Radio, Podcast, or Television Interview Outlines (That you can personalize and make your own)
Radio Podcast TV Interview Outlines
Sample 1 (for shorter interviews)
I understand that the collaborative process is a constructive approach to dissolution of marriage? Why do you say that? Courtroom divorce is very destructive. Everyone knows that. It’s war from the get-go. Collaborative divorce, on the other hand, is constructive, teaching the clients skills such as….
You say that your clients learn problem solving, communication, and partnering skills. How do you do that? Part of the collaborative process involves individual client meetings with the facilitator. The facilitator is expert in these skills. The facilitator discusses these skills directly with the clients and sometimes even gives them homework to help them hone those skills. But the process also involves team meetings. At these, the lawyers model these skills for their clients. The clients learn from the modeling that goes on in front of them, working through with the team, but also with each other, the very issues raised in their dissolution of marriage.
What was your most touching experience in a collaborative divorce?
There actually have been three. I call them:
What was the worst courtroom divorce you’ve been involved in?
The Grandfather Divorce
How has practicing collaborative divorce changed your life? Judges say that they see the worst of good people in divorce court and the best of bad people in criminal court. I get to see the best side of good people in collaborative divorce.
Thank you so much for being here. If people would like to get a copy of your book, they can visit it at Amazon.com or on I-books.
Sample 2 (for longer interviews)
Who is Joryn Jenkins? I’m an attorney who’s been trying cases for 35 years. Over the years, I’ve seen how divorce court can ruin people, not just financially, but also emotionally. When I learned about collaborative law, I just knew that this was the right thing, and I wanted to be a part of it.
The sign in front of my building used to say “Joryn Jenkins & Associates, Trial Attorneys.” Now it says “Open Palm Law.”
So what exactly is Collaborative Law? It’s a process for resolving disputes without going to court. Each party retains his own lawyer. The lawyers get together and hire a facilitator (or coach) and a financial person, both also collaboratively-trained.
Everyone on the team agrees to the ground rules, which include that they will settle the issues privately, without resorting to court.
The average divorce will bankrupt most people and causes hatred that lasts forever. The Open Palm Divorce is private, cheaper, quicker, safer, less stressful, and less likely to cause hard feelings. We call it the kinder, gentler divorce. Simply put, the husband and wife, and their lawyers, work together without going to court. They hire “middlemen,” who help the process. If it all works out, then the divorce is done quickly and easily, and saves everyone money and grief.
How does it work? Collaborative divorce takes place over a series of meetings, as many as are necessary:
Between each client and each neutral professional;
Between each client and his or her lawyer; and
Of the full team of clients and professionals.
No judge; no court. This is the heart of the Open Palm Divorce: if the parties throw in the towel and file in court, their lawyers are off the case. The clients must retain new lawyers to go to court.
Thus, the collaborative lawyers are completely focused on helping the parties reach agreement; they are not distracted by the need to gird themselves for battle. No lawyers “stirring the pot” or “churning the case.”
Why are you so excited about Collaborative Law? Because it’s a positive change, a change for the better! Today, when someone files for divorce, it’s always a race to the courthouse, because the first to file has the advantage. And it’s war from the get-go; that petition for divorce is always a shot across the bow. It’s destructive, not only financially, but also emotionally.
And, if there are children, they are always caught in the middle. Even when my client “wins,” it never feels like we won.
Unlike traditional divorce, the Open Palm Divorce is constructive. First, neither party has the advantage; they are always on equal footing. And, instead of being adversaries, the lawyers serve as teachers and problem-solvers in a quest to create the best possible resolution for both parties. The parties learn to problem solve, to identify what they need instead of just talking about what they want.
What do you mean? How does that work? We work to identify the parties’ underlying concerns, rather than what they say they want, so…
“I want the house” really means “I want security,” “I want the best schools for my kids,” “I want to be close to my neighbors”
“I want the kids 90% of the time” means “I don’t want to pay you child support”
And “I want 50% of everything,” means “I want my fair share.”
How does this differ from mediation? Mediation is an event; the purpose of mediation is to get the parties to compromise enough to end their marriage. And mediation is a free look at the other side’s case, in case you end up in trial. Mediation is confidential, but, if you go to trial anyway, you can still use the information you discovered during mediation.
Collaborative law is a process; the parties learn how to problem solve and how to move forward. If they have children, they learn to work together in their continuing and different relationship as co-parents.
Why? Because it’s not over, even when it’s over; for example, you are always parents together, like it or not. You choose Open Palm, in part, because it’s not just about the divorce!
