Teaching therapeutic jurisprudence: Ideas and resources for educators

In this post, we hear about a new resource created by Professor David Yamada to support the teaching of therapeutic jurisprudence in law programmes across the globe.

If therapeutic jurisprudence (TJ) is to enjoy greater influence in the realms of legal practice, the making of law and policy, and reform of legal institutions, then legal educators must expand its presence in the standard law school curriculum. Toward that end, I have published an article, “Teaching Therapeutic Jurisprudence” in the University of Baltimore Law Review, which provides guidance and suggests resources for those who are incorporating TJ into their teaching.

Part I considers ways in which TJ can be introduced into law school curricula, including dedicated courses and seminars, single-session overviews, and clinical and skills courses. This part is intended mainly for law faculty. Among other things, it includes a detailed discussion of my initial design and teaching of a Law and Psychology Lab, built around TJ principles and applications, which I launched in the spring of 2020 at Suffolk University Law School in Boston.

Part II is a bibliographical essay discussing resources that can be used as assigned and recommended reading in courses including some TJ component. Its listings and annotations of articles, papers, and books may be useful not only to legal educators, but also to faculty in related fields who are using TJ content in their courses.

I hope that “Teaching Therapeutic Jurisprudence” will be useful to anyone who wishes to include more content, discussion, and application of TJ in their relevant courses.

David Yamada is a Professor of Law at Suffolk University Law School in Boston, Massachusetts, USA. During 2017-19, he served as the founding board chairperson of the International Society for Therapeutic Jurisprudence (https://intltj.com).

This blog site hosts a range of resources for many different audiences, here

And the International Society of Therapeutic Jurisprudence maintains a searchable Bibliography that hosts a breadth of TJ literature including in different languages.