Seeing Through the Pain: Unpacking Bias in Medicolegal Assessments

Subjective, variable, and deeply personal, pain is often misinterpreted by clinicians and misunderstood in legal proceedings – particularly when there is a genuine, yet often challenging, disconnect between objective evidence and the lived experience. When pain defies straightforward measurement, unconscious biases can influence how it's assessed, interpreted, and acted upon.

This event brings together leading medicolegal experts in pain medicine, neuropsychology, occupational therapy, and law to help legal professionals and insurers navigate the nuanced presentation of pain-related symptoms and recognise how bias can shape their interpretation and response.

Together, we'll explore how bias enters the assessment process, and how it can be identified, challenged, and mitigated in medicolegal practice.

• Insight into implicit pain bias in medicolegal assessments and expert opinion
• A multidisciplinary perspective on pain and functional presentation
• An understanding of how experts work to identify and mitigate bias
• Insights into real world case studies and the variation in pain presentation
• 3.5 CPD points

The conference will take place in person on Friday, 10 October 2025 commencing at 1:00pm with networking drinks to follow.

The conference will take place at the University of Queensland, 308 Queen Street Brisbane City. Remote access will also be available-

• Dr. Joseph Kluver – Specialist Pain Medicine Physician & General Practitioner Read More
• Debbie Anderson – Clinical Neuropsychologist Read More
• Mia Martin – Medicolegal Occupational Therapist Read More
• Laura Neil – Barrister Read More

• Katie Grice – Medicolegal Occupational Therapist and General Manager at MLEA Read More

If you’d prefer to attend via our online livestream, please click here to book your livestream ticket.

Host or Publisher MLEA Occupational Therapy