Legal Talk Network - Law News and Legal Topics

Who needs a judge's approval to start ranting in court? Every other person ever, you say? ___________________________________________________ Donald Trump's legal team informed Justice Arthur Engoron that their client would deliver closing remarks in violation of basic New York rules, setting off a series of decreasingly coherent emails with the judge over Trump's willingness to abide by the const...

Gyi and Conrad gaze deeply into the hazy future of law firm marketing in 2024, but are they true fortune tellers or phonies? They talk through the successes of predictions past and offer their insight into the uncertain future. ____________________________________________________________ Time to dust off the crystal ball, but first, the guys take a look back and show off their brilliant powers of...

Newly admitted lawyers can feel overwhelmed and intimidated. Law schools can’t teach everything, and there’s a lot of on-the-job learning. Some of the work is difficult and complicated. Some of what’s required is as simple as showing up on time and doing work that looks perfect and is free of typos (yes, that matters, even for internal communications). With each task, the best new lawyers progress...

Appellate courts decide what our laws mean and how they affect all aspects of our personal lives: our ability to vote, how we are policed, our religious freedom, the quality of our education, our workplaces, healthcare, immigration protections, and much more. Yet people of color remain greatly underrepresented as both appellate attorneys and judges. Juvaria Khan, founder of The Appellate Project d...

A person getting hurt at the workplace is never funny. But it can be instructional to examine some of the strangest ways people manage to become injured at work. Hear about some “interesting” cases.  A schoolteacher whose leg “fell asleep” while he sat in a classroom falls trying to stand up. He broke his femur. Is he entitled to compensation from his employer?  An Amtrak baggage handler was visit...

In this episode, Jenny Wright joins me to talk about how law firms can optimize their lead generation efforts. She explains that while SEO is an important avenue, it should be considered a long-term investment and not the main focus out the gate.  The discussion shifts to the importance of choosing the right lead magnet and how it should be custom-fit to the law firm's specializations and target a...

Anyone can and will make predictions about the coming year, but Dennis and Tom tend to shy away from the crystal ball in favor of resolutions and goal setting. The guys discuss last year’s resolutions and their success or lack thereof on each one. Then, they jump into the now and share what they hope to accomplish in 2024. Spoiler alert: AI is front and center.  Speaking of AI, in their second seg...

AI has been around for a very long time, but 2023 was its renaissance, with ChatGPT and other AI technologies suddenly speeding forward with exponential growth. Attorneys and paralegals should be focused on learning and adapting to this quickly evolving technology to ensure competence in a world where AI is taking greater precedence. Rocky Dhir talks with paralegal Megan Goor-Peters and attorney J...

Imagine what your firm would look like if EVERY team member had a professional development coach. Sound crazy? It’s not!   Today, Stephanie talks with Professional Development Coach Robin Carberry about why and how Affinity Consulting/Lawyerist decided to hire an internal coach for everyone on the team and how law firm owners can start coaching their team members today.    Links from the episode: ...

Maybe GPT-5 will want a free RV? _______________________________________________ The Chief spent his entire annual report on the federal judiciary on the rise of artificial intelligence and how AI cannot possibly replace judges because the judge is so much harder and more nuanced than, say, calling balls and strikes. Not that anyone would be stupid enough to describe being a judge like that. Steve...

Are you spending more time running your firm than handling your cases? That’s the tipping point when you should hand off those responsibilities to a qualified legal office manager. Angela Louis, the Simon Law Firm’s award-winning Director of Administration, lends insight into this critical multi-tasking role. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Jurors need legal guidance when deliberating a case because, duh, they aren’t lawyers. Jury instructions are their roadmap, and it’s definitely in your client’s best interest to be sure those instructions are as clear and concise as possible. In this episode, we discuss verdict directors, clean and dirty instructions, roving commissions, potential pitfalls and resources to create instructions that...

