Law & Ethics: With Ben Caldwell

Law & Ethics: Tough Calls, Moral Dilemmas, Technology, and More with Ben Caldwell

The day will begin at 8:30 am with registration and networking, and the presentation will begin at 9:00am

Workshop description:

Our morals and values inevitably influence our work. When we have clear legal and ethical standards to guide us, we defer to those standards. But often, when faced with difficult decisions, our standards offer conflicting guidance, or none at all. This can confuse clients, who wonder whether their therapist will truly understand or support their choices.  Through the use of case examples, this workshop will show how our individual morals and values influence therapy work even when we seek to appear neutral; how to identify your own morals and values relevant to your practice; and why owning those values matters.

Workshop goals:

Goals for this workshop include (1) Assisting therapists in understanding the role that their own morals and values play in clinical and ethical decision-making; (2) Encouraging therapists to think critically about that role and its implications for therapy; (3) Informing therapists about recent developments in court cases and ethical standards related to the personal values of the therapist; and (4) Encouraging therapists toward transparency with clients about the therapist’s values, in accordance with ethical standards and the therapist’s theoretical orientation.

Workshop objectives:

At the conclusion of the workshop, participants will be able to:

• Identify at least two personal morals and values most relevant to their psychotherapy practice
• Differentiate between a personal opinion, a clinical opinion, advice-giving, and imposing personal values
• Construct a framework for clinical and ethical decision-making that integrates personal morals and values in a manner that is within professional ethical boundaries and appropriate to their clientele
• Identify three common frameworks for making value-based decisions
• Identify at least two implications from court cases involving mental health students’ moral decision making.

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Speaker bio:

Benjamin Caldwell is the author of five books, including Basics of California Law for LMFTs, LPCCs, and LCSWs, and Saving Psychotherapy. He serves as adjunct faculty for California State University Northridge. In his role as Chair of the Legislative and Advocacy Committee for the California Division of AAMFT, he was directly involved in California’s first-in-the-nation ban on reparative therapy for minors, and drove the change in title from “intern” to “associate” for prelicensed MFTs and PCCs. For his advocacy work, he was awarded the AAMFT Division Contribution Award in 2013. He maintains a private practice in Los Angeles, specializing in working with couples.

Course meets the qualifications for 6 hours of continuing education credit for LMFT's , LPCCs, and/or LCSW's as required by the California Board of Behavioral Sciences and counts toward the required Law & Ethics requirement.  CAMFT-CSJV Chapter is approved by CAMFT as a Continuing Education Provider (CEP #62276)

Refund Policy: Fees for chapter events are nonrefundable except in the case the event is cancelled or rescheduled.

Facilities are accessible to persons with disabilities. If you have a special need and plan to attend the workshop, please contact Laura Slagle, at (559) 530-2822 or laura4mft@gmail.com. Please allow as much advance notice as is possible to ensure we have ample opportunity to meet your needs.