Legal Talk Network - Law News and Legal Topics

Attorneys often expect incarcerated clients to lie and vice versa, says Derrick Hamilton, who served more than 20 years of a second-degree murder sentence. Those outlooks don’t help build good attorney-client relationships, according to Hamilton, who now works with students at the Yeshiva University Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law’s Perlmutter Center for Legal Justice. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Originalism is a type of judicial interpretation of a constitution (especially the U.S. Constitution) that aims to follow how it would have been understood or was intended to be understood at the time it was written. With the addition of Justice Amy Coney Barrett to the High Court, there are now 4 avowed originalists on the Supreme Court including: Justices Thomas, Gorsuch, and Kavanaugh.Originalism has been cited in recent landmark decisions including Dobbs & Bruen, but are these justices abiding by the true definition of the word? Are they truly originalists? Or are they picking and choosing their history based on their ideology?In this episode, host Craig Williams joins guest David H. Gans, Director of the Human Rights, Civil Rights & Citizenship Program at the Constitutional Accountability Center to discuss SCOTUS' move toward originalism, the impact, and the conflict between Justice Thomas' and Justice Jackson's views. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

A year-end farewell as co-host Carl Morrison steps away from the mic. It’s been a great ride for the past five years, and Carl closes with a look back at 2022. Have no fear, co-host Jill Francisco stays with the podcast and will continue to deliver important insights in 2023.We’re watching so many changes to the role of paralegal professionals: more responsibilities, better tools, improved processes, and more options than ever.How can we make the legal profession more efficient and deliver more value? Think of paralegal professionals as “revenue protectors” not a “cost center.” By adding value, paralegals let firms keep more of what they earn. Process management remains key.Carl also revisits “DEI,” diversity, equity, and inclusion. How are we doing in the legal profession? And then there’s ALSP, alternative legal service providers. Did that turn out well for paralegals? The creativity of paralegal professionals continues to improve the process and drive the profession. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Attorneys have a unique opportunity to use their skills for the good of others. And Sateesh Nori, Executive Director of JustFix, has worked his entire career doing just that. Sateesh spent 20 years with New York City’s Legal Aid societies, defending the tenants’ rights of everyday people in housing court. He pivoted from practicing law on the front lines to join JustFix, a housing justice technology non-profit company. Now, he’s helping to bridge the gap of access to housing justice and help tenants exercise their rights to a livable home through technology.If today’s podcast resonates with you and you haven’t read The Small Firm Roadmap yet, get the first chapter right now for free!Thanks to Posh Virtual Receptionists, Berkshire Receptionists, & Lawyerist Lab for sponsoring this episode. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

TECHSHOW 2023 is right around the corner! Sharon Nelson and Jim Calloway chat with co-chairs Jeannine Lambert and Gyi Tsakalakis about the offerings at the upcoming conference. This year, the conference will be an entirely in-person event, so don’t miss the return of Taste of TECHSHOW, crowd favorite Start-Up Alley, the new Visionaries of Legal Tech panel discussion, and much more. Find out more and register (and snag the early bird discount before January 18th!) at: techshow.com.Jeannine Lambert is the executive director of Centers & Programming at Northern Kentucky University Chase College of Law.Gyi Tsakalakis is a former lawyer and the founder of AttorneySync, an online legal marketing agency, to help lawyers be where their clients are looking. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

It's all about optics.When an associate left Jones Day before serving a full two years, the firm billed for pro-rated bar study expenses. Once again, just because an agreement allows a firm to do something, doesn't mean it should. It's just not a good look for a firm. Speaking of optics, we also talk about Justice Brett Kavanaugh partying with Matt Gaetz and Alex Acosta -- and more importantly, parties with business before the Court this Term -- all while Supreme Court legitimacy sinks like a stone. Speaking of legitimacy, the Fifth Circuit agrees that a judge committed an ethical breach in hearing a case, but decided to just sweep it under the rug. Also, by the time this posts, Twitter will have changed its policies five more times, but we discuss the legal ramifications, if any, of Twitter's short-lived ban on mentioning "competitors." Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Since childhood, Wendy Tamis Robbins experienced debilitating anxiety and panic attacks. Her perfectionism pushed her to achieve in sports and academics, and her high level of achievement masked her mental anguish from public view. While she found success in her legal and political careers, Robbins was negotiating with her own brain to get through her days, minute by minute.Robbins began writing her memoir, The Box: An Invitation to Freedom from Anxiety, while still in the process of recovery. It began as a series of writing exercises she used to make sense of her meditation practices. But it became an investigation into the mental and emotional barriers she constructed since childhood to protect herself–and a blueprint for dismantling the barriers that no longer served her.In this episode of the Modern Law Library, the ABA Journal's Lee Rawles talks to Robbins about dealing with anxiety in law school and law practice; the positive reaction at her law firm when she opened up about her mental health struggles; and what Robbins finds unhelpful about self-help books. They discuss the difference between being "productive" and being mentally well, and how Robbins overcame her aversion to mindfulness as part of her healing process. They also talk about how people with anxiety respond when the dangers they perceive are real, such as during the COVID-19 pandemic.In the months since the 2021 publication of The Box, Robbins has also dealt with a cancer diagnosis and many career changes, and she shares updates on her progress and projects. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

We’ve got a great topic to chat about at your next holiday gathering with girlfriends. What were your highs and lows of the year, personally and professionally? Did you overcome an obstacle? Reach a goal? Deal with a loss? Fail miserably? And what does it tell you about yourself and how to be a better you next year? Hear how we learned, lost, and lived through our highs and lows of 2022 in this introspective episode. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

You win some, you lose some. But if you lose an important motion, how can you convince the judge to reconsider without risking her wrath? And when should you just let it go? Part Two of our discussion on motions also includes suggestions on preparing a short written synopsis of key points in your case for judge and opposing counsel plus tips on typography and persuasive writing.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

According to studies, the US criminal justice system currently holds almost 2 million people—a 500% increase over the last 40 years; with most of those people in jail awaiting trial. Unfortunately, American prisons and jails can be dangerous. Several of our nation's prisons and jails can be understaffed and over populated. And because of inadequate supervision, people in our prisons and jails are exposed to violence, including sexual violence. To discuss what can be done about prison reform and about prisoners' rights, generally, host Dave Scriven-Young welcomes Hernandez Stroud.Hernandez Stroud is a counsel in the Justice Program of the Brennan Center for Justice at New York University School of Law. An authority on prisons and jails, correctional oversight, and constitutional law, he researches the scope of the federal government’s power to fashion structural and systemic reforms that prevent and remedy the failure of state and local criminal justice institutions in observing the rights of the incarcerated under the U.S. Constitution. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices