Legal Talk Network - Law News and Legal Topics

Stephanie Everett talks with Lawyerist Lab coach and finance expert, Bernadette Harris, about law firm expenses, when it’s okay to spend money on your business, and when debt might even be a good thing. 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 LawPay, MyCase, and Posh Virtual Receptionists for sponsoring this episode. Check out the winners of this year’s Best Law Firm Websites contest! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

US News and World Report released its annual law school rankings last week and delivered chaos upon the legal world, dropping Harvard from its top three perch. As we break down some key insights from the rankings, we remind everyone not to get too hung up on these numbers. Speaking of numbers that lawyers should get hung up on, it looks like a lawyer screw up cost a bank around $600M so that's not great. And speaking of being the opposite of great, unhinged text messages from Ginni Thomas raise questions about the fitness of Clarence Thomas to serve on the Supreme Court. Don't worry, no one will end up doing anything about it.Special thanks to our sponsor, Posh Virtual Receptionists, LLC. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Consider the courtroom as a live drama unfolding before you. How can you direct the characters to tell their most authentic story and utilize breathing, dramatic structure, voice control, and more to make that story as persuasive as possible? The conclusion of our fascinating two-part discussion with Andrew Caple-Shaw and Alexandra Wright of ACT of COMMUNICATION will change the way you prep and practice and leave you laughing with two instructive stories about termites and the best witness in the world. Don’t miss this episode. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In August 2020, contract attorney Laura Frederick accepted a challenge: Post to LinkedIn once a day, every day, for a month. Frederick thought she might be able to keep up a string of several days in a row. Instead, her daily posts became a way to connect with colleagues, build business, create a brand identity, and have a social lifeline during the isolation of the pandemic. A selection of those posts also found their way into her self-published book, Practical Tips on How to Contract: Techniques and Tactics from an Ex-BigLaw and Ex-Tesla Commercial Contracts Lawyer.Frederick says that she's never been the sort of person who enjoyed the cocktail party circuit way of rainmaking. When she launched her own law practice after years of working in BigLaw and as an in-house attorney for companies including Tesla, she relied for the first year entirely on referrals. But the connections she was able to make through LinkedIn has rapidly expanded opportunities for her legal practice and for her training and skill-development company, How to Contract.Frederick tells the ABA Journal's Lee Rawles that one of her driving motivations for posting daily tips to LinkedIn has been her desire to pass along knowledge gained over the course of her career to younger attorneys. When she was a beginning attorney in the 1990s, she says she gained tremendously by being able to shadow more experienced attorneys at her firm, learning at the side of longtime contract attorneys. The same opportunities are not available now, particularly when so many young attorneys are launching their own solo or small firm practices. She hopes that both Practical Tips on How to Contract and her continuing daily posts to LinkedIn–she's now written more than 400–can help fill that gap. She adds that engaging with her commenters has also taught her lessons that improved her own legal work. In this episode, Frederick talks about the practical steps to building a brand and self-publishing; how she expanded into creating legal cartoons; and what it was like to be an attorney for Tesla. Special thanks to our sponsor, Posh Virtual Receptionists. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Opposing counsel's expert’s report raises doubts in your mind about scientific methodology or adherence to industry-standard practices….do you file a Daubert motion to seek to exclude the presentation of that expert’s testimony to the jury? You may not deal with Daubert motions every day, but they can play a key role in your case, so it’s worth a few minutes of your time to learn when to file a Daubert motion, what strategies can strengthen your motion, and why the savvy play may be to not file the motion at all. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Litigators face distinct challenges when it comes to business development. Unlike their transactional counterparts, clients often only need a litigator once. That means the process of developing business for a litigator is ongoing. Because of this unsteady workflow, identifying a prospective client list, bringing in business and growing your litigation practice can be difficult.  In this episode, special guests, Sharla Frost and Angela Steffen Meyer, provide litigators with a practical guide to getting more clients and advancing their legal careers through simple and effective business development strategies.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Zack talks with Knackly.io’s CEO, Kim Mayberry, about how lawyers can build apps using document automation platforms.Who is Knackly?They are the fastest, most-powerful document automation software available.They’re already saving other firms over 90% of the time they spent creating, drafting, proofing, editing, and producing legal documents and correspondence. Knackly.io: https://knackly.io Lawyerist Product Spotlight with Knackly: https://youtu.be/0WRKWUgA8Ng 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! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Ever wanted to watch a dark, oddball love story about a death-obsessed couple with a 60-year age gap? Jared’s got just the thing! The 1971 film, “Harold and Maude” is a cult classic and has a Cat Stevens-centric soundtrack, so, obviously, a total win-win for your next movie night.Next, Jared welcomes Shaun Buck to chat about the surprising ways that traditional newsletters can grow your business. Shaun shares insights on how a useful, entertaining piece of mail can impact consumers and bring them to your law firm.And, last but not least, what’s cool about Idaho? Jared and Shaun are on a quest to find out in the new Rump Roast game: “Idaho? YOUdaho!”Shaun Buck is founder and CEO of Newsletter Pro based in Boise, Idaho.-----In honor of the long-delayed release of the "Harold and Maude" soundtrack, it's time for y'all to make sure you've totally caught up on Cat Stevens.https://open.spotify.com/playlist/7F02Lp2J2ovTHfo2eHl2YL?si=6e693f3a6cad4998------Our opening track is Two Cigarettes by Major Label Interest.The music for the Legal Trends Report Minute is I See You by Sounds Like Sander.Our closing track is Canoe Journey by Andy Ellison. Special thanks to our sponsors TimeSolv, Clio, Scorpion, and Alert Communications. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

