The Psychology of Family Practice: What if?

Family law is a distinct and specific area of law; equally akin to a helping profession as it is to a legal one.

As a trainee, it’s the “Marmite” seat. The one you either love or run away from screaming “get me away from all these feelings!”

Many family lawyers attempt to bring family consultants and therapists into the legal processes. But there is often resistance from the clients – often cost-related, but also because, when you’re stressed and upset, as so many of our clients are, the idea of more people being involved can become overwhelming and a little too much.

Wouldn’t it be better to infuse the path to becoming a family justice professional from the very start with psychological understanding? Rather than bringing in therapeutic professionals at a later stage, why don’t we make a concerted effort to train people in both therapeutic/psychological and legal skills from the start?

I’m about to welcome a year 13 prospective psychology student to observe my practice this summer. How cool is that? She’s going to have such a great understanding of the way the legal and psychological worlds can and should intersect. She could train in both legal and therapeutic skills and become the family practitioner of the future.

What if all family law courses at universities and law schools included a compulsory ‘psychology of family law’ module taught by a psychology professor?

And what if our training for newly qualified family solicitors & junior barristers contained a compulsory module on the psychology of family law?

What if all junior family solicitors and barristers had to complete an internship with a family therapy organisation?

What do I mean by psychology of law? So many things! To name just a few …

• Attachment theory – understanding how our clients’ attachment styles (and our own) affect interactions and disputes.
• The Persecutor-Rescuer-Victim triangle. The Parent-Adult-Child triangle. How we end up inadvertently on these triangles with clients and counterparts if we’re lacking in awareness.
• Understanding how to work with vulnerable and suicidal clients in a psychologically informed way. Instead of winging it.

What if full-service law firms renamed their ‘family law’ teams ‘family practice’ teams?

And everyone working in what we currently call ‘family law’ became known as ‘family practitioners’?

To me, even the term ‘family law’ sends the wrong messages to our clients. There often isn’t a legal solution to their situations. We need to make that crystal clear from the outset.

What if teams routinely took on junior therapists, psychologists and social workers as interns?

And *every* family law team in the country included therapists, psychologists and coaches as well as lawyers?

What if, every year at family law conferences, the legal updates on the main stage were accompanied by a Psychology of Family Law update?

I first proposed this idea a while ago. Happily, this year, Resolution included a trauma session in this year’s conference expertly delivered by Rachel Chisholm, Sue Palmer-Conn and Tom Nash alongside the main case law updates.

It’s right that as much importance should be placed on psychology as black letter law at family law conferences.

Long may this continue.

What if the legal side and the therapeutic side became truly integrated?

What if the therapists became a bit more practical?

And the lawyers became a bit less directive and a bit more inquisitive and psychologically informed in their work with clients? 

What if…?

What changes would you like to see in how we work with families in conflict?

This is Annmarie’s last Psychology of Family Practice column for The Review. Get in touch with Annmarie directly to find out more about the work she does – info@carvalhotherapy.com

Copyright of Annmarie Carvalho 2024