Learning Lounge

📅 Monday 21 September 2026
🕐 1:00pm – 2:00pm
💻 Microsoft Teams

Speaker: Communicourt

Effective communication is fundamental to ensuring that everyone can participate fairly in legal proceedings. Join Communicourt for this informative Learning Lounge session exploring how communication specialists support vulnerable individuals throughout the justice system.

Communicourt works on behalf of HM Courts & Tribunals Service (HMCTS), providing intermediary services to individuals with communication differences or difficulties that may affect their ability to understand, engage with, or participate effectively in legal proceedings. Where appropriate, these services are available at no cost to legal representatives or their clients.

Topics covered:

• The role of a Communicourt intermediary

• Identifying clients who may benefit from communication support

• How intermediary services improve participation in legal proceedings

• When and how to make a referral

• The support available through HMCTS

• Audience Q&A

Ideal for:

Solicitors, barristers, legal executives, paralegals, trainee solicitors, court users, and anyone working with vulnerable clients or individuals who may require communication support within the justice system.

How do you stop someone else’s emotional response becoming your emotional response?

📅 Wednesday 7 October 2026
🕐 1:00pm – 2:00pm
💻 Microsoft Teams

Speaker: Christine Coates, Leadership & Development Coach and Managing Director, U Transition Ltd

Have you ever finished a difficult client call only to realise that, while the client has left the conversation, their emotion hasn't?

Legal professionals regularly work with people experiencing some of the most stressful and emotionally difficult periods of their lives. Supporting those clients is part of the job – but absorbing everything they are feeling doesn't have to be.

Join Christine Coates for this practical Learning Lounge session exploring one central question: How do you stop someone else's emotional response becoming your emotional response?

Christine will introduce some of the psychology behind emotionally charged conversations and why even experienced professionals can find themselves reacting, rescuing, becoming defensive or carrying an interaction with them afterwards.

Using concepts from Transactional Analysis and the Drama Triangle, the session will help participants recognise these patterns, stay grounded, respond rather than react, and remain supportive without taking responsibility for a client's emotions.

Topics covered:

• What happens to us under emotional pressure

• Why another person's anxiety, anger or frustration can trigger our own response

• An introduction to Transactional Analysis and staying in the 'Adult' state

• Recognising Parent, Adult and Child responses

• Understanding the Rescuer, Victim and Persecutor roles within the Drama Triangle

• Stepping out of unhelpful patterns during challenging interactions

• Practical techniques for pausing, regaining perspective and choosing how to respond

Ideal for:

Solicitors, lawyers, partners, associates, trainees and other client-facing legal professionals. The session will be particularly relevant to those regularly dealing with conflict, uncertainty or emotional distress, including professionals working in family law, litigation, employment and private client work, as well as leaders supporting colleagues with emotionally demanding client work.

The central message is simple:

Care about the client without carrying the client.

We look forward to welcoming you to Learning Lounge

Recognising the signs, understanding the impact and responding effectively

📅 Wednesday 14 October 2026
🕐 1:00pm – 2:00pm
💻 Microsoft Teams

Speaker: Jaime Richards, Development & Funding Lead, Coventry Haven Women’s Aid

Domestic abuse is far more complex than physical violence and can affect every aspect of a person’s life, including their safety, finances, housing, children, employment and ability to engage with legal processes.

Join Jaime Richards from Coventry Haven Women’s Aid for this important Learning Lounge session exploring the different forms domestic abuse can take, including coercive and controlling behaviour, psychological and emotional abuse, economic abuse, stalking and harassment.

The session will explore some of the barriers that can prevent women from disclosing abuse or accessing support, why leaving an abusive relationship does not necessarily mean the abuse has ended, and why it is important to recognise patterns of behaviour rather than viewing incidents in isolation.

With a particular focus on the legal community, Jaime will also consider how professionals can identify potential indicators that a client is being subjected to domestic abuse, how trauma can affect communication and engagement, and how the way a professional asks questions and responds to a disclosure can make a significant difference.

The session will also cover the specialist support available locally through Coventry Haven Women’s Aid and the importance of safe and appropriate signposting and referral.

Topics covered:

• Understanding domestic abuse beyond physical violence

• Coercive control and emotional, psychological and economic abuse

• Recognising patterns, indicators and potential disclosures

• Understanding barriers to leaving, accessing support and disclosing abuse

• Post-separation abuse and why risk can increase when a relationship ends

• How trauma can affect memory, communication, decision-making and engagement

• Using trauma-informed, non-judgemental language and responses

• Considerations for legal professionals supporting clients experiencing domestic abuse

• Safe signposting and referral to specialist domestic abuse services

• Audience Q&A

Ideal for:

Solicitors, barristers, legal executives, paralegals, trainees and other legal-sector professionals who may come into contact with clients experiencing domestic abuse.

While particularly relevant to those working in family and criminal law, domestic abuse can also arise in housing, immigration, employment, wills and probate, civil litigation and financial matters, making the session relevant across the wider legal community.

We look forward to welcoming you to Learning Lounge.