For the second consecutive year, Rob Worster attended the National Family Law Symposium.
This two-day symposium titled: The Divorcing Brain, was presented by the National Center for Family Law and was held at the University of Richmond School of Law, on Sunday, September 15 and Monday, September 16, 2013.
The Symposium featured the following speakers (in alphabetical order):
- Dr. Angelo Bolea, Clinical Neuropsychologist and Neurofeedback Therapist;
- Jennifer Brobst, Director, Center for Child & Family Health;
- Stephanie Coontz, Director of Research and Public Education for the Council on Contemporary Families and Professor at The Evergreen State College;
- Kimberly Fauss, New Growth Ventures, LLC;
- Erik J. Girvan, Assistant Professor, University of Oregon School of Law;
- Cynthia Godsoe, Assistant Professor of Law, Brooklyn Law School;
- Dr. Lisa Herrick, West Falls Psychotherapy Group and Co-Founder of the Collaborative Practice Center of Greater Washington;
- Dr. Julie Macfarlane, University of Windsor Faculty of Law and Professor of the Practice at the Kroc Institute for International Peace Studies; and
- Frank West Morrison, Partner, Phillips, Morrison, Johnson & Ferrell.
The topics, fascinating as always, included the following:
- The Paradoxical Origins and Complicated Trade-offs of Modern Divorce Trends;
- Bridging the Professions: Engaging in Interdisciplinary Conversations;
- Divorce and the Brain: the Neuroscience Implications of Divorce;
- Avoiding Unintended Errors: The Consequences of Cognitive Shortcuts for Family Law Practice;
- Out of the Frying Pan, Into the Fire: Family Clients and Self-Representation;
- The Initial Client Interview: Exploring and Connecting to Your Client’s Internal World;
- When the Old Rules Don’t Work: Challenges for Ethical Advocacy;
- Bias in Administering the Family; and
- The Impact of Secondary Traumatic Stress Among Family Attorneys Working with Trauma-Exposed Clients: Implication for Practice and Professional Responsibility.