What is an intrapreneur and how can it help your firm? Truthfully, when it comes to your firm, anyone can be an intrapreneur. It’s up to the leaders of the firm to foster and encourage the team to explore and support new ideas and ventures. We talk about what intrapreneurship can do for your firm in this episode with Art Bell.  Art is a writer and former media executive known for creating, building, and managing successful cable television channels. His memoir, published by Ulysses Press, Constant Comedy: How I Started Comedy Central and Lost My Sense of Humor was recently honored as a finalist in the 2020 Best Book Awards for memoir.  While working at HBO, Art pitched the idea of a 24-hour comedy network and helped develop and launch HBO’s The Comedy Channel, which became Comedy Central. He went on to hold senior executive positions in both programming and marketing. After leaving Comedy Central, Art became President of Court TV, where he was a guiding force behind one of the most successful brand evolutions in cable television. In addition to writing, Art plays piano and drums, and co-hosts “The Constant Comedy Podcast with Art Bell and Vinnie Favale.” Art gives listeners actionable tips on: What an intrapreneur is How being an intrapreneur allowed Art to start up the very first comedy network, which we now know as Comedy Central The impacts of going through a merger  Why it’s important for lawyers at any firm to operate as intrapreneurs  The two things that go into research Resources mentioned in this episode: The Dawn of Everything by David Graeber and David Wengrow Germs, Guns and Steel by Jared Diamond Constant Comedy: How I Started Comedy Central and Lost My Sense of Humor by Art Bell Connect with Art here: Instagram Twitter LinkedIn Facebook https://www.artbellwriter.com/   Connect with me Instagram Pinterest Facebook Twitter Karin on Twitter Karin on LinkedIn Conroy Creative Counsel on Facebook https://conroycreativecounsel.com  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Time to meet your candidates! On March 10, Joe Escobedo and Cindy Tisdale participated in a live, virtual forum hosted by Rocky Dhir. Get to know Joe and Cindy as they share their priorities for the State Bar of Texas and answer audience questions. Register to join their next live forum on April 5! Joe Escobedo is a partner at Escobedo & Cardenas, LLP, in Edinburg, Texas, where he devotes his practice to tort litigation and mediations. Cindy Tisdale is a small firm attorney in Granbury, Texas, where she dedicates her practice to family law. She is also Of Counsel with Lynch, Chappell & Alsup in Midland.Special thanks to our sponsor, LawPay. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices