Restorative Justice Based Attorney Will Conduct Workshop at International Restorative Justice Conference

St. Paul, MN, August 02, 2018 --(PR.com)-- What happens to people when they have a legal problem and are exposed to the court system? Do lawyers help them to heal or do they make things worse? Should lawyers help clients have their needs met? Should they encourage wide participation in the processes to resolve legal conflicts? Attorney Brenda Waugh will discuss some of these questions as she shares her experiences in developing a way to practice law that brings the values and principles of restorative justice to the practice, at an upcoming conference in St. Paul, Minnesota. Ms. Waugh has worked as an attorney for over thirty years. During that time, she found that the conventional practice of law often left parties unhappy and with unmet needs. After attending graduate school at the Eastern Mennonite University Center for Justice and Peace, she began to change the way that she practice law so that the practice is more restorative. Most of the material for the workshop has been developed through her work in progress: Outcome Blind: Creating a Practice of Law Based on Restorative Justice. She describes the development of the practice. "We lawyers can be so involved with how the legal case will end, that we miss how the parties to the case are right now. I’m putting forth a theory to practice law where I don’t spend my time developing a theory of the case, researching precedent for rights or looking at sentencing guidelines. Instead, I stop and look at who is sitting in front of me. How has their experience impacted them? What are they afraid of? Who are their relationships with? What can I do today to help them heal? I believe that by working to blind our selves from the outcome and bringing ourselves into the present and in tune with what’s happening with our clients, we will create a healing outcome. We can become the restorative lawyer." For more information about the conference visit https://irpcminnesota.com/ For more information about Brenda visit brendawaugh.com