The Mental Health Professional in Court

The Mental Health Professional in Court: A Survival Guide is designed to help mental health professionals become more knowledgeable about the settings, assumptions, personnel, issues, and techniques involved in going to court, with the aim of demystifying the legal process and reducing anxiety about this inherently stressful experience.

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A successor to the popular The Psychiatrist in Court: A Survival Guide, The Mental Health Professional in Court has expanded the scope of the earlier book to include other professionals in the field. The authors have thoroughly updated the text, and provided a comprehensive coverage of legal processes. This book equips the mental health professional with a hands-on, practical working knowledge of what to expect—and how to survive—in the courtroom and the legal system.


The book includes many helpful features:
• An informal, user-friendly writing style that is accessible, reassuring, and empowering, and a succinct presentation that helps the reader achieve mastery of the material quickly and efficiently—a boon when prepping for a court appearance
• A practical, rather than theoretical, approach to issues, with examples from literally hundreds of actual cases and countless consultations with peers and colleagues on how to deal with the legal system
• A thorough understanding of the book's audience. Because the authors understand that most mental health professionals' knowledge about going to court comes from television and movies, the book addresses the many deeply embedded misperceptions and distortions perpetuated by the media, taking the reader from rudimentary information about the legal system to more sophisticated topics, such as the different approaches to testifying.
• An indispensable legal glossary keyed to the text, which enhances understanding of courtroom terminology
• Other beneficial features, such as key points at the end of each chapter, which provide easy-to-locate summaries, and additional appendices, which outline the legal system and provide suggested readings.


No one wants to appear in court, but in some cases it may be unavoidable. Brief enough to assimilate quickly, yet comprehensive in scope, The Mental Health Professional in Court: A Survival Guide is a reassuring and eminently useful guide designed to help the witness navigate the legal system.