University of Georgia School of Law Professor Emma M. Hetherington presented “University-Based Law Clinics: A Mechanism to Promote Therapeutic Jurisprudence from the Classroom to the Courtroom” at the XXXIX International Congress on Law and Mental Health hosted by the Université du Québec à Montréal in Montréal during July.

Hetherington is a clinical associate professor and the director of the Wilbanks Child Endangerment and Sexual Exploitation (CEASE) Clinic at the University of Georgia School of Law. She is certified as a child welfare law specialist by the National Association of Counsel for Children, and she has represented hundreds of children in juvenile court dependency proceedings who have experienced child abuse and neglect, with a specialized focus on youth ages 14 and up, most of whom have been sexually abused or exploited. Hetherington has served as faculty in several national and statewide conferences on child welfare, such as the National Child Welfare, Juvenile and Family Law Conference. She has served as an expert for the Georgia General Assembly, providing testimony on proposed legislation directly affecting survivors of child sexual abuse and exploitation and has appeared in local, state and national media, including USA Today.