One of the fastest growing emphasis in the field of social work is forensic social work. Forensic social work explores issues and interaction between social work and legalities. Its primary goal is to promote and understand the legal system in regards to child welfare, criminal justice and mental health. Forensic social workers research the assessment, classification and treatment of juvenile and adult offenders.
They also research mental health cases in the civil as well as criminal justice systems. Forensic social work seeks to promote the interaction of social work and the law. It educates legal personnel about social work and social workers about legal matters.
The social worker needs to be well verse in the language which the courts can relate. They must have a familiarity with the law and be able to make recommendations that can withstand rebuttals from the opposite side. If social workers are told to provide forensic service without this special training, will be at a major disadvantage.
Forensic social workers provide education and training to criminal justice personnel, law makers, law enforcement and more. They assess and make recommendations about the mental status of individuals. They evaluate criminal justice personnel and even act as expert witnesses in some cases.
Some of the other functions of forensic social work is program development, mediation, arbitration, and training. Forensic social work is a challenging and demanding career that seeks to bridge the gap between the law and the people. It fights for those who can’t fight for themselves because they don’t understand the legalities of their situation or because their are incapable of speaking due to mental issues or age.