The Michael Newton Institute: History, Training, and Legacy

The Michael Newton Institute (MNI), formerly known as The Newton Institute (TNI), is a nonprofit organization dedicated to training and certifying practitioners in Life Between Lives (LBL) hypnotherapy — the technique pioneered by Dr. Michael Newton. Founded in 2002, the institute represents the only officially endorsed training body for Newton’s LBL methodology worldwide.

History

Dr. Michael Newton founded the organization on June 19, 2002, in Grass Valley, California, initially under the name Society for Spiritual Regression (SSR). The motivation was straightforward: after decades of private practice and thousands of LBL sessions, Newton recognized that his methodology needed to survive beyond his own career.

In 2005, at the urging of his advisory group, the organization was renamed The Newton Institute — a decision Newton himself reluctantly accepted. That same year, Paul Aurand took over as General Manager and later became President, as Newton stepped back from daily operations due to health concerns.

Following Newton’s death on September 22, 2016, the institute continued without interruption. In 2020, the organization rebranded to the Michael Newton Institute (MNI) to honor its founder’s legacy.

Mission and Activities

The MNI operates as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization (EIN: 20-3518700), run entirely by approximately 60 volunteers. Its primary activities include:

LBL Facilitator Training and Certification — the core mission, training hypnotherapists in Newton’s LBL technique

Research — collecting and analyzing data from LBL sessions conducted by certified facilitators worldwide

Publications — including the quarterly journal Stories of the Afterlife

Global Practitioner Directory — connecting the public with certified LBL facilitators

LBL Training and Certification

Becoming a certified LBL facilitator through the MNI requires a structured pathway:

Prerequisites

Minimum 200 hours of formal hypnotherapy education, including age regression, trauma release, and therapeutic intervention techniques

Past Life Regression (PLR) training and documented experience — a minimum of 40 PLR sessions conducted

Required reading: Journey of Souls (1994), Destiny of Souls (2000), and Life Between Lives: Hypnotherapy for Spiritual Regression (2004)

Training Process

As of 2024, the MNI restructured its training into the «LBL & Beyond» program — a 10-month immersion that includes three training events and personal coaching from experienced facilitators. Previously, certification involved a 16-day intensive course. After completing the training, candidates must practice under supervision and submit case studies to achieve full certification.

Global Reach

The institute has trained over 200 certified LBL facilitators operating in more than 40 countries and working in over 25 languages. Collectively, these facilitators have recorded more than 55,000 LBL sessions — making the MNI the largest repository of documented Life Between Lives experiences in the world.

Leadership

The MNI is governed by an Advisory Council of experienced facilitators and volunteers. As of 2025, the institute is led by Executive Director Diana Paque, supported by council members from the United States, Australia, Spain, Malaysia, Canada, Croatia, Dubai, and Mexico. The organization also confers the Peggy Newton Award — named after Michael Newton‘s wife — to recognize outstanding volunteer contributions.

Connection to Michael Newton‘s Books

The institute’s training is built directly upon the research and methodology documented in Newton’s published works:

Book	Year	Significance
Journey of Souls	1994	First publication presenting case studies from 29 subjects describing the afterlife — the foundational text of LBL research
Destiny of Souls	2000	Expanded research with 67 cases; won «Most Outstanding Metaphysical Book» at the 2001 Book Exposition of America
Life Between Lives: Hypnotherapy for Spiritual Regression	2004	The practitioner manual — required reading for all LBL facilitator candidates
Memories of the Afterlife (editor)	2009	Anthology of case studies from TNI-trained facilitators, demonstrating the methodology’s reproducibility
Wisdom of Souls	2020	Posthumous publication continuing Newton’s research tradition

Dr. Michael Newton (1931–2016)

Michael Duff Newton was born on December 9, 1931. He held a doctorate in Counselling Psychology and was a certified Master Hypnotherapist and member of the American Counselling Association. Newton worked as a faculty member at higher education institutions in Los Angeles, maintained a private practice, and served as a corporate consultant and behavioral counselor.

His pioneering discovery came in the late 1960s when, during a standard hypnotherapy session, a client unexpectedly began describing experiences between incarnations. Over the following 35 years, Newton refined his technique and documented approximately 7,000 cases, establishing Life Between Lives hypnotherapy as a distinct field of practice.