Hello Collaborative Section members,
This 2020-2021 bar year was the year no one expected, for obvious reasons. But the unexpected challenges also came with unlooked for benefits, at least in my own practice. This was the year many of us became technologically nimble. Who knew that our working vocabulary would be permanently altered by one word previously associated with imaginary superheroes, Zoom??
It was the year we had to become creative problem-solvers ourselves, before we could assist our clients to do the same. The forced re-evaluation of “I do it that way because this is what we do” has led many of us to make permanent changes in our office space, our interaction with clients, our methods of networking. For many professionals and clients, the collaborative process became more accessible when physical presence was no longer a requirement.
And now this bar year is almost at an end. It is time to choose next year’s section leaders. Are you interested? I can’t make any guarantees about what to expect, but I can assure you that you will not find a better collaborative team with whom to walk, and lead, into the unexpected.
Hoping 2021 brings expansion to your world!
Sincerely,
Laura Schlenker, Chair
Collaborative Law Section State Bar of Texas
Nominations are OPEN!
We are accepting nominations and applicants for the 2021-2022 Collaborative Law Section Council!
This is not the time to be shy! If you are interested in building your collaborative law practice, have a passion for making it the preferred method of dispute resolution in Texas, and are willing to contribute a few hours a month to your colleagues, then raise your hand! Please send your email of interest, or nomination of a colleague, to the CL Section Chair, Laura Schlenker. Please include a brief description of collaborative training and/or practice areas
CL/ADR Innovations Workgroup
The Collaborative Law Section is pleased to announce the creation of a new section workgroup as a section project. The group’s working name is: CL/ADR Innovations Workgroup.
The group’s working vision statement is:
Vision: Design enhancements to the collaborative law/alternative dispute resolution practice models to make them:
(1) more accessible to a broad range of civil law disputants (family and non-family and lower income groups); and
(2) more attractive free-market methods of conflict resolution when compared to civil litigation.
Save the Date! Valuable and Free CLE!
Our long-awaited Annual Program from 2020 has been scheduled as a live, interactive Zoom event for 10 a.m. – 12:30 p.m. CDT on July 16, followed by a very brief section meeting for elections.
We are pleased to finally welcome the creative legal team behind The Likeable Lawyer®, Brian Hammer and Jeffrey Stec. The program is entitled:
Creative Negotiating to Achieve More: How Expansive Negotiation and Lessons from Improvisation Will Better Achieve More of Everyone’s Needs in Negotiation
(2.5 hours MCLE credit, including one hour ethics)
This interactive presentation builds on the interest-based negotiation model, enhanced and deepened by unique elements developed by The Likeable Lawyer. Brian Hammer and Jeff Stec borrow from improvisational acting and their unique Expansive Negotiation model that will increase creative input into most any negotiation, while lowering stress, and creatively expanding the pie so that everyone gets more of what they really want.
This program will add to your collaborative skills, engage you with exercises to integrate the new material, and entertain, inspire and leave you with new tools to facilitate getting to more expansive solutions whenever you negotiate. Block out your calendar, and watch your email for registration information.
Section Website Update
Finally, we are delighted to announce that we are deep in the process of building a better website! Tim Crouch and The Crouch Group are creating a new, more functional and informative website that we plan to launch this summer.
We would value your feedback. What do you like, or dislike, about the existing website? How would you plan to utilize an improved section website? Are there any functions or types of information that you would particularly like to see included?
Please send your feedback and suggestions to our CL Section Secretary, Jill Lowe.