Thameside Collaborative Lawyers News
Thameside Collaborative Lawyers Present:
Lawyers and Family Consultants One Day Seminar
Interdisciplinary Collaborative Team –a Working Model
By Dr Susan GamachePh.D, Psychologist , MFT,Collaborative Divorce Vancouver BC, Canada. Collaborative Practitioner since 1999 and Trainer since 2001 And Richard Sharp, Family Lawyer, Mediator and Collaborative Practitioner, Sharp Family Law, Bath & Bristol
Date: Thursday, 4 March 2010
Time: to be confirmed
Venue: Richmond Adult Community College, Parkshot, Richmond, TW9 2RE
Monday 1 June 2009: Presentation by Martin Longhust and Georgina Vintin of V&L Consulting on Supporting Family Members Through the Process of Collaborative Divorce and Separation
Martin and Georgina spoke to Thameside Collaborative Lawyers to explain their Systemic approach to Family Therapy.
Each individual's and families' needs are different. The service, which Martin and Georgina see as dealing with short term, problem solving orientated issues, will provide the Clients with the understanding and "tools" to engage in the Collaborative Process effectively. The Clients and their family will benefit from improved family relations, learning new patterns of communication with maximized emotional wellbeing for all family members.
Thameside Collaborative Lawyers thank Martin and Georgina. It was an illuminating presentation and discussion.
Lawyers and Family Consultants working together in Collaborative Practice Workshop
By Dr Susan Gamache on Monday 2 March 2009
Thameside Collaborative Lawyers were fortunate to engage Dr Susan Gamache for a workshop focusing on how to engage ourselves as Family Collaborative Lawyers and our Clients in making the "Paradigm Shift", the integration of Family Consultants and improved understanding of the benefits of using Family Consultants for our Clients and Family Lawyers in the Collaborative Process.
Dr Susan Gamache is a Psychologist, Marriage and Family Therapist, Collaborative Practice Divorce Coach, Child Specialist, Mediator, Writer and Trainer working in private practice in Vancouver. Susan has been working in Collaborative Practice since 1999, providing training since 2001 and has many publications and papers.
The workshop was inspirational for the Collaborative Lawyers and Family Consultants attending. Thank you to Susan and all participants. We could really understand and see in the role plays, how the Family Consultant is an invaluable resource for Clients and Collaborative Lawyers alike.
Thursday 4 September 2008: Landman Mills Presentation to Thameside Collaborative Lawyers
Presentation by Bath Family Consultants, Chris Mills and Angus Landman of Landman Mills, to discuss Family Consultant roles in the Collaborative Process and working with different models.
Many thanks to Chris and Angus for explaining the single and dual model Family Consultants role outside and in the Legal Collaborative Four Way Meetings, providing us with a greater understanding and ability to inform our Clients.
Monday 11 August 2008 Training with Ruth Smallacombe: The Role of the Family Consultant
Training by Ruth Smallacombe on the relationship and communication dynamics, the role of Family Consultants and the value of Initial In take Meetings prior to Clients starting to work in the Collaborative Process.
Many thanks to Ruth for an informative and thought provoking training.
News from the Waterfront: Thameside Collaborative Lawyers 5 May 2008
Collaborative Conference in Cork
Four of our POD have just returned from the 2nd European Collaborative Conference in Cork Ireland organised by the Association of Collaborative Practitioners in Ireland over the weekend 1-4 May 2008. This was an excellent event with the main conference opening with a welcoming and supportive address by the President of Ireland Mary McAleese no less.
The conference continued with a depth and breadth of topics which aptly met the developmental and training needs of the collaborative practitioner, lawyers, family coaches and financial neutrals alike whether just beginning or further on the journey. Highlights for us were: Susan Miller, Richard Sharpe and Karen Ritchie and Liz Ferris in “Pennies from Heaven” a guided tour with role plays on how to integrate and put to best use for the couple the financial neutral in the collaborative process; Linda Solomon from Vancouver on “Where is the neutral voice? An overview of the use of family coaches again emphasising the need for getting on board multi-disciplines in this process; and what will remain most memorable for me was Pauline Tesler at her most effervescent and evangelical self on “Making the Collaborative practice irresistible to your clients: informed choice in the buy in phase of a collaborative case”. If ever there was an answer to “why am I getting no collaborative clients?” this is it…. and if you want collaborative cases Pauline tells us how to get them with every new client. If I had to recommend one piece of teaching from this so relevant conference this would be it.
The message we came away with was we need to rethink and then turn on to a much broader road than we have thus far. We need to stand back to take in what clients need to make this process work for them if they want it. Integrated multi-disciplinary practice should be the norm, not the exception. This is the way forward if we are ever to offer our clients something of lasting value and even dare I say a positive life changing experience. A family coach/psychotherapist from Bath asked the obvious but telling question “how can we as lawyers possibly be expected to carry all the process without the help of other professionals?” The burden of lawyer driven collaborative practice is too great for us to carry, clients miss out, they get “shadow of the law settlements” not deep peace resolutions and as for a positive life changing event it is more like business as usual. Cork conference was a wake up call and if we do not respond appropriately then I believe real collaborative practice will wither on the vine.
We have returned from the conference with plans to organise multi-disciplinary training to include lawyers, family coaches and financial neutrals. We will circulate to all when the training has been set up. Similar to the last training we organised led by Liz Ferris where we had a day on “How to Market your collaborative practice” this will be at Kingston University, so watch this space.
As a POD we had a collaborative launch and an information evening about the collaborative approach last year on 10 October at the Salon in Twickenham. We we presented to a packed audience of lawyers/IFAs/counsellors/ CAFCASS Officers/accountants/mediators a birds eye view of this process and how this compared and contrasted with mediation and the court process. The evening was a stunning success and the only disappointment was that not one member of our judiciary from our local county courts was able to attend.
Whilst we are just 13 in number we have all had collaborative cases ranging from some who have had 2 or 3 cases to some of us who have had 20 plus. We have had altogether 85-90 completed collaborative cases. We are completely committed to getting collaborative practice placed firmly on the map and as a process that clients seek out as first choice for them.
Looking back to Cork the closing address given by Minister of Justice referred to the plans of the collaborative practitioners in Ireland to have a bill passed as law that provides collaborative practice as well as mediation as the first, proper and appropriate route for divorcing and separating couples rather than court. We have some way to go here in the UK before that can be anything more than a dream. But let’s rise to the challenge that our Irish collaborative colleagues have presented to us and let’s all of us work collaboratively together to make that dream a reality.
www.thamesidecollablaw.co.uk
For teaching cds or download from Cork conference please see www.vwtapes.com.
Anne-Lise Wall
May 2008
Thameside Collaborative Lawyers Presentation on Wednesday 10th October 2007, Thameside Collaborative Lawyers hosted a presentation on Collaborative Family Law Practice at The Salon, York House, Twickenham.
Speakers: Therese Nichols, Anne-Lise Wall and Peter Reynolds.
Guest Speaker: Ruth Smallacombe, Family Consultant and Mediator at Family Law in Partnership.
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