On the Road with Legal Talk Network

Επεισόδια

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  Insights from the 2026 ALPS Bar Leaders Retreat 21.09.2026 20λ

  Across a week of conversations in Missoula, one theme kept resurfacing no matter who was in the chair: AI is forcing every bar leader in the country to rethink risk, mentorship, and what it means to serve solo and small firm attorneys who are already stretched thin. Chris Newbold, COO of ALPS Insurance, opens this compilation with a thank you to the bar leaders who made the retreat what it was. From there, the episode pulls together moments from across the series focused on solo and small firm practice: Rachel Okun on why relationships built through bar leadership matter more than marketing, Kevin Maxim on the collision between attorney-client privilege and AI, Mark Bassingthwaighte on why succession planning has become a quiet crisis for solos, and Susan Carns Curtiss on the anonymous posts revealing how many newer attorneys are struggling to find mentorship. John Mudd, Alison Gee, Angela Armstrong, and Susan Bradford Tarley round out the conversation with their own takes on wellness, hallucinated case law, and the legal deserts still waiting to be served. Together, these voices paint a picture of a profession adapting in real time, uncertain but not without hope. Proving once again that ALPS Insurance puts the "treat" in retreat, they gathered leaders in law from across the country this summer. These sit-down conversations reveal flavors of leadership and legal trends from a variety of perspectives. Cool takes, one scoop at a time, recorded live at the 2026 ALPS Bar Leaders Retreat in Missoula, MT. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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  Adapting to AI and Technology: Strategies for Law Firm Resilience – 2026 ALPS Bar Leaders Retreat 21.09.2026 51λ

  After 28 years as ALPS Insurance's Risk Manager, Mark Bassingthwaighte says cybersecurity now worries him more than legal malpractice, and he's tired of hearing solo and small firm lawyers insist they're too small to be a target. Bassingthwaighte, who's worked with more than 1,200 law firms and delivered over 700 CLE seminars, traces a quieter crisis behind the numbers: he estimates some form of attorney impairment, burnout, depression, addiction, or dementia, plays a role in as many as half to 70% of malpractice claims, including one case where an attorney was found hiding client files in the trunk of his car. He also breaks down how generative AI is supercharging phishing attacks at a scale small firms have never had to defend against, and pushes back on the fear that AI itself will replace lawyers, arguing it will only take out the ones who refuse to adapt. Bassingthwaighte closes on a message he repeats often to lawyers facing a claim: you're not judged by the mistake you made, you're judged by what you do about it. Proving once again that ALPS Insurance puts the "treat" in retreat, they gathered leaders in law from across the country this summer. These sit-down conversations reveal flavors of leadership and legal trends from a variety of perspectives. Cool takes, one scoop at a time, recorded live at the 2026 ALPS Bar Leaders Retreat in Missoula, MT. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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  Community, Burnout, and Knowing Who to Call – 2026 ALPS Bar Leaders Retreat 21.09.2026 43λ

  In 2016, Susan Carns Curtiss added 46 women attorneys she knew to a Facebook group with no real plan behind it, and it's since grown into Girl Attorney, a network of more than 40,000 women lawyers trading practice advice, mentorship, and support across the country. A plaintiff's personal injury and wrongful death trial lawyer in Oklahoma City, Curtiss describes watching newer attorneys increasingly post anonymously about burnout and a lack of mentorship, even as most of the community is thriving, and shares her own recent experience nearly drowning in a growing litigation docket before a longtime colleague stepped in to help her offload cases. She credits two decades of showing up in her local bar and trial lawyer community for having someone to call when she needed it, and pushes back gently on the idea that women's push for work-life balance is a new trend rather than a fight that's been underway for years. Curtiss closes with a call not to look away from what she sees as a broader breakdown in the rule of law, and to find the others who are choosing to stand up rather than turn away. Proving once again that ALPS Insurance puts the "treat" in retreat, they gathered leaders in law from across the country this summer. These sit-down conversations reveal flavors of leadership and legal trends from a variety of perspectives. Cool takes, one scoop at a time, recorded live at the 2026 ALPS Bar Leaders Retreat in Missoula, MT. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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  Navigating Innovation and Ethics: The Future of Law in Montana – 2026 ALPS Bar Leaders Retreat 21.09.2026 35λ

