The Velvet Hammer™ Podcast

When someone suffers a catastrophic injury, choosing the right attorney can be one of the most important decisions they'll ever make. But how do you know who to trust? In this episode of Velvet Hammer, Senior Managing Partner Karen Koehler and Senior Partner Mo Hamoudi join Mike Todd to walk through a realistic personal injury scenario—from the moments after a serious collision to hiring a la...

Karen and Mo vent about the special breed of defense lawyer who turns routine litigation into a personal drama, then acts shocked when we push back. Along the way, we break down how bad briefing and petty attacks destroy credibility, and why making a clean record can save a case. • a defense filing that drags in a nickname instead of law and facts • why bully defense lawyers often act thin-skinned...

"Mom, I need a break", Karen's daughter and personal assistant lets Karen know she needs a break. Karen talks about how driven she is and how it affects her life away from the office. Stay Connected with The Velvet Hammer™ Podcast Hosted by Karen Koehler and Mo Hamoudi, trial lawyers at Stritmatter Law , a nationally recognized plaintiff's personal injury and civil rights law f...

Karen and Mo discuss the trial and the challenges of taking on a case this old.  Stay Connected with The Velvet Hammer™ Podcast Hosted by Karen Koehler and Mo Hamoudi, trial lawyers at Stritmatter Law , a nationally recognized plaintiff's personal injury and civil rights law firm based in Washington State. Featuring Mike Todd, producer, audio engineer, and the Disembodied Voice of Wisdom &amp...

Season 6, Episode 22 The Verdict Part 2 Can expert witness testimony overcome decades-old missing records? In Part 2 of this trial breakdown, Karen Koehler and Mo Hamoudi discuss the expert witnesses, courtroom strategy, and pivotal testimony that helped establish liability in a childhood sexual abuse case involving institutional failures and destroyed records. From former child welfare profession...

The verdict is in. Karen and Mo talk about the case and how they feel after the jury has made its decision. Stay Connected with The Velvet Hammer™ Podcast Hosted by Karen Koehler and Mo Hamoudi, trial lawyers at Stritmatter Law , a nationally recognized plaintiff's personal injury and civil rights law firm based in Washington State. Featuring Mike Todd, producer, audio engineer, and the Disem...

The trial ends, the courtroom empties, and then comes the part nobody romanticizes: waiting for the verdict. After weeks of jury selection, motions, testimony, and closing arguments, we’re left staring at the one thing we can’t influence anymore. The jury takes a Memorial Day weekend pause, and that small delay turns into a magnifying glass on stress, control, and the way trial work gets under you...

Karen asks Mo and Mike about professional and personal commitments and how they affect our lives. Do you find you overcommit in your life? Listen to our conclusions.  Stay Connected with The Velvet Hammer™ Podcast Hosted by Karen Koehler and Mo Hamoudi, trial lawyers at Stritmatter Law , a nationally recognized plaintiff's personal injury and civil rights law firm based in Washington State. F...

Episode 18: The start of a trial In this episode of The Velvet Hammer™ Podcast , Karen Koehler, Mo Hamoudi, and Mike Todd talk about Karen and Mo starting a new trial.  What goes through their heads as they prepare and as the trial begins. 🎧 Stay Connected with The Velvet Hammer™ Podcast Hosted by Karen Koehler and Mo Hamoudi , trial lawyers at Stritmatter Law , a nationally recognized plaintiff...

Episode 17: Lawyer Burnout and How It Can Affect Clients This is Part 3 of a three-part series on mental and physical health for trial lawyers. In this episode of The Velvet Hammer™ Podcast , Karen Koehler, Mo Hamoudi, and Mike Todd have an honest conversation about lawyer burnout, mental health, substance abuse culture in the legal profession, and the dangerous reality of the “just keep going” me...

Episode 16: Mental Health and Burnout in Trial Law This is Part 2 of a three-part series on mental and physical health for trial lawyers. Trial lawyers are trained to push through. Keep going. Don’t show weakness. So what happens when the pressure starts to build? In this episode, Karen Koehler, Mo Hamoudi, and Mike Todd take on something most lawyers avoid discussing: burnout is real, and pretend...

Season 6, Episode 15: The need to take care of yourself in the practice of law This is Part 1 of a three-part series on mental and physical health for trial lawyers. Karen, Mo, and Mike discuss the need for mental and physical health and how to manage it in your practice. Stay Connected with The Velvet Hammer™ Podcast Hosted by Karen Koehler and Mo Hamoudi, trial lawyers at Stritmatter Law , a nat...

Episode 14 Karen, Mo and Mike discuss the Afroman trial. 🎧 Stay Connected with The Velvet Hammer™ Podcast Hosted by Karen Koehler and Mo Hamoudi , trial lawyers at Stritmatter Law , a nationally recognized plaintiff personal injury and civil rights law firm based in Washington State.  Produced by Mike Todd, Audio & Video Engineer, and Kassie Slugić, Executive Producer.  Watch full episodes on...

