The founding of the Therapeutic Jurisprudence Program at William & Mary Law School is another example of the institution's commitment to establishing new and creative programs that combine teaching and research, with significant contributions to the public good. The program provides an opportunity for law students, lawyers and judges to examine the theoretical and practical ideas associated with an important emerging body of law.

The International Network on Therapeutic Jurisprudence (website opens in a new window) has been vital to the implementation of the Therapeutic Jurisprudence Program.  The steering committee of INTJ continues to provide expert guidance to the program.

Therapeutic Jurisprudence (TJ) is the study of the role of the law as a therapeutic agent. It places much needed attention on the law's impact on emotional life and psychological well-being. As we better understand that the law is a social force that often produces therapeutic or anti-therapeutic consequences, the study of TJ provides an exciting opportunity for our students and legal professionals to gain valuable insights into how the law actually affects people. Recognition that significant human stressors are attached to legal processes is fundamental to our program. Our program explores ways consistent with the principles of justice that the knowledge associated with TJ can help minimize emotional harm and meet the needs of individuals, families and the community.

The TJ program lets our students experience lawyering with a true ethic of care. We believe that by placing emphasis on "humanizing the law" our students will be better prepared to be capable advocates, patient counselors, and outstanding leaders. It is our objective to provide academic, interdisciplinary training, and technical assistance through the therapeutic jurisprudence lens to assist people in understanding the law and the justice system as part of a helping profession.

The Therapeutic Courts Project is a crucial part of the school's TJ program. The primary focus of the project is to study therapeutic, problem-solving courts and to share "lessons learned" and "best practices" with court professionals around the world. The Project intends to identify specific needs of therapeutic court professionals and address these needs through research, training, and technical assistance.

In the fall of 2005, the law school community formed the Therapeutic Jursidprudence Society, commonly known as the "TJ Society" (website opens in a new window).  This student organization's primary mission is to promote therapeutic jurisprudence in the law school, community and beyond.