October Newsletter

Message from the President

It comes as no surprise that a membership highly trained in the collaborative process serves our clients and is our best marketing tool. Accordingly, since January 1, 2005, six (6) hours per year of collaborative-related training has been required to remain a member in good standing with the Institute. Recently, there have been several requests for CLI to clarify the list of programs that fulfill the training requirement for membership. While it has been a top priority of CLI to provide ongoing training to its members CLI never intended to limit fulfillment of the training requirement solely to those trainings provided by CLI. The Institute recognizes that there are numerous other trainings that serve to increase the collaborative skills of our members. Following is a partial list of programs that will count toward the 6 hours of required training for membership for 2005:

"The Collaborative Experience" (CLI training)
Video re-play of Chip Rose "The Craft of Collaborative Law" (CLI training)
Chip Rose Advanced Training (live) (CLI training)
Video re-play of Chip Rose Advanced Training (CLI training) (Nov. 18th)
Chip Rose break-out session at the 2005 Family Law Institute – 3 hours
Dec. 2, 2005 CLI Annual Meeting: Janet Pritchard presentation – 3 hours
2005 Divorce Camp
Mediation Training (Civil/Family)
2005 8th Annual ADR Institute
2005 IACP Conference
Collaborative Law trainings by other groups and/or in other states

If you are unsure whether a program you attended or plan to attend meets the training requirement for CLI, send a prospectus of the training and your request for clarification to: Linda Ojala (lmo4kgolaw@aol.com), Training Committee.

Membership renewal occurs in January 2006 when members will be asked to fill out a simple self-reporting affidavit of compliance with membership standards and pay annual dues. I hope the above list further simplifies this process for you and gives you an idea of the broad range of training that is available to you.

Enjoy your collaborative practice.

By Tonda Mattie, 2005 CLI President

Spend a day at the prestigious
Interlachen Country Club
6200 Interlachen Boulevard, Edina, MN

Collaborative Law Institute MN 2005 Annual Meeting

8:00-8:30am Registration/Continental Breakfast

8:30-Noon Morning Program

• Keynote speaker Justice Sandy Keith, on Living the Vision of Collaborative Practice—How Far Have We Come?
• Updates on the accomplishments of each CLI-MN committee during 2005

12:10-1:10pm Luncheon/Election of Board Members

1:10-4:30 Afternoon Program

• CLE Training with instructor, Janis Prichard, LLB. Janis practices exclusively in collaborative law and mediation. She has helped more than 150 clients resolve their divorces in a collaborative manner, and has trained more than 1,000 professionals in basic and advanced collaborative methods.

4:30-5:30pm 2005 New Member Welcome

Friday, December 2, 2005
Cost: $105 if registered by November 15th
$130 to register after November 15th

NEWS FROM THE FRONT . . . .

Australia Trainings

What a thrill it has been to participate in several collaborative trainings in Australia: 1) to see Collaborative law open up in an additional continent, and 2) to experience the excitement and enthusiasm of those taking the training. Most of us have experienced this feeling of opening up to new possibilities that Collaborative Practice brings, but it is especially apparent when a different culture is experiencing it anew.

I did a two-day training in Canberra, Australia, which is the Federal capitol. (Like our Washington D.C.) Twenty-eight lawyers took the training. When the second day was over, they were obviously ready to start collaborating!

A week later, Marion Korn from Toronto joined me in Sydney for another two-day training. Five of the participants were from the faculty of the Law School---so that bodes well for the spread of Collaborative Law in Australia.

My wife, Martha, came along on the trip and we had a great time. Naturally, the size of the country limited the amount we could see this time, but the openness and friendliness of the citizens was unlimited!

