Rhiannon Thomas, South Africa - Integrative Lawyers of the World, Series 2 Episode 3
Rhiannon joins us from South Africa to talk about her journey and approach to integrative law practice. She shares how we can embody the belief that we can be ourselves and still belong in the legal system, connect with all of our intelligences, and embrace the wholeness of our humanity. Rhiannon has used integrative law to help find the gaps in legal practice that our clients need to feel connected. Music for this podcast was created by Toby Leach. He may be contacted at: [email protected]
Integrative Lawyers of the World · Rhiannon Thomas, Kerry Raleigh
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Show Notes
Rhiannon Thomas
Email: [email protected]
For more information about Rhiannon Thomas and Milkwood:
www.milkwoodlaw.co.za
BRIEF BIO:
From Milkwood Law website:
Rhiannon has two decades of legal experience. She is an attorney, notary, conveyancer and administrator of deceased estates in practice at Michelle Dommisse & Associates in Cape Town. She is also a values consultant and accredited Conscious Contracts® provider and trainer.
She has developed and facilitated workshops on a wide range of topics. A natural connector and networker, Rhiannon thrives on building relationships.
She found her tribe in the Integrative Law movement. Her vision is to offer the best, most meaningful encounter that a person can have with the law and a lawyer; to work collaboratively with other professionals; to inspire other lawyers to reassess the way in which they practise law and serve their clients; and to take Milkwood’s methods into mainstream legal practice by providing training and workshops.
She works internationally and is based in Cape Town.
SHOW NOTES:
In this conversation, we discussed:
- What integrative law and being an integrative lawyer means
- Embodying the belief that we can be ourselves and still belong in the legal system
- Connecting with all our intelligences – gut, heart, and head
- Embracing the wholeness hat our human form and consciousness allow us to have
- Her path to Integrative Law – being tired of feeling like she had to play a role to fit in the legal system and legal community
- Examples of how being an integrative lawyer looks like in her legal practice
- Commitment Agreements that look at the middle of the marriage; most lawyers offer a prenup (before marriage) and divorces (after marriage ends) but she saw a gap for helping couples for their actual marriage
- Wills – asking her clients about the stories and legacies that they want to leave to their heirs in addition to the typical asset allocation
- Authenticity and how it creates spaces for ourselves, for others, and for problem solving
- The important of self-inquiry and self-awareness for being authentic
- Always looking for ways to offer more to her clients
QUOTES:
“In true authenticity, people are allowed to say things that they might not have normally said in a situation where they feel that a person they are dealing with is just playing a role.”
“I had to suppress my own personality….As soon as I started to explore what it is to be a whole person, people opened up.”
“Authenticity is around really knowing yourself well and being true to yourself.”
A video version of this episode is available on YouTube here: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL7R-_wylJ2YQ-uLUPzRJ61bXgRxvGLulY