Happy May, Collaborative friends! It’s beyond hard to believe that summer is fast approaching. I feel like I just wrote my January letter to you. But here we are. I have a new challenge for you. You probably don’t realize this, but my time as the President of the Board of Trustees of Collaborative Divorce Texas is coming to an end as quickly as summer is approaching. So I’ve saved one of my best challenges for last. And not to alienate our extremely important and valuable Collaborative … [Read more...]
President’s Letter
You are part of an amazing community. Wait. Let me restate that. YOU are an amazing community. Last month, I asked you to join the CDT Board in donating one billable hour of your time, and you came through in flying colors. At the conclusion of the conference, this amazing community raised a total of just over $30,000 to help keep CDT operational and building our Collaborative footprint. The Board of Directors gives you our most heartfelt thank you for your gift. What’s that you say? What’s … [Read more...]
CDT President’s Letter
March has arrived along with the realization that it’s already March! As I write this, it is the second anniversary of the day the world the shut down due to the virus-that-shall-not-be-named. It’s amazing to think about how much our world has changed in such a short period of time – including our Collaborative world and the opportunities it has given us to change how we operate on a day to day basis. What’s a good example? How about the opportunity to work with other Collaborative professionals … [Read more...]
President’s Letter – February 2023
Happy February, Collaborative Friends. It’s the month of love. How much do you love that you have a better way to offer people who have made the difficult to decision to divorce? Well, it’s time to show that love and pitch in to build up our professional community! After all, the more professionals we have doing this work, the more potential clients who will find this amazing process. I have been challenging you since August with easy suggestions that require a minimal time investment to help … [Read more...]
President’s Letter – January 2023
Happy 2023! It’s a new year and for many, a time for new goals. For me, it’s a renewed commitment to prior goals – growing our Collaborative Divorce Texas membership and increasing awareness of this amazing process in the greater public. Will you join me and make this renewed commitment? Since I began my tenure as President of CDT in June, I have asked you to join me in completing monthly tasks that would help us to grow the organization. Many of those monthly tasks have been to lay the … [Read more...]
CDT President’s Letter – December 2022
The end of the year is here. I won’t say “finally here” because for me, I feel like we just got through January. I hope it has been a busy and prosperous year for you. And I hope part of that busy has been completing at least some of those monthly challenges I have been sending out to you since June. I’ve got one for you this month that allows you to sit at home in the comfort of your bunny slippers: Review your website identity: Do you present yourself as a Collaborative Professional or is … [Read more...]
CDT President’s Letter – November 2022
We say this every year – it’s hard to believe it’s November already! And yet, it’s here. We are all busy. Busy with clients who want to finish their cases before the end of the year. Busy with all things that come with the holiday season that we are almost knee-deep in. But the need to spread the word about the existence and benefits of Collaborative does not take a break during this time. My question for you is this – can you spare 30 minutes of your time in the next month to help grow … [Read more...]
CDT President’s Letter – October 2022
First, a big THANK YOU to all of you who are joining me in the monthly challenges to spread the good word about Collaborative and bring new member to Collaborative Divorce Texas. You met with lawyers unfamiliar with Collaborative. You invited non-members to our October Lunch-and-Learn. Now I have a new 30-day challenge for you: Take a Mental Health Professional Out for Coffee! One of the best ways we can make Collaborative the preferred method of divorce in Texas is by making sure that … [Read more...]
CDT President’s Letter – September 2022
FREE CLE/CE! That’s right. I have an offer to make you. It’s your next “30-day challenge” that I promised I would be sending each month as this year’s President of CDT. As a member of CDT, you know about our amazing Lunch and Learn Series with informative topics and experienced speakers. And you know that as a member of CDT, you get free CLE/CE for attending these hour sessions. So here’s the offer: We’re going to make it easy for you to spread the word and bring more professionals into the … [Read more...]
