Bölümler
-
In April, LSC published a research brief, “The Economic Case for Civil Legal Aid,” which shows the results of a systematic review of 56 economic impact studies conducted between 2003 and 2023. The independent evaluations examined 39 different states. Every study found a positive return on investment (ROI) for civil legal aid spending, with an average return of $7 for every $1 invested in these legal services. Hear one compelling example from a medical-legal partnership between Amerihealth Caritas D.C. and Children's Law Center.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices -
In this hands-on, in-the-trenches episode about real business development, learn the secrets to acquiring and signing new clients from law firm advisor Steve Fretzin, author of the new book “Be That Lawyer: The 101 Top Rainmaker Secrets to Growing a Successful Law Practice.”
Fretzin, an accomplished author, business strategist, and podcaster, works with law firms big and small to help them prioritize goals, build their business, and achieve measurable, repeatable successes.
Business development is more than buzzwords such as “branding” or “marketing,” it’s about the entire, intentional path to creating a business that is always growing, always producing. It’s the process of becoming the lawyer that everyone knows and everyone goes to: a rainmaker. As Fretzin says, “Be that lawyer.”
Hear about “sales-free selling” with a thoughtful, insightful approach to learning what clients need before you start pitching a service. Develop a checklist, a map, for building your business that you can put to work today. Developing a business can be confusing, with a lot of moving parts. Fretzin explains how it all comes together.
Mentioned in This Episode:
Books by Steve Fretzin
Previous appearance on The Un-Billable Hour, “Business Development: Planning and Practicing”
Join the next Community Table live. What’s on your mind?
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices -
Eksik bölüm mü var?
-
Chief Justice John Roberts recently called out the Trump administration for their threats to impeach judges who have ruled against them.
In response to these threats to the judiciary, the Keep Our Republic’s Article III Coalition, composed of over twenty former federal district and circuit judges appointed by Presidents Reagan, George H.W. Bush, Clinton, George W. Bush and Obama, defended the federal judiciary, as political impeachment attempts against judges increase and the federal courts system face heightened scrutiny.
In this episode, Craig is joined by Chief Judge Paul R. Michel, formerly of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit and member of Keep Our Republic's Article III Coalition. Together, Craig and Judge Michel discuss the calls for impeachment of judges by the current administration, and how a coalition of judges is fighting back.
Mentioned in this Episode:
Keep Our Republic's Article III Coalition
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices -
Get down with lawyers who rock, and some rock that led to lawsuits. Litigators Andrés Correa and Chris Patton of the Dallas firm Lynn Pinker Hurst & Schwegmann LLP are both rock and rollers and accomplished litigators.
Hear how they make time for their passion for music, but also how the outlet releases stress and opens paths to creative thinking and strategies they’ve applied to their legal career and legal cases. Their passion for music inspired them to cowrite the Litigation Journal article “Rock Around the Court: How Copyright Litigation Reflects the Muddy Origins of Rock ‘n’ Roll” that explores the legal issues surrounding music and creativity.
As those who came before influence styles later on, music copyright claims have led to legal cases that shape the world of music and art. Lawsuits continue to this day. What’s “inspiration” and what’s copyright infringement? From Elvis to Led Zepplin to today.
Now, imagine where the brave new world of AI is going to take us.
Resources:
“Rock Around the Court: How Copyright Litigation Reflects the Muddy Origins of Rock ‘n’ Roll,” by Chris Patton and Andrés Correa, Litigation Journal
“Jimmy Page, Sony Pictures Sued by Songwriter Over Led Zeppelin Song,” Reuters
“Led Zeppelin Emerges Victor in 'Stairway to Heaven' Plagiarism Case,” Reuters
“George Harrison’s “My Sweet Lord” Copyright Case,” Performing Songwriter “Robin Thicke, Pharrell Williams to Pay $5 Million to Marvin Gaye Estate for 'Blurred Lines'” NBC News
“Reggaeton Copyright Infringement Lawsuit Targeting Over 100 of the Genre’s Biggest Acts to Move Forward,” Variety
American Bar Association
American Bar Association Litigation Section
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices -
Ready for a serious look at the future of your law firm? In this Lawyerist Podcast episode, Zack Glaser sits down with a panel of law school professors for a wake-up call about something that will fundamentally reshape your practice: the tech-savvy generation of law students entering the field. This isn't a distant trend; it's happening now, and it demands your attention.
We explore how these future lawyers are already operating differently. You'll hear firsthand about their strong preference for the Google ecosystem – and why that directly impacts your firm's current reliance on tools like Microsoft Word. This isn't just about software; it's about the shifting expectations and workflows these digital natives are bringing with them as they become your colleagues.
Here's where it gets interesting for you: we explore how you can leverage this change to your firm's advantage. The professors share insights on how these students are uniquely positioned to drive AI adoption within your practice. Think of them as an untapped resource, ready to experiment with and implement AI-powered services that can elevate your firm's capabilities and even open doors to new service areas.
And let's be clear, you can't afford to ignore the rising importance of tech fluency, especially in AI. The professors don't mince words: a lack of understanding in this area will directly impact your ability to serve clients effectively. In a world swimming in digital data, from car sensors to smart devices, your firm's relevance depends on it.
This episode is your essential guide to:
Stay ahead of the curve in a rapidly evolving legal landscape
Unlocking the potential of the next generation of legal talent
Building a future-proof firm that thrives on innovation
Tune in!
Listen to our other episodes about Artificial Intelligence:
#556 Hidden Data: What Lawyers Need to Know About Digital Forensics, with Cole Popkin Apple Podcasts Spotify Lawyerist
#538: AI is Making Law Firms Obsolete, with Alistair Vigier Apple Podcasts Spotify Lawyerist
#551: Becoming the AI Driven Leader, with Geoff Woods Apple Podcasts Spotify Lawyerist
Have thoughts about today’s episode? Join the conversation on LinkedIn, Facebook, Instagram, and X!
If today's podcast resonates with you and you haven't read The Small Firm Roadmap Revisited yet, get the first chapter right now for free! Looking for help beyond the book? See if our coaching community is right for you.
Access more resources from Lawyerist at lawyerist.com.
Chapters/Timestamps:
00:00 – Intro: The Tech-Savvy Future of Law - Google Natives vs. Word Warriors
01:13 – The Google-Native Generation of Lawyers
02:51 – Changing Communication Norms
04:35 – Meet the Guests: Law School Professors on the Frontlines
06:21 – Teaching AI in Law School: An Overview
08:01 – Dennis Kennedy on AI in the Classroom
10:11 – Nicole Morris on AI Governance and Research
15:03 – Tracy Norton on AI as a Legal Writing Tool
25:25 – Is AI Dumbing Down Legal Education?
30:23 – Why Law School Must Teach AI
35:41 – How Should Professors Grade AI-Generated Work?
41:46 – Using AI to Improve the Classroom Experience
47:00 – How AI Will Change Legal Mentorship
52:19 – The Future of Law Firms and AI Expectations
55:25 – Final Thoughts: You Can’t Tap Out of AI
57:52 – Outro
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices -
Attorneys Jeffrey Rapattoni and Adam Calvert from the law firm Marshall Dennehey discuss common staging tactics impacting commercial auto and trucking transportation litigation.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices -
Matthew Dixon, co-founder of DCM Insights, is a researcher who’s spent much of his career studying the shared characteristics and behaviors of successful B2B salespeople. In 2011, he released a study called “The Challenger Sale.” While giving a keynote on his findings at an annual partner retreat, an audience member stood up and challenged him.
“He said, ‘Dr. Dixon, you’ve been talking for 45 minutes about sales effectiveness and salespeople and selling and sales process, and it’s all very fascinating and I’m sure our clients would be very interested in this,’” Dixon recounts to the ABA Journal’s Lee Rawles in this episode of The Modern Law Library. “‘And after all, we do a lot of consulting around go-to-market strategy. But what maybe you don’t recognize is that we are partners at our firm. We are not salespeople. In fact, there’s not a single salesperson in this audience. I might go so far as to say we don’t sell anything here.’”
Dixon was taken aback. “What I realized was this world of partnerships, of professional services, of doer-sellers is actually quite a bit different from the world of sales and what we had written and all this research we’d done over the years.”
In 2022, he tackled this population with the Rainmaker Genome Project, a study that became the basis for The Activator Advantage: What Today’s Rainmakers Do Differently, co-written by Dixon, Rory Channer, Karen Freeman and Ted McKenna.
The Rainmaker Genome Project surveyed 3,000 partner-level professionals in 41 firms across law, public relations, accounting and investment banking. About 39% of respondents were lawyers. Each received a score for effectiveness in business development and were analyzed for how they provided client services. And it turns out that partner was correct: What makes a lawyer an effective rainmaker is not necessarily what makes a salesperson effective.
After doing a vector analysis on the data, “what we found was that every one of those 3,000 professionals could be placed into one of five business development profiles,” says Dixon. The five profiles were the expert, the confidant, the debater, the challenger and the activator.
Dixon stresses that the five categories are not about personality. While personalities are immutable, behaviors can be changed.
“These are about the things we can all learn to be better at,” says Dixon. “It’s about how we spend our time, how we engage clients, how we use resources, how we collaborate with colleagues—and those are things we can all get better at with the right training, coaching and support from our firms.”
In this episode, Dixon expands on each type, but the most effective performers in business development were the activators.
“The reason we chose the term ‘activator’ instead of ‘connector’—people have asked—is that they’re not about collecting business cards and letting them collect dust or just hoarding LinkedIn connections,” Dixon tells Rawles. “What these folks do is try to turn these relationships into paying client relationships. They activate those relationships by proactively bringing new ideas—ways to mitigate risk, make money, save money—to clients.”
Dixon offers practical advice on how to behave like an activator, including the most effective ways to use LinkedIn. Lawyers and other client-servicing professionals can’t just sit back and wait for business to find them, he warns.
“Whether we like to admit it or not, clients are less loyal today than they once were,” he says. “They’re less likely to come back automatically to their incumbent provider. No matter how great the relationship or the value you’ve delivered, they’re forcing us to compete in ways we didn’t have to in the past. So activators want a backup plan. They know today’s great client might not be a client tomorrow, no matter what you’ve done. So you need a backup plan.”
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices -
Seashellgate meets Surrendergate.
-----
Since we're cursed to act as keepers of the flame to remind the legal community that several large law firms really did willingly sell out to the Trump administration, this week we discuss our columnist Vivia Chen's exploration of the unique impact of these moves on young lawyers learning early that Biglaw is more than happy to throw them under the bus.
We also discuss how James Comey's Instagram pic triggered a tragicomic meltdown of some of the most deranged people on the internet ranting about seashells as a subliminal assassination threat worthy of John Wilkes Squarepants. Unfortunately, some of those internet denizens are also running federal law enforcement. And we conduct a lightning round of quirky Am Law 100 financial facts that will make you appreciate that you took some time off last year.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices -
Today we’re talking about the difference between a simple question that elicits a powerful answer and the kind of questions that show you haven’t done your homework.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices -
Erica Pinheiro serves as the Executive Director of Al Otro Lado providing holistic legal and humanitarian support to refugees, deportees, and other migrants in the US and Tijuana through a multidisciplinary, client-centered, harm reduction-based practice. The organization provides direct, free, legal services on both sides of the US-Mexico border and beyond through zealous individual representation, medical-legal partnerships, and impact litigation to protect the rights of immigrants and asylum-seekers.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices -
Determining which legal technology is best for your law firm can seem like a daunting task, so Legaltech Hub does the hard work for you! In another edition of Fresh Voices, Dennis and Tom talk with Nikki Shaver, CEO at Legaltech Hub, about her in-depth knowledge of technology and AI trends. Nikki shares what effective tech strategies should look like for attorneys and recommends innovative tools for maintaining best practices in modern law firms. Learn more at legaltechnologyhub.com.
