Therapeutic jurisprudence and atonement

At first this may seem a bit 'out there' but it makes a lot of sense. "'Law school teaches you about rules, arguments and logic -- but not the impact of the law on the emotional life or well-being of people,' says Wexler, a distinguished research professor in the James E. Rogers College of Law. 'That has been an underappreciated aspect of the law -- a dimension of the law that has been ignored.' But, through research, he found that 'you could look at the law as a dynamic social force with consequences and behavioral impacts.'" So far so good. And things have moved even further:
" 1. The theory began in mental health law, but has since moved into other areas, such as family practice and criminal law and, in fact, "across the legal spectrum," Wexler says.
2. In effect, therapeutic jurisprudence is now more interdisciplinary and presents the marriage between law and psychology as complementary, not "two disciplines in an adversarial posture." Also, other disciplines have become increasingly engaged, such as criminal justice, public health, social work and anthropology.
3. Therapeutic jurisprudence has moved from theory to practice, with much interest expressed by judges and lawyers.
4. The practice has taken off internationally in areas such as Australia, Canada, Israel and Pakistan.
5. Also, higher education institutions increasingly have begun offering courses on therapeutic jurisprudence, as well as legal clinics that offer training in the practice."
There's theology in there somewhere too: it resonates with some of the jurisprudential practices that seem to be in Levitical law and with the theme of relationality. But more interestingly in moving to a picture of law where relationship and human well-being are more to the fore, it undercuts the plausibility of some more formally forensic approaches to atonement, I suspect.

ScienceDaily: Legal Proceedings Can Be Therapeutic, Study Finds: