauma-Informed Legal Training
We have the pleasure of working with family lawyers and criminal lawyers in Canada and the USA to better serve their teams.
Might I suggest starting with a team-wide workshop or professional development lunch-and-learn? I offer free consultations to get the ball rolling, and I make workplace training easy. It’s simple to get trauma-informed professional development for legal professionals across North America.
Some highlights of my workshops include:
● Conceptual understanding
● Theory & neurobiology
● Practical applications and techniques
● Somatic techniques
● Workplace strategies
● Policy and systems integrations
Give your team the tools to stay grounded, compassionate, and resilient in your everyday work — book your free consultation today. My trauma-informed workshops are tailored to your team’s real-world pressures, and blend evidence-based strategies with lived experience, instead of using one-size-fits-all approaches.
In Conclusion
In the legal industry, and beyond, trauma-informed workplace training is invaluable. It’s not just a nice-to-have anymore; it’s become a necessity. Equip your team and yourself with the tools and skills you need to be more aware and sensitive to survivors of trauma.
We can help. We’re committed to ensuring people are meaningfully accompanied through hardship:
FOR PROFESSIONALS
For educational workshops and training, book your free consultation or
email themothercorp@proton.me (secure email).
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Chavisa Horemans, MES, CDC, CTRC
Chavisa Horemans is a Trauma-Informed Coach, Consultant, and Educator helping people navigate complex situations.
Chavisa is a Certified Divorce Coach (CDC, International Coaching Federation Member and American Bar Association Member), specializing in supporting women, often mothers, involved in high-conflict disputes and complex situations.
She is also a certified holistic Trauma Recovery Practitioner (CTRC), helping individuals process and recover from trauma.
Chavisa holds an interdisciplinary Master’s degree in social sciences and a Graduate Diploma in adult education. Her areas of expertise include High-Conflict Divorce, Gender-Based Violence, Hidden Abuse, Financial Abuse, and Post-Separation Abuse. She is always deepening her knowledge about trauma-informed interventions.
Contact Chavisa at themothercorp@proton.me, or text/call 778 926 8134.
If you know someone who would benefit, please share this with them.
Comments