Therapeutic Jurisprudence Center

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On September 24, 2009 the University of Miami School of Law established the Therapeutic Jurisprudence Center.

What is Therapeutic Jurisprudence?

Therapeutic jurisprudence ("TJ") is an interdisciplinary approach to legal scholarship and law reform that sees the law itself as a therapeutic agent. The basic insight of therapeutic jurisprudence is that legal rules, legal practices, and the way legal actors (such as judges and lawyers) play their roles impose inevitable consequences on the psychological well-being of those affected. Therapeutic jurisprudence calls for a study of these consequences with the tools of the behavioral sciences so that we can increase our understanding of law and how it is applied, and can reshape it to diminish its anti-therapeutic effects and maximize its therapeutic potential.

The field has grown enormously, and has emerged as a major force in mental health law and in law and psychology generally. It is now a major scholarly approach in areas across the legal spectrum including criminal, juvenile, family law, health and disability law, constitutional law, employment law, and tort law. TJ has generated approximately 45 books and 25 symposia issues in legal and interdisciplinary journals, as well as more than 900 articles by scholars in law, psychology, psychiatry, and philosophy in the U.S. and internationally. The field has been influential on judging and lawyering in the U.S. and in many countries throughout the world.

Origin of Therapeutic Jurisprudence

Therapeutic jurisprudence was founded in 1987 by Professor Bruce J. Winick of the University of Miami School of Law and Professor David B. Wexler of the University of Arizona College of Law and University of Puerto Rico School of Law. The University of Miami School of Law's Therapeutic Jurisprudence Center was founded to promote therapeutic jurisprudence research, scholarship, education, and practical applications.

The passing of the Center's Founding Director, Professor Bruce J. Winick, in August, 2010, was a great loss to the Law School community, the University of Miami, and to many near and far. A Memorial Service honoring professor Winick was held at the Lowe Art Museum on September 24, 2010. A webpage dedicated in memoriam to Professor Winick demonstrates the broad range of his professional and personal impact, and can be viewed here.

For Information

For questions or information about the TJ Center, please contact Sean Bettinger-Lopez at slopez@law.miami.edu.