Divorce Camp

A number of us "collaborators" attended the Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers "Divorce Camp" over a long weekend at the end of September at Breezy Point. Traditionally this family lawyer retreat has been the domain of adversarial divorce lawyers learning to improve taking depositions, or interrogatories etc. But over the past 5-6 years many of the members of the Academy have become Collaborative Practitioners. The theme and tone of the retreat has changed as a result. This year the CLE courses were on "What Pushes Your Buttons or Hooks You Emotionally" and "Charting Your Life Line" Very practical and useful sessions. Additionally signs of positive change: 1) The Collaborative Law Institute was one of the sponsors of the retreat; and 2) the traditional original musical parody that takes place the last evening of the retreat featured a light-hearted spoof of collaborative law ("Koom-Ba-Ya")

By Stu Webb

Divorce Camp 2005: Another Successful Weekend

The American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers-Minnesota Chapter held Divorce Camp 2005 at Breezy Point Resort. The Collaborative Law Institute was a sponsor and at least two dozen members of the Collaborative Law Institute (attorneys, financial professionals, and mental health professionals) attended Divorce Camp 2005. This is the fifteenth year of the event and marks the sixth year of addressing issues related to professional development, rather than substantive issues.

Enmeshment and Disengagement

One of the two break-out topics focused on the dual problems of enmeshment and disengagement. Through pre and post-session surveys members indicated that they saw enmeshment as a problem and the ability to remain disengaged as a positive. As the sessions progressed attendees came to the realization that becoming too enmeshed or too disengaged were problematic. Presenters helped members identify triggers and hooks (or hookers and tricks as Karen Irvin let slip) for when they became enmeshed (abused client, difficult opposing counsel, adverse decision, etc.) and when they became disengaged (difficult client, difficult/unethical opposing counsel, difficult judge, poor payment history, etc.).

Lifelines

The other break-out session focused on quality of life issues. Members put together Lifelines—charts on which they tracked the ups and downs of their lives and careers. Attendees also identified a current challenge in their practice and were assigned to meet with another attendee in the room one-on-one where each presented their challenge. The attendees then switched and exchanged challenges and suggestions several more times. By the end of the session, each member had identified an action plan and timeframe for accomplishing the task. These ranged from reviewing receivables to developing a maternity leave plan to reviewing all firm policies and practices for efficiency.

Divorce Camp Players

On Saturday night, Divorce Camp concluded with a musical written and directed by CLI member Marty Swaden. The show was a parody of West Side story pitting litigation attorneys (Sharks) against collaborative attorneys (Dolphins).

The Divorce Camp 2006 will be held at Madden’s October.

By Tom Tuft, 2006 co-chair, Divorce Camp

Minnesota Member Spotlight
Mental Health Professional, George Lindall

This month’s spotlight is shining on George Lindall, a mental health professional with over 22 years of experience under his hat. George focuses his practice on recovery, marriage counseling, and life coaching, and has recently expanded into the area of personal coaching, both for professionals and those going through the divorce process. The roots of his profession started with 5-years expereince working in treatment centers. He now practices on his own, and thoroughly enjoys his work, naming it as his primary hobby in fact.

George and his wife, Alice, have been married for 15-years, and have two children—Stefan, 15, and Brietta, 13. George also has two older children. Anders, 27, and his wife Julie, live in Illinois. Anders heads up public relations for the largest labor union in Illinois. However, his true passion lies in his side-career as a music critic. He has written over 300 iTunes reviews, and frequently submits to City Pages. George’s daughter, Anna, is 23, lives in Boston, and works with disadvantaged girls, doing things such as teaching rock climbing and being a mentor.

Brietta enjoys her dad coaching her girl’s basketball team. George also coaches soccer and baseball. He is reported to be "very objective with the refs!" Stefan says his dad has a very "punning sense of humor," which is not always enjoyed by the children, but nevertheless, is reportedly still constant!

George and Alice have an enchanting past and strong relationship. They met through a dating service, and spent their first date strolling around Lake Nokomis. They now live near the Lake in South Minneapolis, and have the privilege of reliving their first date with daily walks. "It is a daily vacation," says George, and a very important part of the family’s life. When vacationing away from Lake Nokomis, the family hot spots are Chicago and the North Shore of Lake Superior.