GMO Chats with Paternity Court's Judge Lauren Lake

Tuesday, 20 May 2014 22:02 Written by  Brittany Rodgers

Detroit native Judge Lauren Lake is your modern day renaissance woman. From revealing paternity tests results in the court room, to writing books about relationship advice and helping with women issues, Lauren is living a life without limits.

 

“The truth is we are all works in progress,” Lauren says. “We are all scales trying desperately to balance and then one thing gets placed on either one side of our scales and next thing you know we are lop sided. I’m married, but I’m also living my dream.”

GlossMagazineOnline (GMO): Who is Lauren Lake and how did you get introduced in the law field?

Lauren: While I was at the University of Michigan, I started off as a pre-med student. I’ve always been interested in helping people, standing in the gap for people that needed advocacy. At first, I thought that would be in the field of medicine. As work progressed, I began to fill the enjoyment of advocacy portion, speaking for people who didn’t have a voice. I found myself very emotionally involved in people circumstances.

GMO: Before your law career, you toured with artists such as Jay Z, P. Diddy and Mary J Blige. How was that experience?

Lauren: It was wonderful to see people emerging with their gift and watching their work ethic, ability to manager people, ability to engage a crowd and watching them live a life without limits. Meaning no matter what their background, what their situation is, that they overcame something in order to live a life without limits.

A lot of people will say to me, ‘You’re a singer and also a lawyer, which one do you want to be?’ And I will laugh and say ‘Why do I have to choose?’ Jay Z can be an agent, rapper, producer and design a clothing line. Puff Daddy is on Broadway, designs a clothing line, he’s a rapper and an entertainer. They were people that inspired me that I don’t have to have a life without limits and I can live each one of my dreams. That’s how I was able to pursue so many of my professional passions.


Life of “Paternity Court”


GMO: What is your reaction like when you see a lot of young women coming to court for paternity issues?

Lauren: The most surprising and interesting thing about paternity court is when you hear the name, most people assume wrongfully that we are going to be a show about bashing dads. That happens very often, we address it and I am not ashamed nor do I bite my tongue when I need to let a father knows he needs to do better. What has been overwhelming is the amount of women that are the keepers of the secret; the women that will stand in my court room and tell me a bold face lie. And sometimes will even have me convinced. What people fail to realize is that I don’t find out the results until they do.

What young women need to realize is that we have so much power, and we can’t give ourselves away so easy. You can’t seek council under the covers! I find that for some women we are using our power no for good but for evil sometimes and it’s disappointing.

According to the Detroit native, not everything in the court room is a negative outcome. She stated that it’s a natural for her high to see families come into the court room broken and watching the truth set them free from the results.

“Eighteen years from now, there will be so many fathers at their child’s graduation because of this show,” she said. “I’m so proud of this show because we advocate for children by helping their parents learn how to get it together.”

GMO: Is there anything crazy you’ve seen happen in the court room?

Lauren: I’ve seen a woman reveal a 30 year old paternity secret. She ultimately revealed it to her son she had told for years that his stepfather was his biological father. He found out he wasn’t his biological father and she fainted in the court room. We were stunned and so scared for her. That reaction really brought home about how real and the emotions are. I also saw a man go to jail for five years for a paternity issue and he wasn’t the child biological father.


Plans for the Future


GMO: What’s next for Judge Lauren Lake?

Lauren: I’m working on my second book, Lauren Lake’s 100 Laws of Living, and that’s going to be out later spring early summer. It’s an aspiring book that gives people some advice that I talk about on paternity court, the words that I live by and the reasons why I believe in these things. Season two of paternity court is coming up and I also have an embarked on my Limitless Living Tour. I’m going to various states to encourage people to live life without limits.

 


Follow Judge Lauren Lake on Twitter: @LaurenLakeEnt

Like Paternity Court on Facebook

Image courtesy of MGM Studios


Brittany Rodgers

Brittany Rodgers

Brittany Rodgers is a graduate of Columbia College Chicago with a Bachelor of Arts in journalism. She has written for a variety of publications, including The Chicago Tribune and Chicago Defender newspaper. She also is a blogger and enjoys social media.

Brittany can be contacted at BrittLRodgers@yahoo.com

Website: heartbrittlashay.tumblr.com