Legal Talk Network - Law News and Legal Topics

Lately, AI developments have been top of mind for just about everybody—lawyers included. And with AI’s potential to solve all kinds of workflow problems and majorly improve access to justice, the excitement around it does have real merit. However, concerns about accuracy, security, and the current lack of regulation are just as pressing as the excitement surrounding the AI bandwagon. To address al...

Let’s talk about bias. Not just “explicit” bias, the conscious bias for or against someone. Instead, think about “implicit” bias, those subconscious decisions we all make about hiring, capability, and value because of our own experiences. It happens every day.  Guest Al De La Cruz leads the litigation department for the San Diego office of Manning & Kass, Ellrod, Ramirez, Trester LLP and examines...

Take a deep dive into eDiscovery for small and midsized firms with an old friend and frequent New Solo contributor, guest Brett Burney, a lawyer and longtime consultant who’s passionate about legal tech. Facing a mountain of electronic documents from PDFs to spreadsheets to emails to texts in discovery? You don’t need to be an expert, but you do need to understand the basics, the traps, and the av...

The Small Firm Roadmap Revisited doubled-down on our Healthy Firm model. But what, exactly, is it? Join us for another stop on our podcast book tour. This week we’re diving into recruiting, building, and retaining Healthy Teams. Stephanie talks with Aaron Elinoff, Labster and managing partner of Novo Legal Group, about how he guided his team to define who they are and how a breakthrough at a team...

Fastcase and vLex have merged to form the world's largest law library, containing the law from over 100 countries and more than a billion documents. One platform with all these resources means attorneys around the world will have bigger, better, faster access to everything they need to do legal research. Jared chats with Ed Walters of Fastcase about their goals for democratizing the law and what p...

How can one guy mess up this much? Ron DeSantis is about to announce a run for president, but meanwhile he's botching remedial civil procedure and running face first in the Fourteenth Amendment. Also, the Kamala Harris camp seems interested in reigniting her tough-on-crime persona by trashing public defenders. It's dangerous rhetoric that erodes faith in the justice system. Finally, Justice Kagan...

Despite best intentions, parents can be their child’s worst enemy during an investigation. And innocent people can know the same facts that only guilty criminals do. But how are these things possible? In this part two of two, we talk all about it with Making a Murderer’s Laura Nirider, Certified Forensic Interviewer David Thompson, and former Washington D.C. Police Detective James Trainum. Learn m...

It’s the most intriguing question about our criminal justice system. Why do innocent people confess to crimes they didn’t commit? As strange as it seems, it happens regularly and for a variety of reasons like investigator deception, false evidence, and interrogation tactics. In this part one of two, we hear from Making a Murder’s Laura Nirider and Certified Forensic Interviewer David Thompson abou...

Marty Tankleff was wrongfully convicted of murdering his parents in 1990. Innocent and very young, he would learn the legal system well enough to win his freedom. In the process, Marty would uncover the criminals and deep corruption that killed his family and kept him behind bars for 18 years. His underdog case beckoned help from top firms and caught the eye of Tony Soprano. Learn more about your...

Marty Tankleff was only 17 when his parents were murdered in their Belle Terre home in Long Island, New York. When he needed help from adults the most, he was subjected to a frightening interrogation as a person-of-interest. Traumatized, confused, and in a state of exhaustion he was pressured into making a false confession. It would take 18 years, but eventually Marty would win his freedom and sho...

At Google I/O 2023, the behemoth of search unveiled some truly fundamental changes. Plus, the guys open up the mailbag and answer your questions about misbehaving Google Business Profiles, branching out into new practice areas, and all that jazz! --- In what may be the most significant change to online search ever, Google announced the AI-powered SGE (Search Generated Experience) and Perspectives....

Are you totally terrified about taking the bar? Not gonna lie, we were too. True, it’s daunting and a ton of work, but you can (and will) pass it. Honest. But to help calm your nerves, this entire episode is filled with reassuring tips and sincere encouragement to help you plan your summer of study so you will be as prepared as possible. Good luck, stay focused and remember, you got this. Learn mo...

