William Bernet, M.D.
Professor of Psychiatry
William.Bernet@Vanderbilt.edu
Dr. William Bernet has been a member of the faculty since 1992. He is the director of Vanderbilt Forensic Services, the program that applies psychiatric expertise to legal situations.
Education
M.D., Harvard Medical School, 1967
A.B., Holy Cross College, 1963
Postgraduate Training
Intern in Medicine-Neurology-Pediatrics at the Bronx Municipal Hospital Center, Bronx, N.Y., 1967-68
Resident in adult psychiatry at Massachusetts Mental Health Center, Boston, Mass., 1968-70
Fellow in child psychiatry at Massachusetts Mental Health Center, Boston, Mass., 1970-72
Areas of Clinical Expertise
Forensic psychiatrice valuations in both criminal cases and civil litigation regarding issues such as: insanity, competency to stand trial, personal injury, medical malpractice, child custody or parenting time disputes,and allegations of child sexual abuse
Research Interests
The differential diagnosis of allegations of abuse; estimating future damages after child sexual abuse; the evaluation of allegations of sexual abuse in the context of a child custody dispute; and testimony regarding behavioral genetics at murder trials.
Representative Publications
1. BernetW., Corwin D. (2006). An Evidence-Based Approach for Estimating Presentand Future Damages from Child Sexual Abuse. The Journal of the American Academy of Psychiatry and the Law 34:224-30.
2. Bernet W. (2002). Child Custody Evaluations. Child and Adolescent Psychiatric Clinics of North America 11:781-804.
3. Bernet W. (1997). Allegations of Abuse Created in a Single Interview. Journal of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry 36:966-970.
4. Bernet W. (1997). Practice Parameters for the Forensic Evaluation of Childrenand Adolescents Who May Have Been Physically or Sexually Abused. Journal of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry 36:423-442.
5. Bernet W. (1993). False Statements and the Differential Diagnosis of Abuse Allegations. Journal of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry 32:903-910.
