Social Work Meetup TUESDAY Edition on Beginnings and Endings

Beginnings and endings of client meetings are a critical part of the relationship building process and help provide supportive closure to the end of the relationship when a case concludes. This intentionality is critical in our work but we do not often talk about it. This meetup will be an open discussion of what we say and how we introduce ourselves when meeting clients for the first time to develop mitigation, and how we promote closure and discuss the end of our working relationship together when the case concludes. Join this special Tuesday meetup!

Stephanne Cline Thornton is a West Virginia native who has worked in and around criminal defense and mitigation for more than 20 years in Georgia, Colorado, and West Virginia. She is currently the Clinical Director for the West Virginia Judicial and Lawyer Assistance Program, and owner of Transform Legal, a consultancy focused on mitigation, training, and sustainability. As a Licensed Independent Clinical Social Worker and Master Addiction Counselor, Stephanne focuses on proper assessment for and access to trauma and substance use disorder treatment to ensure the health and well-being of affected individuals. Stephanne is on the Trauma-Informed Care Network Speakers Bureau and uses that platform to call attention to the intersection of secondary traumatic stress and legal practice. She approaches her work with clients, lawyers, social workers, and mitigation specialists through a contextualized mitigation lens.