Resource Brief for Juvenile Defenders: What Juvenile Defenders Should Know about the DSM-5

This resource brief is intended to support juvenile defense advocacy by providing an overview of some of the latest Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM) revisions, as well as recommendations and implications for juvenile defense practice. The DSM is a classification manual for mental health professionals with itemized criteria for diagnosing disorders. Juvenile defenders who are knowledgeable about the DSM are better prepared to advocate for and against diagnoses of their youth clients. Defenders further enhance their advocacy when they insist that evaluators specifically identify the symptoms behind youth behaviors as well as the services and supports necessary to address those symptoms in school, at home, and in the community.