In Part Two of our enlightening discussion with immigration attorney Javad Khazaeli, you’ll learn more about roadblocks in the immigration system, including the antiquated process attorneys must attempt to follow to process immigration cases. You’ll also get a better understanding about how barriers to legal immigration negatively impact all of us, and how we can and should improve the process to...

American Bar Association (ABA) President Deborah Enix-Ross joins LSC President Ron Flagg to discuss her priorities in leading the ABA, the role of lawyers in preserving democracy and closing the justice gap on the latest episode of LSC's “Talk Justice” podcast. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

OK, you got the lead. The phone rang. But what happens next? How do you turn that lead into a client (and then retain that client for life)? Guest Philip Fairley is the founder of The Rainmaker Institute, a legal marketing firm dedicated to generating leads, and then turning leads into clients through a data-driven approach. You’re more than an attorney, you’re a business owner. Run that business....

Zack Glaser sits down with Thomas Officer and Scott Kelly co-founders of PatternBuilder, to discuss document automation, advanced content management, and what NetDocuments sees in their company AfterPattern. Learn how they are continuing to innovate in the automation space and what new features we can expect in the coming months. Links from the episode:  If today’s podcast resonates with you and y...

In this episode, Ben Holland joins me to discuss quick and efficient marketing ideas to implement into your strategy immediately, without fuss. We cover effective marketing touchpoints, solidifying a strong marketing baseline, and generating momentum with PPC campaigns, while also discovering the enduring power of offline marketing activities and techniques to engage potential clients. After study...

Actually, Tom’s gonna blast the idea of “spring” tech cleaning right out of the water. In reality, your technology pieces most likely need more than once-a-year maintenance to stay in top condition, so the guys lay out their tips and favorite products for both the physical and digital aspects of tidying up your tech.  Later, Copilot is slated to bring even more AI functionality to Microsoft 365 an...

In this episode, we get meta with Zack interviewing Lawyerist’s own podcast editor and consultant, Britany Felix. They talk about pitching yourself as a guest, using that appearance in your law firm marketing, and building an audience with your own podcast. Britany discusses how to look and feel professional both in your pitches and your appearances. And we get into how podcasts don’t necessarily...

BakerHostetler’s latest data security report is here, and while the threat landscape is proving to be as consistent as ever, companies have been doing a better job at identifying and containing breaches more quickly. Sharon Nelson and John Simek dig into the details of the report with Joe Bruemmer, helping listeners understand current data breach trends and how to best protect against attacks. For...

In this episode, host Jonathan Amarilio speaks with one of the world’s leading authorities on terrorism and the man famously known for predicting 9/11, Brian Michael Jenkins of the RAND Corporation. They discuss Mr. Jenkins' historical work as an advisor to many U.S. Presidents and governments on terrorism, as well as the current state of domestic political violence and terrorism in America. In th...

Joe and Chris talk about law school, layoffs, and basic decency. After law schools threw a public tantrum over the U.S. News and World Report ranking, with several withholding key data required to create a credible list, the rankings are now out and... they have serious credibility problems. Missing data, important factors glossed over, and shady employment accounting from the schools result in a...

In The Shadow Docket: How the Supreme Court Uses Stealth Rulings to Amass Power and Undermine the Republic, University of Texas law professor Stephen Vladeck argues the U.S. Supreme Court is expanding its powers at the expense of the rule of law and public transparency. A case ordinarily comes before the U.S. Supreme Court after a long appellate process; receives a public hearing where the case is...

Is something bugging you at work, but you are afraid of having an uncomfortable conversation with your boss, even if it might improve your work environment and your own mental health? Today’s episode outlines specific strategies for how and when to start productive discussions with your boss and how to effectively listen to grievances if they are presented to you from your staff. Even if you can’t...

There are plenty of judicial analytics and litigation prediction tools on the market. They may have differences in execution and focus, but the general rule of thumb is that they look at a judge’s past rulings and opinions to predict how that judge might rule on a similar motion or case in the future. For instance, you can look up how a particular judge on prior motions to dismiss on certain emplo...