The Hearing – A Legal Podcast

In this episode, Lauren chats with Katharine Larsen, Deputy General Counsel, Litigation, for Thomson Reuters. Katharine was raised in a small town in the midwestern US, but always knew she wanted to explore the world. At a young age, Katharine began living and working abroad, and continued to do so at various points in her legal career. Now back in the US and working in New York City, Katharine ha...

In this episode, Yasmin sits down with Peter Daly, an employment law partner at Doyle Clayton, to discuss his career and the high-profile philosophical belief cases he's been focused on recently. They discuss the significance for employers of the judgment Forstater, as well as the wider societal impact of such cases. For more episodes that touch upon related themes, we invite you to listen to thos...

MY LEGAL JOB & ME – In the hotseat for this episode is Charles Bagot KC from Gatehouse Chambers in London. Charles has many strings to his bow – he's a barrister, part-time judge, and joint head of chambers. He's also well known in the profession for his legendary courtesy. Listen to Charles as he talks about overcoming imposter syndrome, bouncing back from set-backs, and why it pays to be nice to...

MY LEGAL JOB & ME – This episode will be of particular interest to any aspiring solicitors. Jack Courtney is in the first seat of his training contract – at Biscoes Solicitors in Portsmouth, UK. Jack, who is in the firm's corporate team, describes his experiences and offers advice for other students who are at the beginning of their careers. If there is a specific legal job type that you would lik...

THEN: "Killer Krug" was an attack dog courtroom lawyer who presented as an aggressive male, complete with an intimidating voice that cracked witnesses on the stand. But inside, "Killer Krug" secretly grappled with suppressed gender identity issues dating back to childhood. NOW: Ellie Krug is a transgender woman who uses who uses her voice – in more ways than one – to teach compassion and empathy....

With the increased focus on ethics in the legal profession, we were interested to learn more about the work of Can't Buy My Silence (https://www.cantbuymysilence.com). This campaign group was set up in September 2021 by Zelda Perkins and Professor Julie Macfarlane. Their mission is to end the misuse of non-disclosure agreements to silence the victims of crime and wrongdoing. Zelda was the first wo...

Law school. Supreme Court of New Jersey. Prison. Oval Office of the White House. These are just a few places where this episode's guest, John Koufos, has spent time. If you haven't heard John's story, then prepare yourself for a rollercoaster ride. A former criminal defense attorney who was no stranger to a high-pressure career, John's 15-year battle with alcoholism eventually caught up to him, wi...

As you’ll know, if you want that dream job, you’ve got to nail the interview. And that’s just what Lauren Sobel and Jennifer Thibodaux had to do before taking up their posts as our new US hosts of The Hearing. Join Yasmin as she gets to know our new pod-mates – finding out Lauren and Jennifer’s career journeys, their roles as Senior Legal Editors at Practical Law, and what makes them tick. It gets...

THE CROSS-EXAMINATION – In this episode, Becky explores the unique role the monarch plays in British government, and considers what changes may come now that King Charles III has ascended to the throne following the death of his mother, Queen Elizabeth II. Becky talks to Sir Jonathan Jones KC, a consultant in constitutional law at Linklaters, and Robert Hazell, a professor of government and the co...

In this episode, Yasmin chats to Ranjit Sond – President of the UK’s Society of Asian Lawyers (https://www.societyofasianlawyers.co.uk). Ranjit is a former personal injury lawyer and now works for the Government Legal Department. In this conversation, he talks candidly about his career and the motivations behind the decisions he’s made to shape it. In his role as President for the Society of Asian...

MY LEGAL JOB & ME – Next up in our series looking at the myriad roles across the legal profession, we have Fran Murray, a cross-qualified criminal law partner at Russell-Cooke. Fran talks about her day-to-day working life, the career journey that got her to where she is now, and her philosophy on the special relationship between a client and their lawyer. Thank you for all the encouraging feedback...

In this episode, Yasmin sits down with employment law partner (and old university friend) Michelle Last. Michelle’s passion to see those who experience fertility issues of all types treated more fairly at work has informed both her practice and her public advocacy. The pair have a wide-ranging discussion that covers IVF, miscarriages and the menopause – amongst other things – and the negative impa...