Karen, Mo and Mike discuss the urge to use the internet instead of using a lawyer and the pitfalls that can arise.   Stay Connected with The Velvet Hammer™ Podcast Hosted by Karen Koehler and Mo Hamoudi, trial lawyers at Stritmatter Law , a nationally recognized plaintiff's personal injury and civil rights law firm based in Washington State. Featuring Mike Todd, producer, audio engineer, and...

Recorded Live on March 24, 2026  Karen Koehler and Mo Hamoudi bring their Velvet Hammer Podcast style to another important CLE. Learn why you should not take Amazon’s word for how much insurance is available in a delivery crash case. And why Amazon cannot insulate itself from liability by claiming its drivers are independent contractors. Stay Connected with The Velvet Hammer™ Podcast Hosted by Kar...

Episode 11: When Clients Google Their Lawsuit and It Backfires  Your first instinct after a diagnosis or a sudden injury is to open Google or an AI tool and start researching. It feels responsible. It feels like control. Karen Koehler, Mo Hamoudi, and Mike Todd take on what that instinct can mean inside a personal injury lawsuit. What happens when defense attorneys ask for a plaintiff’s Google sea...

Episode 10: To Take or Not to Take A Case How do lawyers decide which cases to take and which ones they have to turn away? In this episode of The Velvet Hammer™ Podcast , Karen Koehler and Mo Hamoudi discuss case selection inside a plaintiff law firm. Every week, people call after catastrophic injuries, medical mistakes, or the loss of a loved one. Most believe they have a case. The difficult real...

 Episode 9: Sanctions, Sexism, and Gender Bias in the Courtroom  A judge issued a sanctions order against a plaintiff attorney. But this was not about missed deadlines or discovery disputes. It was about gender bias, professionalism, and what happens when misogyny shows up in a courtroom. In this episode, Karen Koehler, Mo Hamoudi, and Mike Todd break down the order, including allegations that a f...

Season 6, Episode 8: What Legal Dramas Get Wrong About Real Trials What do legal dramas get completely wrong about the courtroom? Karen Koehler, Mo Hamoudi, and Mike Todd take on Law and Order, The Wire, John Grisham movies, My Cousin Vinny, and even Drop Dead Diva to break down what Hollywood gets wildly wrong about real trials.  From surprise evidence waved in the air mid-cross to rogue police o...

Season 6, Episode 7: Renée Good ICE Shooting and Independent Autopsy Developments  In this episode, we return to the case of Renée Good, who was fatally shot by ICE in Minnesota, a case we originally broke down in Episode 2: Legal Breakdown of the ICE Minnesota Shooting on January 14. Renée Good, a 37-year-old U.S. citizen, was killed by an ICE agent in Minneapolis on January 7. Since that initial...

In this episode of The Velvet Hammer™ Podcast , Karen Koehler, Mo Hamoudi, and Mike Todd unpack a real case in which a Somali client and a paralegal were followed after a defense medical exam on Martin Luther King Jr. Day. What initially looked like routine surveillance quickly escalated into fear, confusion, and a confrontation that exposed deeper issues around power, racial profiling, and defens...

Season 6, Episode 5: The ACLU Lawsuit Challenging ICE’s Operation Metro Surge A young Somali American U.S. citizen is tackled and detained by ICE in Minnesota, then later pepper-sprayed while filming a protest. That moment becomes the flashpoint for a federal class action brought by the American Civil Liberties Union , challenging ICE’s Operation Metro Surge. Karen Koehler, Mo Hamoudi, and Mike To...

Season 6, Episode 4:  The Reality of Work-Life Balance for Trial Lawyers  What does “work-life balance” actually look like for trial lawyers? In this episode, Karen Koehler , Mo Hamoudi , and Mike Todd get honest about what life looks like in the weeks leading up to trial and in the middle of it. Karen walks through how she keeps relationships, movement, and creativity in her life even during tria...

Season 6, Episode 3: Power: Who Holds It And Who Doesn’t In this episode, Karen Koehler and Mo Hamoudi go head-to-head on whether power is real or an illusion, and why that question matters when your client has none. From courtroom dynamics and judicial authority to insurance companies, employers, and institutions that quietly run the show, this conversation pulls apart how power actually works wh...

Season 6, Episode 2: Legal Breakdown of the ICE Minnesota Shooting In this episode, Karen Koehler , Mo Hamoudi , and Mike Todd examine the January 7, 2026, fatal ICE shooting in Minnesota that resulted in the death of Renee Nicole Good . They discuss what is visible on video, the sequence of events, and the legal standards that apply when deadly force is used. The conversation focuses on Fourth Am...