While Yvonne will certainly clarify the intent and the procedure, I see it
as a serious expression of the concept I advocate in practice group
development workshops like the one I was privileged to present as part of a
longer program in St. Louis : that perpetual membership in the practice
group ought not be a right--membership should be renewed annually by
application, at which time members must affirm to the group's satisfaction
that they are meeting the group's annual participation/training
requirements and are practicing in accord with the group's standards. This
kind of approach makes a serious commitment to presenting a coherent and
high quality collaborative service delivery model in the community.
It deals with a problem many practice groups struggle with as a consequence
of initially trying to build as large a membership as possible in the
community: some or even many members who don't participate in the practice
group, don't engage in professional development trainings, don't learn to
collaborate effectively, but who remain on the group's website because they
see paying the dues as a cheap way of grabbing market share. These people
undermine a practice community in many ways, among them presenting strange
ideas about CP to clients, and even badmouthing CP as something that
doesn't work--because it doesn't work when they are doing it.
*Pauline H. Tesler*
* Law Offices of Tesler & Sandmann *
* Mailing Address: 38 Miller Avenue, Number 128, Mill Valley, California
94941*
*(415) 383-5600 <%28415%29%20383-5600> *
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On Mon, Jan 26, 2015 at 9:05 AM, Laura Boedges lboedges@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
[CollabLaw] <CollabLaw@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:
Good morning,
Please clarify. The text you sent says that the board may 'fail' to
renew.... Is this the correct word or is it legalese that we lay people find
confusing?
Happy Monday! Thanks!
Laura
Laura Boedges, RICP(R), CDFA(tm)
Financial Consultant
Rogers & Company, a Wealth Management Firm, Inc.
Three Cityplace Drive, Ste 550
St. Louis, Missouri 63141
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*From:* CollabLaw@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx [mailto:CollabLaw@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx]
*Sent:* Monday, January 26, 2015 10:26 AM
*To:* CollabLaw@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
*Subject:* RE: [CollabLaw] Practice group policies for
"non-collaborative" members
Dear Colleagues,
In response to Pauline's first question, The Collaborative Family Law
Association (CFLA) Bylaws state in part:
Termination of Membership. The Board of Directors may, by affirmative vote
of two-thirds (2/3) of all the members of the Board, fail to renew
membership, suspend, or expel a member of any class for failure to comply
with participation requirements, acts inconsistent with 8
membership, failure to pay dues or assessments, or for such other reasons
as may be determined by the Board of Directors, in its discretion.
*******
We have a different set of membership requirements for each role -
attorney, coach, child specialist, and financial neutral. They are fairly
lengthy. I will need more time to respond to Pauline's second question.
Yvonne
Yvonne Homeyer
Attorney & Mediator
Law Office of Yvonne Homeyer
225 South Meramec Ave., Suite 821
Saint Louis (Clayton), MO 63105
(314) 863-3321 Telephone
Yvonne@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
www.StLouisFamilyLaw.com
*From:* CollabLaw@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx [mailto:CollabLaw@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
<CollabLaw@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]
*Sent:* Friday, January 23, 2015 4:00 PM
*To:* collablaw
*Subject:* Re: [CollabLaw] Practice group policies for
"non-collaborative" members
Yvonne, I'm delighted to hear that your practice group did decide to adopt
and is having success with the recommendation of annual membership
applications and of using annual "re-up" requirements to address specific
needs of the practice community. I recall a vigorous and productive
conversation during the "Master Class" in St. Louis several years ago about
how your group could deal with members who don't take the time to learn
best practices and who as a result work contrary to the interests of the
clients and the practice community. The way your group is encouraging
member development while not tolerating poor quality sounds exemplary.
Would you share the portion of your by-laws that gives the Board this
authority over membership? It sounds like a very useful approach. And
would you share an example of current membership requirements? It sounds
to me as if your practice group has really done a fine job of using carrots
and sticks to ensure a committed and very competent roster of members.
Best, Pauline
*Pauline H. Tesler*
*Law Offices of Tesler & Sandmann *
*Mailing Address: 38 Miller Avenue, Number 128, Mill Valley, California
94941*
*(415) 383-5600 <%28415%29%20383-5600>*
Law Firm Website <http://www.lawtsf.com>
Integrative Law Institute ("ILI")Website
<http://www.commonweal.org/program/integrative-law-institute/>
Join ILI Mailing List <http://tinyurl.com/phtesler>
<https://www.facebook.com/pages/Integrative-Law-Institute-at-Commonweal/391998510848084>
<http://www.linkedin.com/groups?gid=4546071&mostPopular=&trk=tyah>
<https://twitter.com/Integrative_Law>
<http://integrativelawinstitute.org/>
<http://tinyurl.com/phtesler>
Profiles:
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On Fri, Jan 23, 2015 at 1:29 PM, 'Yvonne Homeyer'
yvonne@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx [CollabLaw] <CollabLaw@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:
The St. Louis practice group, Collaborative Family Law Association (CFLA),
has annual membership. Each year, all members submit a renewal application.
It doesn't address the behavior issues you ask about in your email, but by
having all memberships expire on 6/30 every year, and all members having to
reapply ever year, we can control membership one year at a time. Our
practice group has time limits for associate members to complete all
trainings, time limits for all members to complete cross-trainings,
attendance/participation requirements, and other membership requirements.
Compliance is tracked annually.
We don't have a formal process for addressing the types of concerns you
raise but our Bylaws give the Board of Directors ultimate authority over
membership. A serious violation, such as ignoring the withdrawal provision,
would probably end up in front of the Board for action.
Yvonne Homeyer
Attorney & Mediator
Law Office of Yvonne Homeyer
225 South Meramec Ave., Suite 821
Saint Louis (Clayton), MO 63105
(314) 863-3321 Telephone
Yvonne@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
www.StLouisFamilyLaw.com
*From:* CollabLaw@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx [mailto:CollabLaw@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx]
*Sent:* Friday, January 23, 2015 10:26 AM
*To:* CollabLaw@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
*Subject:* [CollabLaw] Practice group policies for "non-collaborative"
members
Greetings,
As Virginia has not adopted the Uniform Collaborative Law Rules/Act, my
local practice group is wondering if any similarly situated groups have
state or local policies or procedures for suspending/terminating members
who consistently fail to act in accordance with the generally accepted
collaborative rules while participating in collaborative divorce cases
(e.g., refusing to keep any communications between group members from
clients, refusing to use a coach in any cases, verbally attacking the
opposing party, etc.)
Thank you in advance for any assistance you might provide.