Michael Scodro, former clerk to the Honorable Sandra Day O'Connor and current partner with the law firm of Mayer Brown, joins Jon Amarilio and Maggie Mendenhall Casey to discuss Justice O'Connor's career, impact and legacy. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In 2013, the ABA Journal named Renee Knake Jefferson a Legal Rebel for her work co-founding the Michigan State University’s ReInvent Law Laboratory and rethinking how legal services could be delivered to consumers. In 2024, she’s taking a look back at more than a decade of research and experimental programs aimed at improving access to justice–the successes and the failures. On this episode of the...

Former Alaska Legal Services Corporation (ALSC) Executive Director and current Frontline Justice Founding CEO Nikole Nelson joins LSC President Ron Flagg for a conversation on using community justice workers to expand access to legal services on Talk Justice. She explains Alaska’s success with the initiative and discusses her vision for bringing justice workers to more communities.  Learn more abo...

In this episode’s discussions around the Community Table:  Building an effective landing page is critical to making the most of your pay-per-click marketing dollars. Getting “clicks” is one thing, but then what? Hear how to craft a landing page that drives visitors to the next step: hiring you. Go beyond “call now.” Show why you’re the lawyer for the job. What makes you different? Referrals can be...

Labor issues captured the headlines throughout much of 2023, with over 400 strikes involving half a million workers. From a legal perspective, there’s a lot to unpack about negotiation tactics, advances in labor and employment law, impacts on basic human rights, and effective ways to fight for fair outcomes in legal matters. In this edition of the ABA Law Student Podcast, former professional socce...

The legal profession as a whole now has a heightened awareness of the fact that wellbeing is a critical piece in the life of a lawyer, but rates of addiction, depression, anxiety, and other mental health struggles are still high. How can we support fellow attorneys, judges, students, and ourselves when dealing with a crisis? Molly Ranns and JoAnn Hathaway welcome Bree Buchanan to discuss her perso...

The first bar examination in the United States was administered in oral form in the Delaware Colony in 1783, and in 1885, Massachusetts became the first state to employ a written version of the bar exam. Over time, the bar examination process has become more standardized, but there's no one test. One example of a standardized test is the Uniform Bar Examination (UBE), created back in 2011, and fir...

When it comes to your business development goals, guest (and rainmaker) Merrick “Rick” Gross explains the two biggest pools for new clients: internal and external. Internal client development is often overlooked, but it’s as important as finding external clients. Build your book of business through other attorneys at your own firm, especially if you work at a large firm with multiple offices acros...

Think it’s impossible for an "old" firm to learn "new" tricks? Think again!   After more than three decades in practice, Lawyerist Lab member and firm owner Jennifer Hawkins knew she had to make some changes to take her firm to the next level. In today's episode, Stephanie chats with Jennifer to hear how her firm transformed when she identified core values and rethought the hiring and onboarding p...

The highs and mostly lows from the year that was. __________________________________________ As we turn the page to 2024, we reminisce over the top stories at Above the Law over the past year. Layoffs, salary hikes, ethical quagmires at the Supreme Court, Donald Trump's criminal cases... the legal industry provided a lot of fodder for Above the Law this past year. Join Thinking Like A Lawyer as we...

If you’ve never put much thought into gifts, maybe it’s time to ponder the influence and effect of a perfectly personalized present. And, how did the guys’ resolutions go last year? Eh… you’ll see.  _____________________________________________________________________ Unexpected, unnecessary gifts can be pretty darn impactful, and they might just be an awesome way to express your esteem for a valu...

We are seeing more deadlocked juries in which jurors refuse to discuss the facts of the case. Today’s discussion addresses not only the legal implications of a refusal to engage in productive discourse and compromise, but the implications to our government’s function if verdicts cannot be reached in the courtroom. What can we do? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

SideBar cohosts and law deans Jackie Gardina and Mitch Winick look back over the 29 episodes and 25 guests featured in SideBar's incredibly successful first season. If you have been a listener, this episode will highlight key moments from our discussions with expert guests, authors, lawyers, and judges on critical issues facing democracy, the legal system, the Supreme Court, and society. If you ha...