Why are you so gung-ho about this? “50% of first marriages … 67% of second marriages … and 73% of third marriages end in divorce.” Divorce is rampant today. Like a stone thrown into a pond, court divorce has an adverse impact on everyone, because it ripples outward. Not only on the parties, but on their children, the grandparents, their neighbors, their employers…. Everyone!
I made this point to a banker I met recently, and he replied that his neighbor had subpoenaed him to testify just the week before!
And no one learns anything in the process. Not only do people get divorced again and again, but, even after their divorce is over, they go back to court again and again!
On the other hand, the Open Palm Divorce will teach folks how to problem solve, how to work with each other to resolve their disputes. And it will equip them with techniques to work through problems they may have in their future relationships. It even sometimes helps them to solve the problems in their current relationship; I’ve heard of parties reconciling during the process!
Collaborative law is at the tipping point. And the ripple effect that collaborative law will have on our society can only be positive.
What are the pluses to Collaborative Law, aside from teaching people how to problem solve?
1 – It’s confidential
The parties’ financial information;
The parties’ family issues (dirty laundry like addictions, domestic violence, affairs, and mental health issues);
Look at the celebrities who have used collaborative divorce (Robin Williams, T’Boone Pickens, Madonna, Tiger Woods, Guy Ritchie, and Cameron Crowe).
Is it the same as “sealing” the court file?
No, generally, “sealing” just means that everything is placed in a manila envelope marked “sealed.” Any with access to the file can still open the envelope. In collaborative law, the documents are never placed in the court file in the first place.
2 – It’s less expensive
How much does a court divorce cost? Let me put it this way: it can cost as much as you want, but it can’t cost as little as you want; it’s not just in one party’s control! I have seen everyday divorces that cost as much as $50-100,000 per spouse. I have seen people with millions of dollars spend over a million dollars each on their attorneys and expert witnesses.
What does the cost depend on? A number of factors:
Children
House
Alimony
Business valuation
Investments
Retirement accounts
Number of experts
Age of the children
Wealth and resources of the parties
Pets (yes, I once represented a husband in a divorce where the only question was who would get the dogs…)
But most importantly, the animosity between the parties!
What about the Open Palm Divorce? Well, you know intuitively that it’ll be less, just by its very nature.
Why? None of that Perry Mason stuff! No discovery; no motions; no trial; no battle of the experts….
[Plus every team member does what he does best
The financial neutral works on the finances;
The facilitator works on the emotional issues;
The lawyers coach their clients on the legal issues and the problem solving]
3 – It’s less stressful.
Any divorce is difficult. The Open Palm Divorce is just easier. We call it the kinder, gentler divorce. People think of divorce as a legal process with an emotional component. In truth, it’s an emotional process with a legal component. We ignore this truth in the court divorce; in the collaborative divorce, we recognize it by relying on the “coach” or “facilitator.”
Who is the coach? A mental health professional, who defuses the emotional bombs that explode during the court process.
4 – The Collaborative Process belongs to the parties; not to the lawyers or to the judge. So scheduling is easier. The results can be personally tailored. The parties can do what judges cannot legally do. For example, in Florida, the parties can agree to pay for their kids’ college; a judge could not order that.
In court, the judge is the center of attention and everyone addresses the judge. The parties and the lawyers never address each other.
In collaborative law, the parties are the center of attention and learn to communicate with each other. Instead of being adversarial and argumentative, the lawyers model good communication skills for their clients
What do the judges think of collaborative divorce?
Well, they love it, of course. They are supportive not only because they have more than enough work to do as it is, but because they know that their rulings are based on limited information. How can you reduce a 15-year marriage with three children to a one-, maybe a two-day trial? People should make decisions based on their intimate knowledge of their families, rather than relying on a third party who, as a judge once explained to me, only sees a snapshot of their lives before deciding issues they will have to live with for the rest of their lives.
Is Collaborative Law limited to divorces?
Absolutely not. It is applicable to any dispute. It would obviously work in a partnership or corporate dispute, which is, after all, a business divorce. But we’ve also trained probate lawyers, lawyers who deal with trusts and estates, and employment attorneys in collaborative dispute resolution. I can see the collaborative law process operating in any area where the parties disagree. The Collaborative Process is useful for any relationship breakup, no matter what type.
For more information, e-mail Joryn@OpenPalmLaw.com
Go to www.NextGenerationDivorce.com or www.collaborativepracticeflorida.com
