Top Forensic Psychology Schools

Forensic Psychology and Law

Forensic psychology and law cross paths on a regular basis. Many forensic psychologists find work in the court system, and the work they do largely depends on the sector of the courts they are involved with. If you think you want to become a forensic psychologist in the future, you may want to understand the different job duties you may have in different areas of the judicial system. Listed below are some employment responsibilities you may come across based on the type of court you work in.

Family Courts

Family courts do not handle criminal cases, other than those involving child abuse, child neglect, failure to pay child support, or other matters along those lines. Forensic psychologists tackle many of the counseling and evaluation duties in this court system, as they have a unique background in psychology and criminal justice. Some of the duties you may come across in this court system include:

Assessing adoption readiness
Assessing grandparent visitation cases
Assessing potential child abuse cases
Assessing the termination of parental rights
Counseling with families after divorce
Developing family reunification plans
Mediating parental conflicts related to children
Overseeing therapeutic visitations
Training parents in communication

There are many other duties you may run across in this employment area, but that should give you an idea of some of the major responsibilities you will have in family court.

Criminal Courts

Criminal courts are the most notable courts in the judicial system. These courts involve long cases, juries, lawyers, witness, and everything else you may expect of the court system. Forensic psychologists most often speak as expert witnesses in these cases, but they do play some of the background roles for criminal courts as well. Here are just a few of the duties you may come across in a criminal court:

Analyzing juveniles accused of criminal acts
Analyzing sexual offenders
Assessing adults before a sentence
Assessing juveniles on probation
Assessing the credibility of child witnesses
Counseling adults and juveniles on probation
Counseling individuals awaiting trial
Counseling with victims of crimes
Evaluating competency and diminished capacity
Providing psychotherapy for sex offenders
Training violent offenders to control their anger

Forensic psychologists are the counselors and evaluators of the criminal court system, and they are some of the key individuals that make each judgment as fair as it can be.

Civil Courts

Civil courts are the most common courts in existence. Any judge show you may see on TV is going to be held in a civil court. Forensic psychologists may not play a huge role in televised judge shows, but you can still see forensic psychology and law meeting up in civil courts. Some duties of a forensic psychologist in this court system may include: