The Book is Now Available: Acknowledgements and Contributors

Today the book is available on line. The publication of Lawyers as Peacemakers, Practicing Holistic, Problem-Solving Law, inspires me to share that it takes a village to write such a book. Below are the contributors and the acknowledgements from the book. Make sure to click through to "Read More" for the complete list.

Acknowledgements

With deep thanks to my collaborators and contributors:
Michael Matthews, my business partner, dear friend, and wonderful
and wise teacher, who constantly listens to me and holds space better than anyone I’ve ever known.

Editor and friend Sheila Boyce, for her willingness to step on my toes when it was called for, and ABA Editor Erin Nevius, for actually liking what I had to say.

Karen Werve Grant and Michael Grant, great writers and friends, who stepped up to work on the profile vignettes.

Eileen Dunn, Jane Faulkner, and Jill Dahlquist, who helped take care of the parts of me that are not my mind.

Elizabeth Roach, who balanced a new baby, a job, and researching the resources.

Kathryn Carter, who balanced taking care of her new grandbaby and
researching the resources.

Lockey White, who balanced motherhood, looking for a job, and
researching the resources.

Amanda Hibler, who saved us lawyers from the perils of
researching law reviews.

Marni Pilafian, who volunteered to share research she’d collected over many years of hard work, then found herself editing more than 50 pages of resources at 2 a.m.—thanks for your willingness to take on the impossible.

Donna Boris, who looked for a job and balanced her new role as a stepparent to express her commitment to healing in the law.

David Shearon, for the Foreword and many conversations that set the context of the book.

Thanks to Leslie Rawls, Kali S. Tara, Jeff Brown, Irene Leonard, Stewart Levine, Melissa Cole Essig, Annabelle Berrios, Dolly Garlo, Michael King, Susan Daicoff, Pat Sullivan, Jill Breslau, Gretchen Duhaime, Lorenn Walker, Theresa Beran Kulat, Debra Bruce, Janet Smith Warfield, Irene Leonard, Stefani Quane, Alexis Martin Neely, Kevin Houchin, Kay Pranis, Kathleen Clark, Gretchen Rubin, Jennifer Foster, Gary Harper, Carl Michael Rossi, Doris Tennant, Cheryl Stephens, Jennie Winter, Mike Zeytoonian, Scott Rogers, Moira McCaskill, the Center for Understanding in Law,
Forrest (Woody) Mosten, Sheila Boyce, Donna Boris, Kevin Houchin, Robert Hall, Mila Tecala, Azim Khamisa, Aba Gayle, John Lande, David Hoffman, Maureen McCarthy and Zelle Nelson, University of Kansas School of Social Welfare Strengths Institute, Andrea Schneider, Michael Hunter Schwartz, Julie Sandine, Jane Faulkner,

To Dolly Garlo and Robert Keeley who provided a warm and comfortable place to spend winters and our other hosts and hostesses in our twenty-seven state tour, who all exemplified hospitality; our donors and supporters on the tour; and the over 100 amazing lawyers who allowed us to interview them.

My parents, who are always there in any way they can be, even when our views are very different, and my kids, who first gave me the reason to transform the world.

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About the Contributors

Annabelle Berrios, a graduate of Boston College Law School, has 13 years of experience in the legal field. She has trained in Sivananda Yoga and Structural and Ayurvedic Yoga Therapy and is fascinated by the service of yoga as a pain management tool. Her website is www.miamiyogatherapy.com.

Jill Breslau J.D., M.A., is a family law practitioner who took a lengthy sabbatical from the practice of law to earn a degree in Counseling Psychology.  The suffering of so many individuals in the legal system, both clients and attorneys, fueled her interest in what the legal profession refers to as "work-life balance" or "stress management." Neuroscience, as well as mindfulness and other coping skills, are rich resources which help her educate lawyers and clients alike.

Sheila Boyce was a legal services lawyer for many years. For the past several years, she has put to work her degree in gerontology, experience and interest in elder law and service, by being the caretaker for her own elderly parents. A member of the Georgia bar, she lives in Asheville, NC. Sheila was also an editor of this book. Her emails were so passionate and insightful that they became part of the book.

Debra Bruce (www.lawyer-coach.com) practiced law for 18 years before becoming a professionally trained Executive Coach for lawyers. She is Vice Chair of the Law Practice Management Committee of the State Bar of Texas and the co-founder and past leader of Houston Coaches, the Houston Chapter of the International Coach Federation.

Kathleen Clark, PhD, practices law in California and is the founder and chief executive officer of ServantLawyership, a legal and health care consulting firm, based on her belief that the practice of law promotes both healing and service. In particular, the focus of her work is speaking, writing, and serving all parties involved in medical error situations through the collaborative law process.

Susan Daicoff is a Professor of Law at Florida Coastal School of Law in Jacksonville, Florida. She teaches contracts, professional responsibility, and a course on law as a healing profession. Since 1991, she has been researching and writing in the areas of the psychology of lawyers, lawyer personality, lawyer distress and dissatisfaction, professionalism, and ethical decision making by lawyers. Her book, Lawyer, Know Thyself, synthesized forty years of empirical research on lawyers’ personality traits and related these findings to professionalism and lawyer well being. Her current research interests focus on “a comprehensive law movement” she perceives in the profession, which seeks a better way to resolve legal matters. She received her J.D. with honors from the University of Florida, her LL.M. in tax from New York University, and her M.S. in clinical psychology from the University of Central Florida. In addition to her note-worthy professional career, Susan is a singer, song-writer.

Gretchen Duhaime spent ten years in Corporate America in one unhappy workplace after another. Her desire to create change and harmony in work and life led her to law school, where she decided to focus her efforts on bringing wellness to the legal community. She graduated from Suffolk University Law School in 2010 and is a certified Dream Teacher and Reiki Master. Her web site is http://www.practicingonpurpose.com/

The Rev. Eileen Epperson is a Presbyterian minister and has been a college, hospital and hospice chaplain as well as a pastor in six churches. Eileen has been active in interfaith dialogue for over 35 years. She gave programs at both the 1993 and 1999 Parliaments of the World's Religions in Chicago and Cape Town, South Africa. She has a private practice in spiritual and life coaching with a specialty in forgiveness issues. She created The Forgiveness Process® and works with individuals, also leading forgiveness workshops in northwest Connecticut, Florida and New York State. www.let-resentments-go.com

Melissa Cole Essig is a writer living in Asheville, North Carolina. Her essay in the text and others about her never-ending search for mindfulness in motherhood also appear on her website, http://www.YogaMamaMe.com.

Jennifer Foster administers the Mountain Area Volunteer Lawyer Pro Bono Program through Pisgah Legal Services in Asheville, North Carolina where she has merged concepts of holistic law and attorney well-being into the pro bono culture of Western North Carolina. A 1995 graduate of The University of North Carolina School of Law, Jennifer has served as a federal judicial law clerk, an appellate public defender, a motions and appellate research and writing specialist, an expert in criminal and immigration consequences and post-conviction relief for immigrants, and private holistic attorney. Jennifer also enjoys playing and writing music, dancing, meditation practice and yoga.

Dolly M. Garlo, RN, JD, PCC, is a coach, consultant, and trainer. Visit her website at www.allthrive.com and http://creatinglegacynetwork.com.

Michael Grant is a journalist, author and educator living in La Mesa, CA. He was a prize-winning columnist and essayist for The San Diego Union for 20 years and has taught college journalism and media communications since 1990. He and his wife, Karen Werve Grant, who is a lawyer, operate The Write Outsource, a professional writing resource for lawyers and other professional services firms, at www.writeoutsource.com. The latest of his several books is "Warbirds – How They Played the Game."

Gary Harper has trained thousands in conflict resolution. His students include mediators, lawyers, and police officers; counselors, diamond miners and film crews. In 2004, he authored The Joy of Conflict Resolution – acclaimed for its accessibility, humor and practicality. His unique blend of experience as a personal injury lawyer, general manager, insurance regulator and retail store owner, shaped his understanding of conflict and his appreciation for effective communication. See http:www.joyofconflict.com for more information.

Harvey Hyman practiced plaintiff's personal injury law for 21 years in northern California. He has begun a new career as writer, speaker and coach for lawyers wanting to learn how to decrease stress and improve their health, career satisfaction and personal happiness.

Azim N. Khamisa lost his only son, Tariq, to a senseless gang-related murder. Azim is a rare individual who not only speaks of powerful and life-changing concepts, but also walks his talk. His story and website can be found at AzimKhamisa.com or TKF.org.

Theresa Beran Kulat is a collaborative lawyer practicing in Illinois. Her work combines more than 20 years of legal training and experience with more than 30 years of personal and spiritual growth work. Visit her website at IntegralFamilyLaw.com.

Irene Leonard, a lawyer for 25 years who remembers the days of the one-line bill, is a professional development coach. Irene works with lawyers to help them value their services. Visit her website, www.CoachingForChange.com, or call her at (206) 723-9900.

Stewart Levine is the author of The Book of Agreement and Getting to Resolution. His website is www.resolutionworks.com.

Moira McCaskill, LLB, LLM/ADR, CPCC, began her career as a lawyer, obtained an LLM in alternative dispute resolution, and became a mediator; she is now a coach working with the Enneagram as a tool for personal transformation. Visit her website at http://www.moiramccaskill.com/about.html.

Forrest "Woody" Mosten is Collaborative Attorney and Mediator in Los Angeles who handles dissolutions and premarital agreements involving substantial assets and high conflict. His books include Collaborative Divorce Handbook, Mediation Career Guide, Unbundling Legal Services, and Complete Guide to Mediation and he is Adjunct Professor of Law at UCLA. He is Editor of the Family Court Special Issue on Collaborative Law. Mr. Mosten is a recipient of the ABA Lawyer as Problem Solver Award, Lifetime Legal Access Award, and was named 2009 Frank Sander Co-Lecturer. He is the first recipient of the Los Angeles Bar Associations Conflict Prevention Award, is a Los Angeles Super Lawyer, and Southern California Peacemaker of the Year. He is recognized internationally as the “Father of Unbundling and serves as Keynote Speaker Conference Speaker and trains lawyers and mediators worldwide. Mr. Mosten can be reached at: www.MostenMediation.com.

Alexis Martin Neely, business owner, mom, and lawyer, is the founder and chief executive officer of the Family Wealth Planning Institute, a company that is revolutionizing the way personal legal services are provided to families and small business owners in the United States. She is also a coach, a regular commentator in national broadcast media, and an author. More info can be found at http://alexisneely.com and http://www.LawBusinessRevolution.com.

Leslie Rawls is a sole practitioner in Charlotte, North Carolina concentrating on appellate advocacy. Leslie has studied Buddhism since 1970 and been actively involved in the community of practitioners in the lineage of Thich Nhat Hanh for nearly two decades. In the 1990’s, she was lay coordinator for many of Thich Nhat Hanh’s North American retreats. She edited the Plum Village journal, The Mindfulness Bell, from 1996 to 2001. Leslie helps maintain the online directories of Plum Village Sanghas around the world. (www.iamhome.org) She also leads retreats and Days of Mindfulness in Charlotte and the southeast, and facilitates inmate Sanghas in the North Carolina Department of Corrections. See www.charlottemindfulness.org for more information.

Scott Rogers has practiced law along with mindfulness-based contemplative techniques for 18 years. He graduated summa cum laude from the University of Florida Levin College of Law (1991) and prior to that received his Master’s Degree in Social Psychology, also from the University of Florida (1988). Scott is the founder and director of the Institute for Mindfulness Studies.

Carl Michael Rossi is a lawyer, mediator, coach, and counselor in Chicago and can be contacted at cmr@collaborativepracticechicago.com. He is the past president of the International Alliance of Holistic Lawyers: www.iahl.org.

Gretchen Rubin is the author of the New Times Best Selling book, The Happiness Project: Or, Why I Spent a Year Trying to Sing in the Morning, Clean My Closets, Fight Right, Read Aristotle, and Generally Have More Fun. [Harper; December 29, 2009], an account of the year she spent test-driving studies and theories about how to be happier. Before turning to writing, she started out in law. At Yale Law School, she was editor-in-chief of the Yale Law Journal, and she was clerking for Justice Sandra Day O’Connor when she realized that she really wanted to be a writer. Her website is http://www.happiness-project.com/happiness_project/

David Shearon is the Executive Director at Tennessee Lawyers' Fund for Client Protection. He received his Masters in Applied Positive Psychology from the University of Pennsylvania in 2006 , his Juris Doctor from the University of Virginia in 1979, and his Bachelor of Science in Journalism from the University of Tennessee. He and his wife, Teresa, live in Nashville where he enjoys shooting archery tournaments with his two sons.

Barbara Stahura is a freelance writer and journal facilitator. Along with writing books and magazine articles, she leads journal workshops for people with brain injury and family caregivers, as well as for others. Her website is barbarastahura.com.

