Power Up Your Practice

In this episode, Ruby Powers sits down with Anna Naidis and Igor Sheremet, co-founders of Aparti.ai, for a conversation about one of the most emotionally complex and operationally fragmented corners of the legal profession: family law. Anna and Igor didn't build Aparti from a whiteboard exercise. Members of their founding team went through the divorce process themselves and experienced firsthand w...

In this episode, Ruby Powers sits down with Tim Semelroth — Iowa's only board-certified truck accident lawyer, partner at RSH Legal, and adjunct professor at the University of Iowa College of Law — for one of the most operationally concrete conversations the show has had on building a law firm for the long game. Tim has had the same parking spot for 28 years. In that time, he's watched the firm go...

In this episode, Ruby Powers sits down with Niki Black — attorney, journalist, and Principal Legal Insight Strategist at 8am — for one of the most data-rich conversations the show has had on AI in the legal profession. Niki leads the 8am Legal Industry Report, now in its third year tracking AI adoption across law firms. The numbers from this year's report are striking — and not just because adopti...

In this episode, Ruby Powers sits down with Mike Milligan, CFP® and founder of 1.oak Financial, for one of the most practically useful financial conversations Power Up Your Practice has had. Mike started his relationship with money early — watching his grandmother sell collard sandwiches at job sites after his grandfather couldn't work, charging $5 each at a time when a Big Mac cost a dollar. That...

In this episode, Ruby Powers sits down with Erin Gerner — attorney, entrepreneur, coach, and founder of Powerhouse Lawyers — for a conversation that a lot of high-achieving women in law need to hear but rarely get to have out loud. Erin left BigLaw, then left an in-house counsel position when she became a mom, and spent years figuring out who she was when "attorney" wasn't the first thing on her l...

In this episode, Ruby Powers sits down with Luis Baris, founder of Law Firm Architects, for a conversation about what actually keeps law firm owners stuck — and what it takes to build a practice that doesn't fall apart the moment they step away. Luis came to legal operations from an unlikely direction: 15 years at NASA as an engineer and eventually head of customer experience. He got his first loo...

In this episode, Ruby Powers sits down with Marco Scanu — entrepreneur, consultant, and founder of Andiamo Travel, Visa Business Plans, and ProfitWise Online — for a conversation that's equal parts practical and inspiring. Marco grew up in the travel industry — his father founded one of Venezuela's first travel agencies — and has spent decades helping people travel smarter. In this episode, he bre...

In this episode, Ruby Powers sits down with Lambert Dunn — trial lawyer, immigration attorney, and solo practitioner based in Western Oklahoma — for one of the most honest conversations in the Resilience Series yet. Lambert's story didn't unfold in a single crisis. It accumulated. Cancer diagnosed months after getting married. A wife who fell into addiction while he was fighting for his own life....

Recorded live at NeoSummit 2026 in Fort Lauderdale, Ruby Powers sits down with Samantha Hamiel, Chief of Staff at Neostella, for a conversation about the side of legal tech change that nobody talks about enough: the human side. Samantha leads change management from the inside of one of legal tech's fastest-growing companies — and before that, she was a litigation paralegal. That combination gives...

Recorded live at #NeoSummit2026 in Fort Lauderdale, Ruby Powers sits down with Brian Mayer, VP of Product at Neostella, for a candid conversation about one of the biggest frustrations in legal tech: why the tools still don't work together — and what it's going to take to fix that. Brian leads the product team behind Neostella's enterprise case management platform, built from the ground up to be op...

In this episode, Ruby Powers sits down with Christine J. Alden — immigration attorney, shareholder at Buchanan Ingersoll & Rooney, and past president of the American Immigration Lawyers Association South Florida chapter — for a conversation most law firm owners never get to hear: what actually happens when you merge your boutique practice into a big firm. Christine has run the full gamut — solo pr...

In this episode, Ruby Powers sits down with Dorna Moini — CEO and founder of Gavel, former Sidley Austin attorney, ABA Legal Rebel, and Fastcase 50 honoree — for one of the most practical legal tech conversations we've had on the show. Dorna didn't just build a legal automation tool. She started by solving a real problem — creating a TurboTax-style system for domestic violence survivors navigating...

In this episode, Ruby Powers sits down with Nandini Nair—partner at A.Y. Strauss, former Global General Counsel for a multinational corporation, immigration compliance attorney, and fractional GC—for a conversation that most lawyers never get to hear: what corporate clients actually wish their outside counsel knew. Nandini has sat on both sides of the table. She knows what it feels like to receive...

In this episode, Ruby Powers sits down with Matt Darner, co-founder and CEO of CollBox — the ABA Tech Show Startup Alley winner helping law firms recover what they've already earned but haven't collected yet. Matt has seen the inside of hundreds of law firm billing situations. And what he finds is almost always the same: a growing number on the aging report, closed matters with unpaid invoices, an...

In this episode, Ruby Powers sits down with Jason Epstein — partner at Premier Law Group in Bellevue, Washington, Washington Super Lawyer, ABA trial skills faculty, and adjunct professor at Seattle University School of Law — for a conversation about what it actually takes to build a law firm on your own terms. Jason's path wasn't linear. He got fired after asking to see the firm's financials. He d...

In this episode, Ruby Powers sits down with Wayne Basist (ESQ Mental Fitness) for Chapter #2 of the Resilience Series. Wayne built a seven-figure solo practice from nothing — no clients, no cases, just conviction. Then, in a single moment on Pacific Coast Highway, everything changed. Nine spinal surgeries, major depression, PTSD, and addiction later, Wayne didn't just survive. He rebuilt everythin...

In this episode, Ruby Powers sits down with Paul Grabowski — Chief Marketing and Business Development Officer at Bracewell LLP, co-author of The ABCs of Legal Marketing , and adjunct professor at the University of Houston Law Center — to talk about what it really takes to become a rainmaker in today's legal market. Paul brings a one-of-a-kind perspective: from the Chicago Bears and Houston Oilers...

In this episode, Ruby Powers catches up with her colleague from the conference circuit, Jordan Furlong, to talk about the structural rebirth of the legal profession and how to lead in a post-AI world. Jordan (global legal forecaster, Principal at Law21 and the Keynote Speaker for ABA TECHSHOW 2026,) explains that the "Knowledge Monopoly" is officially over. We move beyond the tech talk to discuss...

In this episode, Ruby Powers catches up with her friend and colleague from the conference circuit, Michael D.J. Eisenberg, to talk about why podcasting has become the ultimate strategic move for firm owners. Michael (author of The Lawyer's Guide to Podcasting) explains that if your voice isn't in the "internet ether," you are basically invisible to the AI models that now decide who the experts are...

In this episode, Ruby Powers sits down with Sateesh Nori, author of The Augmented Lawyer , to discuss how to move beyond the "human robot" era. Sateesh explains why the current legal system's reliance on "widgets"—interchangeable, mechanical practitioners—is coming to an end. They dive into the "Billable Hour Crisis" and why true leadership in the age of AI requires a shift from manual tasks to st...

In this episode, Ruby Powers sits down with Matt Lautz, CEO of Neostella, to discuss how to move from being a software "tenant" to a strategic owner. Matt explains why "maximizing your data" is the only way to successfully scale in the era of AI and hyper-automation. They dive into the "Operational Bug" that holds firms back and why true leadership requires a "Connected Hub" approach where you own...

In this episode, Ruby Powers sits down with Charity Anastasio (Practice and Ethics Counsel at AILA) to break down why so many lawyers feel neurologically overwhelmed by the current "tsunami" of change. Charity explains why our biology isn't designed for this speed and how the "Expert Trap" prevents firms from truly evolving. She shares her blueprint for moving from an AI skeptic to a collaborative...

We've reached a major milestone! For our 100th episode, we are diving deep into a philosophy that challenges everything you've been told about growing a law firm. Ruby Powers sits down with Ryan McKeen, founder of Best Era LLC, to discuss why the ultimate success isn't found in having the biggest firm, but in having the most intentional one. Ryan shares his journey from building a 40-person "machi...

In this episode, Ruby Powers sits down with Anthony Karls (Sterling Lawyers) to break down the "Waterfall Method." Anthony explains why most firms fail to scale because they are "light in the middle"—trying to wear every business hat while practicing law. He shares his blueprint for predicting bottlenecks before they burn you out and explains why scaling actually requires more discipline and less...

We are kicking off something huge: Welcome to Chapter #1 of the Resilience Series. In this episode, Ruby Powers sits down with Kevin Block (Maui Immigration Law) to explore the architecture of professional grit. Kevin's life is a 40-year masterclass in survival—from a near-death cliff crash and an HIV diagnosis in the 80s, to leading his firm through the devastating Lahaina Fires. This isn't just...