Create a Safer, More Effective Courtroom
Download the People-Centered Courtrooms Overview
Justice Shouldn’t Retraumatize
This quick-reference guide gives judicial professionals practical, trauma-informed tools to support emotional safety, de-escalation, and fairness in the courtroom.
Whether you preside over family, juvenile, civil, or criminal proceedings, this resource will help you make your courtroom a place where all people — regardless of their trauma histories — can be seen, heard, and treated with dignity.
What’s Inside the Overview:
Three Foundational Shifts
Prepare yourself before the bench, make safety explicit in the room, and narrate the process while watching for trauma responses
Micro-Practices You Can Start Today
Five low-barrier actions including opening with a safety statement, normalizing stress, and pausing when emotions rise
A Side-by-Side Outcomes Comparison
What changes when courtrooms are people-centered vs. when they're not