Sam van Meurs

Sam van Meurs is a clinical psychologist and family report writer who has worked for 15 years assessing families and individuals within The Children's Court, Family Court and Federal Circuit Court.

Sam's early career work included comprehensive family assessments for Child and Youth Protective Services in the ACT, yet has developed to encompass Mental Health Assessments and Single Expert Reports for the FCFCOA of late. From a research perspective Sam has a special interest in the interaction between different mental health and empathic abilities. Therapeutically he has worked across a range of contexts, including working with offenders, providing psychological first aid to first responders, and working within novel therapeutic contexts to assist trauma survivors in their recovery through complementary lifestyle interventions such as exercise in conjunction with evidence based trauma therapies. Recent interests for Sam include the psychobiological impact of trauma on developing children, and coercive control and Intimate Partner Violence. 

A member of both the Association of Family and Conciliatory Courts and Pacifica Congress, Sam demonstrates a commitment to remaining up to date with research and practice surrounding the appropriate assessment of children, parents, and families.