  One stretch of eastern Montana spans 75,000 square miles and has just 123 lawyers to cover it, and John Mudd, Executive Director and General Counsel of the State Bar of Montana, sees AI as one of the only realistic ways to close that kind of gap. A fifth-generation Montanan and national speaker on legal ethics and attorney wellness, Mudd lays out what he calls a "soup" of forces converging at once: rising distrust of institutions, a widening access to justice problem, and AI arriving into both at the same time. He points to recent structural shifts in the profession - Montana's newly adopted community justice worker program, modeled after a system Alaska pioneered, and to the broader wave of non-lawyer ownership entering law firms in addition to more immediate risks like attorneys filing briefs built on hallucinated case law. Mudd closes on the message he's carrying into the next year: when everything speeds up at once, the answer isn't panic, it's returning to the bedrock obligations, honesty with the court and loyalty to clients, that don't change no matter what tool is doing the work. Proving once again that ALPS Insurance puts the "treat" in retreat, they gathered leaders in law from across the country this summer. These sit-down conversations reveal flavors of leadership and legal trends from a variety of perspectives. Cool takes, one scoop at a time, recorded live at the 2026 ALPS Bar Leaders Retreat in Missoula, MT. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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  Navigating Change in Wyoming’s Legal Profession – 2026 ALPS Bar Leaders Retreat 21.09.2026 34λ

  Some Wyoming counties have two practicing attorneys or fewer, and once you subtract the elected county attorney and public defenders, Alison Gee says there's barely enough left to keep a functioning legal system running. The incoming President of the Wyoming State Bar and a rural general practitioner, Gee describes fielding whatever problem walks through her door, a role she jokingly calls being a "law ninja," and explains how the state has leaned on remote hearings, online filing, and borrowed attorneys to patch gaps like its public defender shortage. She makes a case for moving law firms off local servers and onto cloud-based systems with real security controls, and pushes back on the instinct to let AI shortcut legal research given how easily it hallucinates case law. Gee closes on the balance she's trying to strike as incoming president, bringing Wyoming's legal profession into the future without losing the hands-on judgment that only comes from doing the work the hard way first. Proving once again that ALPS Insurance puts the "treat" in retreat, they gathered leaders in law from across the country this summer. These sit-down conversations reveal flavors of leadership and legal trends from a variety of perspectives. Cool takes, one scoop at a time, recorded live at the 2026 ALPS Bar Leaders Retreat in Missoula, MT. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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  What 250 Years of the Rule of Law Asks of Today's Lawyers – 2026 ALPS Bar Leaders Retreat 21.09.2026 34λ

  As Virginia marks 250 years since its lawyers helped shape American democracy, Susan Bradford Tarley, President of the Virginia State Bar, is framing her term around what that legacy still demands of the profession today. A real estate and business law partner at Tarley Robinson PLC, she's built her presidency around four priorities: foundational ethics, attorney wellness, the bar's strategic plan, and Virginia's shortage of lawyers in underserved areas, detailed in the bar's own EGAD Report on where new attorneys are and aren't landing. She also weighs in on attorneys caught submitting briefs built on AI-hallucinated cases, some of whom doubled down even after a judge flagged them, arguing it's a symptom of skipping the work rather than a problem with the tool itself. Tarley closes on wellness as the precondition for everything else, arguing that lawyers can only take the small steps that sustain the rule of law if they put their own oxygen masks on first. Proving once again that ALPS Insurance puts the "treat" in retreat, they gathered leaders in law from across the country this summer. These sit-down conversations reveal flavors of leadership and legal trends from a variety of perspectives. Cool takes, one scoop at a time, recorded live at the 2026 ALPS Bar Leaders Retreat in Missoula, MT. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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  Burnout, Rural Opportunity, and Building a Career Without Marketing – 2026 ALPS Bar Leaders Retreat 21.09.2026 30λ