As always, stay tuned for the parting shots, that one tip, website, or observation that you can use the second the podcast ends.
Have a technology question for Dennis and Tom? Call their Tech Question Hotline at 720-441-6820 for the answers to your most burning tech questions.
Show Notes:
poe.com
Perplexity Voice Assistant
Zoom Transcripts partnered with AI
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices -
In honor of Mental Health Awareness Month, we're revisiting this powerful conversation about how Texas courts are addressing mental health challenges through reform and rehabilitation.
Should our criminal courts exist to punish or reform those who have broken the law? Rocky Dhir talks with Judge Brent Carr about his years of service in the Tarrant County Mental Health Court and the broader efforts across Texas to support people with mental illness in the justice system. They explore programs tackling issues from sex trafficking to drug offenses, veterans’ cases, and more.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices -
Feeling like you're the only one holding everything together in your law firm? You're not alone. This episode dives into a crucial aspect of firm growth that often gets overlooked: leadership. Zack kicks things off with an inspiring reminder about the power of stepping outside your comfort zone – something just as vital for you as a legal professional looking to build a truly sustainable practice. Get ready to explore why developing strong leadership isn't just for CEOs; it's the key to breaking free from feeling constantly overwhelmed.
Then, Zack sits down with Lawyerist coach Leticia DeSuze, who brings a wealth of real-world experience guiding law firms just like yours. Leticia gets straight to the heart of the matter: how the very success you've achieved can sometimes highlight underlying leadership gaps, turning you into the ultimate bottleneck. You'll hear practical insights on how to shift gears from simply practicing law to intentionally building a team that can take ownership and drive results, ultimately freeing up your time and energy for what truly matters.
Ready to take control and build a more efficient and less personally draining law firm? Tune in to discover actionable strategies for effective delegation, setting crystal-clear expectations for your team, and implementing KPIs that empower everyone to take responsibility. This episode offers a roadmap for moving beyond the daily grind and cultivating a thriving team practice where you empower them to carry the load.
Listen to our other episodes with Leticia DeSuze:
#491: Crafting Your Purpose-Driven Leadership Vision, with Leticia DeSuze Apple Podcast | Spotify | Lawyerist
#520: The Truth About Lawyer Self-Care: Prioritize or Suffer Apple Podcast | Spotify | Lawyerist
#464: Unpacking the Power of Self-Accountability in Coaching, with Leticia DeSuze Apple Podcast | Spotify | Lawyerist
Have thoughts about today’s episode? Join the conversation on LinkedIn, Facebook, Instagram, and X!
If today's podcast resonates with you and you haven't read The Small Firm Roadmap Revisited yet, get the first chapter right now for free! Looking for help beyond the book? See if our coaching community is right for you.
Access more resources from Lawyerist at lawyerist.com.
Chapters/Timestamps:
00:00 - Introduction: Embracing the "Positive Struggle"
04:05 - The Leadership Skills Gap: From Lawyer to Leader
07:10 - Breaking the Bottleneck: Delegation and Mindset Shifts
10:46 - Beyond Hiring: Developing Leaders at Every Level
21:40 - Client Service vs. Efficiency: Finding the Right Balance
28:58 - Redefining Leadership: Structure, Ownership, and Trust
31:07 - Recognizing Individual Motivators, Final Thoughts
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices -
What if we just act like nothing happened?