Cheryl Stephens founded the Plain Language Association International in 1993. Her 4-book series Plain Language Wizardry includes Plain Language Legal Writing and the new Plain Language in Plain English. Cheryl was a pioneer in using plain language on the Internet, and created the Plain Language Online website for the Canada’s Access to Justice Network in 1994 and the plain language online training site PlainTrain. Cheryl received her B.A. (with Honors) in the multi-disciplinary field of International Relations at University of the Pacific in 1970. With a JD from the University of British Columbia and law practice experience, she lead the Canadian Bar Association’s BC projects on plain language and the Lawyers for Literacy Project. Since 2000, Cheryl has created 4500 plain English definitions for the Multilingual Legal Dictionary at http://legalglossary.ca, created plain language training resources for the Council of Canadian Administrative Tribunals, and assisted the Canadian Association of Chiefs of Police to develop resources for plain language and literacy awareness. She has also worked on plain language projects in the medical and social science fields and for multi-cultural and literacy programs.

Pat McHenry Sullivan is a spirit and work pioneer who helps lawyers and other professionals work with less stress, more efficiency, satisfaction and meaning. Reach Pat at www.spiritworkandmoney.com or 510-530-0284.

Kali Samaya Tara graduated from Northwestern School of Law of Lewis and Clark College in 2002 and received her Qi Dao Coaching degree from the Academy of Qi Dao under the instruction of Lama Somananda Tantrapa in 2008. She has practiced law in Oregon and Guam and now lives in Portland, Oregon where she practices qigong daily and coaches others to manifest their life’s dreams. If you are interested in learning more about Lama Tantrapa and his works, please visit his website at www.qidao.org.

Lorenn Walker JD, MPH, is a Hawai'i-based health educator with extensive legal and social service experience. Lorenn uses a public health approach with organizations and individuals in finding positive solutions for problem solving. Lorenn is an expert in designing and facilitating effective learning programs. Her recent work has focused on reentry for incarcerated people, substance abuse, violence prevention, and reconciliation for people harmed by wrongdoing and social injustice. www.lorennwalker.com

Janet Smith Warfield is the author of Shift: Change Your Words, Change Your World, an Amazon.com Best Seller and 2008 Indie Next Generation Book Award Winner. She is a graduate of Swarthmore College and cum laude graduate of Rutgers School of Law, Camden. She practiced law in Atlantic City for 22 years.

Jennie N. Winter is an attorney and Director of Client Services at the Pro Bono Project in San Jose, California. She oversees volunteers who help clients with family law matters, including certified law students and attorneys. Jennie holds a JD from Santa Clara University School of Law, a BA in Human Development and a Master's in Public Administration from California State University, Hayward. Before going to law school she practiced for 23 years as a Holistic Health Educator and Bodywork Therapist. She brings this background as a healer into her practice of law and her approach to helping clients solve their legal problems. Before coming to Pro Bono Project, Jennie was in private practice as a family law attorney in Santa Clara, San Mateo and Alameda counties. She serves on the Santa Clara County Bar Association Family Law Executive Committee, and the Family Law Education and Minor's Representation subcommittees. She is a member of Collaborative Practice Silicon Valley; sits on the Northern California Public Education Committee for Collaborative Practice California; is a member of the International Academy of Collaborative Professionals, the International Alliance of Holistic Lawyers, and a founding member of the Renaissance Lawyer Society.

Diane F. Wyzga has cemented a strong national presence as the only RN, JD and professionally-trained storyteller working as a trial consultant to help lawyers conceptualize and construct their case stories. Diane helps more lawyers win more cases more often by using narrative skills and techniques to develop the legal case story, strategize the trial from voir dire through closing arguments, and influence decision-makers far beyond the reach of any PowerPoint presentation. Her company, Lightning Rod Communications, is based in San Clemente, California. A motto at her Web site: "The difference between the right word and almost right word is like the difference between lightning and lightning bug" reminds us that lawyers must tell their clients’ stories with power, passion, and precision. Tel: 949-361-3035; website: http://www.lightrod.net; email: diane@lightrod.net

Michael Zeytoonian is the Founding Member of the Zeytoonian Center for Dispute Resolution, and is a lawyer, mediator and ombudsman. He is a partner at Hutchings, Barsamian, Mandelcorn & Zeytoonian, LLP, in Wellesley Hills, MA and specializes in employment law, mediation, collaborative law, business law, administrative law and negligence. He is admitted to practice in the state and federal district courts of Massachusetts and New York (Southern District) and the state of Connecticut.