Legal Work — Tatiana Duchak, JD, LCPC

The intersection of psychology, mental health, and the law.

As a clinician, I interface with the legal field in several ways:

Mitigation Specialist

I conduct mitigation investigations on criminal cases involving a variety of issues, including Miller resentencing, habeus petitions, juvenile transfers to adult court, and pre-trial sentencing. My clinical knowledge, skills, and experience helps me establish rapport with clients and collateral contacts and identify relevant mitigation themes. I am able to articulate the significance of an individual’s social history, exposure to trauma, family dynamics, and environmental influences, among other things.

Trauma Specialist & Consultant

I offer education and consultation to attorneys who want to better understand the breadth, depth, and nuance of their client’s psychological, emotional, social, and developmental needs and experiences. I provide overviews of mental health disorders and diagnoses, common manifestations of symptoms and courses of treatment, a discussion of relevant research, and other strategies to support a particular client based on their needs. I review the impact of trauma and how attorneys may take a trauma-informed approach to their client and the case, and frequently discuss topics such as domestic violence/intimate partner abuse, the cycle of abuse/control, coercive control, criminalized survivorship, the impact of domestic violence on children, the impact of trauma on childhood development and caregiver attachment, and the intersection of mental illness, trauma, and incarceration.

Often times attorneys, advocates, and other professionals will refer clients for individual therapy when they suspect they might benefit from additional care and support. I will never treat a client for whom I’m also providing consultation unless the client is explicitly informed of, and consents to, the nature of this relationship and any limits to confidentiality, and we agree that proceeding is in their overall best interest.

Pro Bono Work

I volunteer with the Illinois Prison Project as a pro bono attorney, assisting with clemency petitions for survivors of trauma, violence, and abuse who are incarcerated.