MY LEGAL JOB & ME – Behind the scenes at The Hearing we speak to so many people across the legal industry, around the world. So we hear countless interesting and inspiring career stories. And it feels selfish to keep this knowledge to ourselves. So we’ve decided to share these insights into the various different roles that together make up the legal profession. We hope this series will help you be...

This episode examines the high prevalence of stress and burnout amongst lawyers, and what can be done to reduce it. Yasmin talks to Legatics CEO Anthony Seale and Lucy Shurwood from Pinsent Masons – one of the founding members of the Mindful Business Charter. The trio discuss what burnout is, some common causes and what we can learn from the pandemic. Now that wellbeing conversations have come to...

WE'RE 100 EPISODES OLD! To celebrate, we decided to turn the spotlight (mic) on our beloved host, Becky. She had mixed feelings about it, but you're going to love getting to know her better. Yasmin and Becky talk about where her passion for the law came from, her interesting career journey, and the work she does now to combat climate change. She's a hero and we're glad to dig deeper into what make...

Yasmin is doing the heavy lifting for this latest episode: interviewing The Weight Lifting Lawyer, Troy Atkin – a trainee solicitor at Biscoes in Portsmouth. The pair talk about Troy’s social media brand, his first career in hospitality and the incident that led him to the law. Troy's route to success is a testament to a profession that increasingly values other industry experience in its lawyers....

THE CROSS-EXAMINATION – This episode is a panel discussion where Becky and three guests – Dr. Larry Richard, Ann Rainhart and Michael Callier – examine the meaning of trust and how it relates to the perception of lawyers in their work. As a lawyer, you rely heavily on interpersonal trust, but you also need to be sceptical. And is this scepticism – an essential lawyering skill – hindering your prof...

In this episode Yasmin catches up with a previous guest – Charlotte Proudman: feminist, family barrister and agent for change. Charlotte talks about her work fighting for the survivors of sexual violence and what the problems are with our current justice system. The pair also discuss the introduction of no-fault divorces in the UK and why this change is long overdue. This episode won’t disappoint...

Devoted listeners to The Hearing will be familiar with the work of The Chancery Lane Project – which helps lawyers use contracts to fight climate change. This episode is about using a similar concept to tackle modern slavery and other human rights abuses. Becky speaks to Olivia Windham Stewart and Sarah Dadush about their work with the American Bar Association to help improve the human rights perf...

Here at Hearing HQ, we love to hear the real life stories of the people who make up the legal industry. And it’s been a pleasure to speak to Julie Jaggin, from Howard Kennedy, about her career and experiences as a lawyer with autism spectrum disorder (ASD), which wasn’t diagnosed until she was 41. Julie and Yasmin talk about the power of labels and the myriad of positives that differently wired br...

In the second instalment in our jury system mini-series, Becky Annison speaks to Audrey Cherryl Mogan, a barrister at Garden Court Chambers. The pair chat about Audrey's inspiration for her work and her recent case successfully defending one of six Christian Climate Change activists who obstructed a DLR train during an Extinction Rebellion protest in London. They look at the facts of the case and...

This is the first instalment in our special mini-series on the jury system. Following some recent cases, we decided to examine the integral role of jury trials in our justice system, and why it’s important that defendants have the opportunity to be judged by their peers. In this episode, Yasmin talks to Liam Walker QC, who successfully defended one of the Colston Four. Liam appeared for Sage Willo...

February is US Black History Month and to celebrate we have a special episode featuring the Law Firm Antiracism Alliance (LFAA). Our guest host, Thomson Reuters' Chief Legal Officer, Thomas Kim sits down with the LFAA's co-founders, Brenna DeVaney and Kiisha Morrow. As you will hear, Brenna and Kiisha have had an inspirational journey. Thomas asks them what inspired them to set up the alliance and...

In this episode, Yasmin goes back to school to meet the dean of BPP University Law School, Jo-Anne Pugh. They discuss what legal education is like for students who are at the beginning of their careers, and how the learning is evolving to fit (and indeed informing) the modern legal ecosystem. The pair also chat about the concept and real life experience of 'o-shaped lawyers' – a term that’s likely...

During the last week of May 2021, significant gains were made in the battle against climate change. In this episode, Becky Annison talks to Mark van Baal, the founder of the international pressure group Follow This, about what happened. Was this the beginning of a sea-change that could save the world? What some commentators bill as the start of the end of fossil fuel was driven in part by activist...