-----
Biglaw firms who gave in to Trump suffered a scathing 60 Minutes piece and key talent defections, so they've decided upon a new tactic: pretending they never made a deal at all! It does not appear to be working. Meanwhile, Justice David Souter died reminding everyone of an era when the federal judiciary cared more about the right answer than appeasing political patrons. Unfortunately, Souter's nomination inadvertently triggered that change. And we have a Biglaw merging in the offing that hopes to create a new $2B firm.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices -
Law firms acquire or merge with one another all the time. But when it comes to technology companies, firms usually keep it in-house or enter into a partnership with an outside vendor. They rarely go ahead and just buy a tech company. So when Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton announced in March that it had acquired artificial intelligence products developers Springbok AI, it made headlines.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices -
In this conversation, Karin Conroy, a legal marketing strategist, discusses the evolution of law firm websites and the importance of unique branding in legal marketing. She emphasizes the pitfalls of copying competitors and the need for firms to develop their own unique selling propositions. The discussion also touches on the significance of being first to market and avoiding shortcuts in marketing strategies. Karin provides insights into how firms can differentiate themselves and succeed in a competitive landscape.
Links from the episode:
www.conroycreativecounsel.com
https://conroycreativecounsel.com/blw/
Chapters
00:00 Introduction to Legal Marketing and Website Contest
02:59 The Evolution of Law Firm Websites
06:01 The Pitfalls of Copying Competitors
08:54 The Importance of Unique Branding
12:05 Strategies for Being First to Market
14:52 Conclusion and Resources for Legal Marketing
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices -
Guests from a Kansas pro bono partnership discuss how private businesses and in-house attorneys can support legal aid initiatives in their communities on Talk Justice. In 2017, Koch was interested in making pro bono work an official part of the company, but learned that Kansas rules did not allow in-house attorneys who are licensed by outside states to provide local pro bono services. Koch worked with KLS to get the rule changed, demonstrating that the demand for free legal help greatly exceeded the supply of legal aid lawyers. Ever since, Koch attorneys have engaged in an ongoing partnership with KLS to provide pro bono expungement and driver’s license restoration clinics.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices -
In this episode’s discussions around the Community Table:
Grappling with a marketing refresh? Start with understanding you are an experiment of one. Asking someone else what’s working for them is a doorway to blind alleys. There is nobody just like you, so explore all options, ask yourself what you want to get out of it. You can’t copy what someone else does.
Learn and live “The Five Commandments of Marketing.” Have a call to action, know what you want to get back for the marketing spend, evaluate your results, learn from the outcome, and commit to the full process (don’t skip a step).
Hiring a marketing agency is tricky. Manage the agency. Don’t let them take over. Hold them accountable with weekly meetings and reports. Make sure the agency has worked in your field and knows your market. Understand where your money is going, what amount of your spend buys marketing and what pays the agency.
Mentioned in This Episode:
Cliocon 2025
Seth Godin Legal Marketing Blog
Seth Godin previous appearance on Legal Talk Network’s “New Solo” podcast, “What New Solos Can Learn From Han Solo”
Ask us anything for the Community Table. Leave us a question online
Join the next Community Table live. What’s on your mind?
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices -
After the ABA’s 2016 study of mental health and substance use disorders among lawyers, it became well known that lawyers face particular challenges concerning addiction and wellbeing and that there were often barriers to recovery. Now, nearly 10 years later, where do we stand? Molly Ranns welcomes Patrick Krill, a lawyer, counselor, and researcher, to learn about his current research which will follow up on the 2016 ABA study. They discuss aspects of wellbeing that have improved in recent years and later dig into the areas where trends show continued struggle throughout the profession.
Learn more:
What's New with Mental Health and Well-Being in the Legal Profession: Progress, But More Needs to Be Done
Patrick Krill - Krill Strategies
Patrick Krill is the founder of Krill Strategies, a behavioral health consulting firm exclusively for the legal profession.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices - Daha fazla göster