Practice Tip – How To Effectively Debrief A Collaborative Joint Meeting
As Collaborative professionals, we have talked the talk for many years. We have said we need to debrief after each of our Collaborative joint meetings to learn and become better Collaborative professionals. But how many of us walk that walk? How many debrief sessions have you been in where the professionals talked about what the clients did or didn’t do instead of what the professionals did or didn’t do? If we’re going to become better Collaborative professionals, we need to change that. We need … [Read more...]
CDT President’s Letter – August 2022
How is it August already? Many of us just attended the annual Advanced Family Law Conference, some of us skipped it and went on vacation, some of us dropped kids off at college, and others dropped theirs off in the carpool line. Time to work! Last month, I did my best to remind everyone about our amazing Collaborative village. And I shared that if we don’t all work together, our village is going to get smaller and eventually become extinct. So, what can YOU do to help keep this movement … [Read more...]
CDT President’s Letter – July 2022
Happy July to all of our Collaborative friends! PLEASE READ THIS LETTER! I hope I have grabbed and can keep your attention for just a few short moments. Some of you may not know this, but our CDT Executive Board rolls over to new officers each year in June. I am beginning my fifth year on the CDT Board of Trustees, and it is my honor to assume the position of Board President for this next year. I can only hope to fill a small part of the large shoes that have been left behind by our … [Read more...]
Annual CDT General Membership Meeting
On Friday, March 5, CDT will be holding its 3rd Annual General Membership Meeting in conjunction with the State Bar Collaborative Law Conference. Unlike the Conference which will be presented in a webinar-style format, the General Membership Meeting will be a live format meeting on Zoom from 12:00 to 1:00 p.m. It will be a great opportunity to connect virtually with Collaborative friends from around the state and hear what CDT has been doing for you in the last year. Since the start of this … [Read more...]
New CDT Membership Benefits
As Chair of the Membership Committee, I and our committee members are always considering ways to provide you with greater benefits for your membership with Collaborative Divorce Texas. With our enhanced social media campaign that was launched just this last year, we have more and more people coming to our organization’s website to learn about the benefits of a Collaborative Divorce and find Collaborative Divorce professionals to represent them in the process. If you don’t have your membership … [Read more...]
Why Be A Member of Collaborative Divorce Texas?
Your membership in Collaborative Divorce Texas is important. It is important to you. It is important to your clients. It is important to the greater legal community. And it takes pioneers like you to renew your membership each year and increase the benefit of this growing movement to all of us. Why It’s Important to You Not to sound self-aggrandizing, but Collaborative Divorce Texas has become a leader in our nation and around the world for the promotion of Collaborative Divorce when … [Read more...]
Meet New Board Member Rhonda Cleaves
Name: Rhonda Cleaves Date and Place of Birth: Houston. My husband likes to say that I was born before men landed on the moon (a whole 2 weeks). Family: A kind and generous husband, 2 very sports-oriented teenagers – a son and a daughter, and a loveable chocolate lab who doesn’t get nearly as much attention as she should. Education: B.A. from Stephen F. Austin State University, J.D. from University of Texas School of Law; graduate studies at Escuela Libre de Derecho in Mexico City Firm Name: … [Read more...]
Register Now! 2018 Collaborative Law Conference
With just over a week before the annual Collaborative Law Conference co-sponsored by Collaborative Divorce Texas and the State Bar of Texas, it’s not too late to register. (Register here.) Discounts are still available for members of Collaborative Divorce Texas and/or the Collaborative Law Section of the State Bar of Texas. In response to requests for substantive skill building presentations, this year’s Course Directors and Planning Committee have put together a program that will have … [Read more...]
Special Group Rate Savings for State Bar Collaborative Law Course
The Course Directors for this year’s Collaborative Law Conference want to provide as many enticements as possible for people to attend this year’s course. To that end, registrants have the ability to save an extra 10% on their registration costs if they register 5 or more people as a group. This 10% discount is in addition to any discounts you may receive for downloaded course materials, Early Bird Registration, or as a member of Collaborative Divorce Texas, the State Bar Collaborative Law … [Read more...]