  Maine has more legal work than it has lawyers to do it, and that gap grows every year even as rural opportunity grows with it. Rachel Okun, President of the Maine State Bar Association and a solo personal injury attorney at Okun Law, breaks down why she sees rural practice as a real career path, not a compromise, and why she taught herself AI tools so she could speak to her membership with real experience instead of theory. She also connects a less obvious dot: attorney burnout, she says, is one of the leading drivers behind bar complaints, since overextended lawyers start missing client communications long before anything more serious goes wrong. Okun closes on her defining message as bar president, that the profession loses something real every time a Zoom call replaces a handshake, and that relationships built through bar leadership, not marketing budgets, are what actually built her practice. Proving once again that ALPS Insurance puts the "treat" in retreat, they gathered leaders in law from across the country this summer. These sit-down conversations reveal flavors of leadership and legal trends from a variety of perspectives. Cool takes, one scoop at a time, recorded live at the 2026 ALPS Bar Leaders Retreat in Missoula, MT. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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  Judicial Security, AI, and What's Really at Stake for the Federal Bar – 2026 ALPS Bar Leaders Retreat 21.09.2026 28λ

  Federal judges are telling their own children not to answer the door to strangers, and that's the reality bar leaders are now building policy around. Kevin Maxim, national President-Elect of the Federal Bar Association and a commercial litigator in Atlanta, breaks down why judicial security has climbed to the top of the organization's Capitol Hill advocacy alongside judicial vacancies and court funding. He traces how the pandemic hollowed out the informal, in-person relationship-building that once held the profession together, and why rebuilding those connections, especially for newer members, has become part of his leadership philosophy. Maxim also raises a sharper concern facing the profession: what happens to attorney-client privilege once confidential communications start feeding into AI tools, particularly as a generational divide widens between attorneys who treat data protection as sacred and younger practitioners who see information differently. Law firms remain constant targets for phishing and cyberattacks, he says, and the profession's next real test is figuring out how much trust it can extend to the tools it's racing to adopt. Proving once again that ALPS Insurance puts the "treat" in retreat, they gathered leaders in law from across the country this summer. These sit-down conversations reveal flavors of leadership and legal trends from a variety of perspectives. Cool takes, one scoop at a time, recorded live at the 2026 ALPS Bar Leaders Retreat in Missoula, MT. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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  Rural Legal Deserts Don't Need Less Technology, They Need More – 2026 ALPS Bar Leaders Retreat 21.09.2026 28λ

  Rural legal deserts don't lack demand, they lack reach, and Angela Armstrong sees AI as one of the clearest ways to close that gap. Executive Director of the Maine State Bar Association since 2013, Armstrong describes how her members have moved past early AI hesitation into practical daily use, from legal research to marketing their own practices, while still needing to check every output against the same professional judgment they would apply to any junior associate's work. She also walks through the cybersecurity breach that reshaped her association's entire approach to risk, and shares why she pushed to get CLE credit approved for yoga after watching burnout and depression take a visible toll on members, including a past bar president who spoke openly about his own struggle. Armstrong closes on the throughline she keeps coming back to in her role: leadership in this profession isn't separate from service, it's the same instinct that pulled her into the Army years before it pulled her into bar leadership. Proving once again that ALPS Insurance puts the "treat" in retreat, they gathered leaders in law from across the country this summer. These sit-down conversations reveal flavors of leadership and legal trends from a variety of perspectives. Cool takes, one scoop at a time, recorded live at the 2026 ALPS Bar Leaders Retreat in Missoula, MT. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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  Are Trial Lawyers an Endangered Species? – Legal Up Virtual Conference 2025 by InfoTrack 22.12.2025 28λ

