Tools for Managing Vicarious Trauma in Practice

Karen Muñoz | Dolan Law Firm PC

Karen Munoz is a lawyer and wellness advocate. As a managing partner at Dolan Law, a boutique trial law firm, she is dedicated to serving and representing clients who have suffered traumatic injuries and who have been victims of crime. Her work on cases has led to impactful changes in laws designed to better protect people. Working towards positive change through advocacy whenever possible is a tenet of her practice.

Wellness and mindfulness for lawyers and in the workplace is very important to Karen. She is working to earn her master’s in counseling psychology, and is a certified yoga teacher. Karen was a member of the Illinois Task Force on Lawyer Well-Being and has taught pro bono yoga for the Illinois Lawyers Assistance Program. She is vigorously engaged in teaching, writing, and providing workshops that promote lawyer well-being by serving on legal committees and providing wellness support to law firms and legal organizations. Since the start of her career, she has been a contributor on wellness topics for a variety of Law Bulletin publications. She is a firm believer that we can truly serve our client’s best-interests and fulfill our ethical obligations by being healthy and balanced individuals.

Lindsay Nathan | Ascend Justice

Lindsay Nathan has been an Attorney at Ascend Justice since June 2011. She is currently the Director of the Family Law Program at Ascend. Prior to this position, Lindsay worked as a Senior Family Law Attorney and a Staff Attorney in the Order of Protection walk-in clinic. At Ascend, Lindsay manages the family law team, which handles divorce and parentage matters, including representing victims of domestic violence and frequently handling cases involving Orders of Protections. In May 2010, Lindsay received her JD from the University of Notre Dame Law School. She received her BA from Illinois Wesleyan University.

I. What burnout, secondary and vicarious trauma is | 2:00pm – 2:20pm

II. How it can develop in legal practice | 2:20pm – 2:40pm

III. Individual and workplace strategies and pointers to develop vicarious resilience | 2:40pm – 3:00pm