Trance on Trial

Therapists are increasingly called to court to testify as practitioners or expert witnesses. How does a non-legally trained hypnotherapist prepare for a court appearance? How does he or she handle direct and cross-examination? Written primarily for clinicians who practice hypnotherapy, Trance on Trial offers a comprehensive, authoritative evaluation of the use of hypnosis in the courts, as well as practical strategies for maximizing the legal rights of clients while minimizing the liabilities of practitioners. Illustrated with numerous case examples, enlivened by simulated direct and cross-examination exchanges, and extensively referenced to the legal and psychiatric literature, Trance on Trial is an invaluable resource.
 

Alan W. Scheflin, LL.M. is Professor of Law at Santa Clara University Law School. Author of two previous books with three others currently in preparation, Scheflin has also written a number of articles for professional journals and law reviews. He was invited to give testimony before the United States Congress and the California Senate Committee on the Judiciary, and appeared as an expert witness on mind and behavior control in Federal District Court.
Jerrold Lee Shapiro, Ph.D. is Associate Professor in the Graduate Division of Couseling Psychology and Education at Santa Clara University. Co-Director of OHANA Family Therapy Institute of San Jose and Los Altos, California, he also serves on the Clinical Faculty at Pacific Graduate School of Psychology in Menlo Park. He has authored four other books as well as numerous book chapters and journal articles.

I. INTRODUCTION. 1. The Legal Status of Hypnosis: An Overview. II. A CLINICAL CASE. 2. Jennifer: A Case Portrait. III. INVESTIGATIVE HYPNOSIS. 3. The Road to Admissibility 4. The Search for Safeguards. 5. The Rise and Fall of Inadmissibility. IV. HYPNOSIS AND MEMORY. 6. Defining Hypnosis. 7. The Nature of Memory and of Hypnotically Refreshed Recall. V. THE HYPNOTHERAPIST IN COURT. 8. Direct Examination. 9. Cross-Examination. 10. The Psychotherapist's Experience. VI. CONCLUDING REMARKS. 11. Conclusion.