  Fewer lawyers are gaining real courtroom experience, and the future of trial advocacy is at risk. In this special episode of On the Road, veteran trial attorney and educator Michael Schwartz examines why trial lawyers are becoming harder to find and what it takes to develop the skills true advocacy requires. Drawing on decades of experience trying hundreds of cases, Schwartz breaks down the foundations of effective trial lawyering, from witness examination and jury selection to professionalism, ethics, and strategy. He shares lessons from pivotal courtroom moments and explains why trials remain essential to the pursuit of justice and the search for truth. Michael Schwartz is a trial lawyer, legal educator, and founder of Trial Advocacy Group, where he trains lawyers nationwide in trial advocacy. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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  Understanding Neurodivergence in the Legal Workplace – Legal Up Virtual Conference 2025 by InfoTrack 15.12.2025 31λ

  Neurodivergence is far more common in the legal profession than many realize and when supported thoughtfully, it can be a powerful asset. In this special episode of On the Road, legal professional and advocate Christina Hough shares practical insights on working more effectively with neurodivergent attorneys, paralegals, clients, and colleagues. Drawing from both personal experience and decades in the legal field, Hough explores how conditions such as ADHD, autism, PTSD, and other neurodivergent traits can influence communication, learning styles, sensory processing, and collaboration. From inclusive meeting practices and clearer communication strategies to simple workplace accommodations that improve focus and outcomes, this episode offers a roadmap for building more inclusive, productive legal environments while recognizing the unique strengths neurodivergent professionals bring to the practice of law. Christina Hough is a neurodivergent legal professional, speaker, and advocate with more than 23 years of experience in the legal field. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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  Building Client Trust Through Trauma-Informed Advocacy – Legal Up Virtual Conference 2025 by InfoTrack 08.12.2025 34λ

  Employment disputes strike at a person’s identity, security, and sense of control. In this special episode of On the Road, employment attorney Drew Levine explains why clients often resist settlement—even strong offers—and how trauma and betrayal shape their reactions throughout the case. He outlines a trauma-informed approach to lawyering, showing attorneys how to create safety, listen with intention, reset expectations, and rebuild trust with clients who may feel overwhelmed or unheard. From navigating ambivalence to reframing fairness versus legality, discover how centering humanity leads to stronger client relationships and better case outcomes. Drew Levine is an employment attorney in Southern California who represents clients in complex workplace disputes. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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  Future-Proofing Your Paralegal Career with AI – Legal Up Virtual Conference 2025 by InfoTrack 01.12.2025 32λ

  AI isn’t replacing legal professionals — it’s reshaping the work they do. In this special episode of On the Road, award-winning paralegals and educators Kelly Rednothy and Kristine Custodio Suero join attorney Michael Harris for a candid conversation about the skills and responsibilities legal pros need to stay competitive in an era of rapid technological change. Together, they break down the ethical obligations around technology competence, how generative AI is transforming legal research, drafting, and document review, and what it means to “trust but verify” in modern workflows. They also highlight the durable skills—critical thinking, emotional intelligence, communication, collaboration, and continuous learning—that will define the next generation of legal professionals. From understanding AI tools to protecting client confidentiality, this episode offers a grounded, practical roadmap for paralegals and legal teams preparing for the future. Kelly Rednothy is a litigation paralegal, educator, and legal solutions consultant. Kristine Custodio Suero is an award-winning paralegal, author, and past president of the San Diego Paralegal Association. Michael Harris is an attorney and Chief Revenue Officer at Brightline Counsel. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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  Do What the AI Can’t: Building Relationship Intelligence in Your Practice – Legal Up Virtual Conference 2025 by InfoTrack 24.11.2025 31λ

  In this special episode of On the Road, Nexl Chief Growth Officer Ben Chiriboga explains why the future of legal practice hinges on what AI can’t replicate: strong client relationships. He introduces the concept of “relationship intelligence” and shows how lawyers can use simple data points—from communication patterns to internal connections—to focus their limited time on building deeper, more strategic client relationships. Learn how a data-informed approach to business development can help lawyers move from service providers to true trusted advisors. Ben Chiriboga is the Chief Growth Officer at Nexl and a former practicing attorney. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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  Strategies for Growth: Training, Teamwork & Client Experience – Legal Up Virtual Conference 2025 by InfoTrack 17.11.2025 22λ

  Growing a law firm isn’t just about new clients. It’s about building a strong team and a seamless client experience. In this special episode of On the Road, paralegal and law-firm operations consultant Eda Rosa breaks down the long-term strategies firms need to scale sustainably. She explains why continual staff training, proactive workflows, clear communication, and data-driven systems are essential to reducing bottlenecks and improving client satisfaction. From strengthening internal processes to empowering your front-line team, discover how intentional structure and collaboration can elevate your firm’s performance and set the foundation for future growth. Eda Rosa is a paralegal, educator, and law-firm operations consultant specializing in workflow optimization and team development. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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  Advocating for the Wrongfully Convicted with Michael Semanchik | ClioCon 2025 14.11.2025 16λ

  Despite our nation’s commitment to justice, the system sometimes falters, allowing the innocent to be wrongfully convicted. In this episode, Ed Watts sits down with Michael Semanchik, Executive Director of The Innocence Center, for a compelling conversation about the fight to free those unjustly imprisoned. Michael sheds light on how these miscarriages of justice occur, the human stories behind them, and the vital role attorneys play in supporting innocence projects. Learn more on the For the Innocent podcast, and visit Michael’s organization online: The Innocence Center - Securing Freedom For The Innocent. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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  Avoiding Pitfalls in Family Law – Legal Up Virtual Conference 2025 by InfoTrack 10.11.2025 27λ

  Family law is emotionally charged, complex, and full of pitfalls that can undermine even the most experienced attorney. In this special episode of On the Road, veteran family lawyer Claude Ducloux shares decades of hard-earned insights for running a successful practice. He covers how to set realistic client expectations, identify high-risk clients, handle social media ethically, protect yourself with documentation, and maintain civility and professionalism throughout every case. From practical billing and office management tips to strategies for fair settlements, Ducloux provides a roadmap for navigating family law with confidence, integrity, and clarity. Claude Ducloux is a family law attorney with nearly 48 years of experience guiding clients and shaping best practices in the field. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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  American Legal Technology Award Winners | ClioCon2025 06.11.2025 23λ

  The American Legal Technology Awards recognize those who have shown excellence as technology innovators in the legal industry, and the 2025 winners have been chosen! Patrick Palace welcomes winners across three of this year’s categories—Jim Calloway (Lifetime Achievement Award), Jenifer Whiston (Artificial Intelligence Award), and Susan Choe (Court Award). Patrick learns more about the creative legal technology contributions of each individual, all of which have promoted tech understanding in the profession and furthered efforts for access to justice in our legal systems. Learn more about our winners’ organizations! Management Assistance Program - Oklahoma Bar Association Free Law Project Ohio Legal Help Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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  Easy, Efficient Billing for Your Law Firm | ClioCon 2025 03.11.2025 17λ

  The best payment experiences are transparent and simple, but far too many law firms struggle with awkward payment barriers for their clients. Stephanie Everett welcomes A.J. Axelrod of Clio to discuss modern and secure billing practices for law firms. They consider common errors and archaic methods that may lead to profit losses, share insights from the Legal Trends Report, and talk about how Clio’s billing software can help you ensure best practices in client payments.  A.J. Axelrod is Clio's Vice President of Payments and Financial Services. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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  Marketing Metrics That Matter for Law Firms | ClioCon 2025 30.10.2025 17λ

  The reality is, if you don’t understand your metrics, you aren’t getting the most out of your marketing tactics. Gyi Tsakalakis welcomes fellow marketing pro, Margarita Eberline, to discuss her talk on how to leverage metrics to improve your law firm’s advertising strategies. Margarita explains how to effectively measure and engage with metrics to increase your ROI, make quality connections for better leads, get the visibility you need in your market, and much more. Margarita Eberline is the founder of Marketing Boss and offers coaching, teaching, and training for companies through fractional CMO services and workshops.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices