ABA Journal Podcasts - Legal Talk Network

Why NYT v. Sullivan mattered in 1964 and is under attack today

29 Mar 2023

Contributed by Lukas

The 1964 decision in New York Times v. Sullivan protected the civil rights movement, established the “actual malice” standard, and is the basis ...

Many young people arrested for Chicago carjackings have been exposed to violence daily, lawyer and pastor says

27 Mar 2023

Contributed by Lukas

As rises in Chicago carjackings continue to increase fear among many residents, Cliff Nellis, an attorney and pastor who founded the Lawndale Christia...

How Casetext utilized the latest GPT technology to create an AI legal assistant

22 Mar 2023

Contributed by Lukas

In November, when OpenAI unleashed the newest, most advanced version of its chatbot, ChatGPT, it immediately captured the imagination. So far, it’s ...

In ‘Her Honor,’ trailblazing women judges take center stage

08 Mar 2023

Contributed by Lukas

When Lauren Stiller Rikleen was approached in 2020 by the ABA Judicial Division to help compile autobiographical stories from women judges in Americ...

Family law gave this lawyer some ideas about what clients really want

27 Feb 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Jessica Bednarz has spent much of her career representing people, researching access-to-justice issues and using that knowledge to try to find better ...

In ‘Myth America,’ historians challenge misinformation about our past

22 Feb 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Some American patriotic myths are harmless; George Washington may have chopped down a cherry tree at some point in his life, but the popular story tol...

What to expect from ABA Techshow 2023

15 Feb 2023

Contributed by Lukas

One of the biggest and longest-running legal technology shows in the country, the ABA Techshow, is right around the corner. From March 1 to 4, thousan...

Bestselling author relished collaboration for 'Heat' follow-up

08 Feb 2023

Contributed by Lukas

When former lawyer and bestselling author Meg Gardiner teamed up with Michael Mann for the follow-up novel to his 1995 crime thriller movie Heat, wor...

After seeing attitude shifts about opiate addiction, MDL lawyer targets Facebook

30 Jan 2023

Contributed by Lukas

In the 35 years that Jayne Conroy has been a lawyer, she’s spent the entire time in private practice doing civil litigation and has tried more than ...

From Amanda Knox to Kyle Rittenhouse, lawyer discusses justice and due process in the digital age

25 Jan 2023

Contributed by Lukas

In Anne Bremner’s work as a Seattle-based trial attorney, she saw a disturbing pattern—that high-profile cases often trending on Twitter challenge...

Should lawyers embrace or fear ChatGPT?

18 Jan 2023

Contributed by Lukas

For some academics, researching, writing, editing and publishing a scholarly piece of work can take months, if not years, of painstaking effort, dilig...

Lawyer digs into big data for new legal thriller 'Code 6'

04 Jan 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Lawyer and author James Grippando made a name for himself writing legal thrillers, including the bestselling series of novels featuring Miami criminal...

How do you build trust with incarcerated clients? Exonerated jailhouse lawyer has ideas

26 Dec 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Attorneys often expect incarcerated clients to lie and vice versa, says Derrick Hamilton, who served more than 20 years of a second-degree murder sent...

This lawyer tackled lifelong anxiety to free herself from 'The Box'

21 Dec 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Since childhood, Wendy Tamis Robbins experienced debilitating anxiety and panic attacks. Her perfectionism pushed her to achieve in sports and academi...

Why this BigLaw firm recently started a legal ops division

14 Dec 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Legal operations handle a lot of the business and technological stuff that many lawyers either aren’t trained to handle or don’t want to deal with...

Our favorite pop culture picks in 2022

08 Dec 2022

Contributed by Lukas

In our annual Year in Review episode, Lee Rawles speaks to her ABA Journal colleagues Blair Chavis, Julianne Hill and Stephanie Francis Ward to find o...

Can change really come from within the system? These 13 prosecutors think so

30 Nov 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Miriam Aroni Krinsky worked as a prosecutor in Los Angeles County in the 1980s and 1990s as the War on Drugs was waged. Mandatory minimum sentences an...

Worried about the 2023 lawyer jobs market? This legal search consultant has some tips

28 Nov 2022

Contributed by Lukas

While 2022 was a phenomenal year for attorneys and “anyone with a pulse” and a law license could find work, 2023 might “go back to normal,” sa...

'By Hands Now Known' shines light on cold cases of lynchings and racial violence

16 Nov 2022

Contributed by Lukas

In the summer of 2020, when the murder of George Floyd was igniting protests in Minneapolis and around the country, it occurred to Margaret A. Burnham...

It's a long road ahead for driverless cars, says Fastcase executive

09 Nov 2022

Contributed by Lukas

There hasn’t been much progress when it comes to driverless cars. Most major car manufacturers have sunk hundreds of billions into developing and te...

Stressed about holiday parties? Think about skipping them, says lawyer in recovery

31 Oct 2022

Contributed by Lukas

As we head into the holiday season, consider what you want your celebrations to look like, rather than meeting everyone else’s expectations, says La...

How do you calculate damages in injury trials?

26 Oct 2022

Contributed by Lukas

For any plaintiff who's been injured or any young attorney just starting out in the field of tort law, it can be daunting to calculate what monetary d...

How lawyers can unlock the potential of the metaverse

19 Oct 2022

Contributed by Lukas

The metaverse is all the rage these days. Users can enter a virtual world where they can interact with people from all parts of the physical world, pl...

Author and lawyer Scott Turow made generational leap for new legal thriller

12 Oct 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Author and lawyer Scott Turow’s latest legal thriller Suspect reintroduces readers to Clarice “Pinky” Granum, the granddaughter of attorney Sa...

Employment outcomes were great for 2021 law school graduates; is that a sign of caution?

26 Sep 2022

Contributed by Lukas

The overall employment outcomes for 2007 and 2021 law school graduates were both 91.9%. And while that sounds like a good thing, it could be a warning...

Nina Totenberg's early life, NPR legacy and friendship with the Notorious RBG

21 Sep 2022

Contributed by Lukas

In this special two-part episode of the Modern Law Library, the ABA Journal's Lee Rawles speaks with Lisa Napoli, author of Susan, Linda, Nina & Coki...

Legal Chatbots: What can and can't they do?

14 Sep 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Programmed to communicate as if they were living, breathing people, AI chatbots function by asking you a series of questions and providing you with yo...

9th Circuit judge shines light on Justice William O. Douglas’ environmental campaigns

07 Sep 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Justice William O. Douglas could be known for his fiery opinions, turbulent personal life and longtime presidential ambitions. But Judge M. Margaret M...

Lawyer who moved from Ukraine to US now has opportunity to help others facing similar situations

29 Aug 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Ellen Freeman immigrated from Odesa, Ukraine, to Pittsburgh almost 30 years ago. And although her family always planned to leave—she grew up learnin...

Summer Pop Culture Picks and What Else We Lost When Roe was Overturned

10 Aug 2022

Contributed by Lukas

It’s time for the Modern Law Library’s summer recommendations episode, where host Lee Rawles shares her pop culture picks with you, plus a re-airi...

After collaborating with bestselling author, judge discusses new solo book

27 Jul 2022

Contributed by Lukas

After several collaborations with bestselling author James Patterson, Judge David Ellis of Illinois decided to go it alone for his latest book, Look ...

Following her experiences, former law clerk seeks support for the Judiciary Accountability Act

25 Jul 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Aliza Shatzman didn’t realize that federal judicial employees are not protected by Title VII of the Civil Rights Act. That is until the judge she wo...

How technology can improve immigration policy and practice

20 Jul 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Immigration is an area of law that lends itself well to technological innovations. It is in that intersection in which immigration lawyer Greg Siskind...

The modern US Border Patrol is a national police force with dangerous capabilities, author warns

13 Jul 2022

Contributed by Lukas

In Nobody is Protected: How the Border Patrol Became the Most Dangerous Police Force in the United States, geographer Reece Jones argues that Supreme...

Authors of '50 Lessons for Happy Lawyers' share some top tips

29 Jun 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Even during times less tumultuous than the one we are in now, lawyers as a profession report high levels of stress. Finding the way to keep motivated ...

Think you won't pass the July bar exam? So did many others, but they did, say lawyers

27 Jun 2022

Contributed by Lukas

If you are studying for the July bar exam, you’re not going to memorize every flashcard for the Multistate Bar Examination, and that’s OK. You can...

Taking on unauthorized practice of law regulations to expand access to justice

15 Jun 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Are you struggling with debt? Do you have collectors breathing down your neck, threatening to repossess your property and filing lawsuits against you ...

Do you have what it takes to break into esports?

08 Jun 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Are you a lawyer who plays League of Legends late at night? A World of Warcraft warrior who engages in courtroom combat during your daytime gig? And h...

After a not-so-great elementary school experience, teen law school grad wants career in education policy

30 May 2022

Contributed by Lukas

A good home-school program provided a nurturing environment that was lacking in elementary education, and the experience helped build confidence for l...

Work for Canadian residential school survivors informs lawyer's debut novel

25 May 2022

Contributed by Lukas

As a lawyer, Michelle Good spent years investigating the trauma that Canada’s residential school system inflicted on Indigenous people. As an author...

EmotionTrac analyzes facial expressions in real time to help lawyers pick juries, market themselves

18 May 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Facial recognition software is becoming a greater part of our everyday lives. But the technology is controversial and not without its critics. Questio...

Wiretapping's origins might surprise you

11 May 2022

Contributed by Lukas

On the cover of Brian Hochman's book The Listeners: A History of Wiretapping in the United States is a martini cocktail, complete with skewered oliv...

As states consider regulation targeting transgender youths, some minds have been changed

25 Apr 2022

Contributed by Lukas

A recent order from Republican Texas Gov. Greg Abbott directing the state to consider medical treatments for transgender youths as child abuse is hurt...

How–and why–Kazakhstan gave up its Soviet-era nuclear weapons

20 Apr 2022

Contributed by Lukas

During its time as a Soviet republic within the USSR, Kazakhstan was the site of massive nuclear tests, both above and below ground. The cost to the e...

TurnSignl app seeks to provide real-time legal assistance and de-escalation of tension during traffic stops

13 Apr 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Like many Americans, Jazz Hampton and two of his friends, Andre Creighton and Mychal Frelix, watched in horror as two fellow Minnesotans, Philando Cas...

Ex-Tesla attorney leveraged her contract expertise into a book and thriving LinkedIn community

06 Apr 2022

Contributed by Lukas

In August 2020, contract attorney Laura Frederick accepted a challenge: Post to LinkedIn once a day, every day, for a month. Frederick thought she mig...

'No Equal Justice' shares George Crockett Jr.'s civil rights legacy

30 Mar 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Detroit has been the site of many civil rights and labor rights battles, and many notable Black attorneys have called the city home. The first Black p...

Want to be a successful litigator? Come to the office, say 2 BigLaw trial lawyers

28 Mar 2022

Contributed by Lukas

For young litigators who want to be considered “a lawyer’s lawyer,” careers spent mostly working from home may not get you to where you want to ...

With alternative dispute rising in popularity, this platform aims to help mediators and arbitrators

23 Mar 2022

Contributed by Lukas

As a young personal injury litigator in Georgia, Gino Brogdon Jr. says he was accustomed to using different technology tools to manage his practice. B...

The justice system is the antagonist in retired judge's legal thriller novel

16 Mar 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Retired judge and bestselling novelist Martin Clark had to deal with his fair share of rejection before he finally broke in more than two decades ago ...

The country has a long way to go with ADA compliance, say 2 civil rights lawyers

28 Feb 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Although the Americans with Disabilities Act is decades-old, many businesses, including law firms, continue to treat it as a suggestion, rather than f...

Tough decision to make? Here’s how to break it down like a lawyer

23 Feb 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Law professor Kim Wehle is used to helping her students begin to think like lawyers. But the methodology behind making tough decisions as a legal prof...

How a social justice innovation lab is developing new types of legal services

16 Feb 2022

Contributed by Lukas

The Innovation for Justice lab launched at the University of Arizona’s James E. Rogers College of Law in 2018 with the goal of designing, building a...

Regulate cryptocurrencies and fintech products before it's too late, urges author

09 Feb 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Hilary J. Allen isn't sorry if you find her new book scary. In fact, she's hoping that Driverless Finance: Fintech's Impact on Financial Stability c...

Control is often an issue in breakups, and COVID-19 made it worse, say 2 family law attorneys

31 Jan 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Business hasn’t slowed down during the COVID-19 pandemic, which tore many couples apart, according to family law attorneys Stacy D. Phillips, who pr...

Need to sharpen your legal writing? 10th Circuit Court judge shares his tips

26 Jan 2022

Contributed by Lukas

There's plenty of conventional wisdom about what makes a good legal brief or court opinion. Judge Robert E. Bacharach of the Denver-based 10th Circuit...

How this contracts platform uses AI to help users manage and analyze key documents

19 Jan 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Evisort co-founder Jake Sussman says when the company began developing its contract management and analysis platform, its goal was to use artificial i...

Outcomes in state supreme courts aren't as simple as Blue vs. Red

12 Jan 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Most of the spotlights are on the U.S. Supreme Court when it comes to legal cases that impact civil rights. But state supreme courts are the final arb...

Law School, Lawyering, and How One Relates to the Other

27 Dec 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Podcast host Meg Steenburgh welcomes recent grad Shannon Knapp and fellow law students Sarah Roberts and Tiffany Love to get their perspectives on law...

Do federal jurors still care whether a witness is caught in a lie? Not as much, say 2 veteran litigators

27 Dec 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Physical aspects aren’t the only changes in federal litigation, according to two veteran Chicago litigators. They think jurors, particularly those y...

In 'All Her Little Secrets,' the death of an attorney's boss could bring her secrets to light

22 Dec 2021

Contributed by Lukas

In her debut novel, All Her Little Secrets, attorney Wanda M. Morris has written a legal thriller full of corporate intrigue and small-town secrets. ...

Our favorite pop culture picks in 2021

08 Dec 2021

Contributed by Lukas

In our annual year-in-review episode, Lee Rawles speaks to her ABA Journal colleagues Blair Chavis, Matt Reynolds and Amanda Robert to find out how th...

3 decades ago, legal headhunting required more time for fewer placements

29 Nov 2021

Contributed by Lukas

The heavy, hardback editions of Martindale-Hubbell law directories, which were published annually and had different volumes for each jurisdiction, rep...

America's fights over medical treatment choices didn't start with COVID-19 and Ivermectin

24 Nov 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Like the legal profession, the practice of medicine in the United States is highly regulated. But it hasn't always been, and the idea that a person ha...

How a law prof is training paraprofessionals to represent immigrants in legal proceedings

17 Nov 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Law prof Michele Pistone says there aren’t enough immigration lawyers and pro bono attorneys to meet the demand of immigrants seeking legal assistan...

When most of law school faculty were straight white men, how did those who were not bring change?

25 Oct 2021

Contributed by Lukas

In the late 1980s, law school groups for gay and lesbian students met off campus in case members didn’t want the school community to know their sexu...

Want to change a veteran's life through pro bono? There's a manual for that

20 Oct 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Since World War II, more than two million service members have been discharged from U.S. military service with a status other than "honorable discharg...

How SCOTUS enabled police abuses of civil rights–and what we can do about it

13 Oct 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Much has been said about police officers and departments who violate civil rights or enforce the law in discriminatory ways. But not as much attention...

Why this BigLaw firm is embracing an ‘augmented automation solution’ for clients

13 Oct 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati announced last month that it had teamed up with Workiva Inc. to create an application that automates the S-1 form tha...

Career Shift: How Krystal Williams Pivoted from Business to Law

29 Sep 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Meg Steenburgh welcomes Krystal Williams to discuss her unconventional path to law. After many years as a business professional, Krystal’s hunger fo...

How has practicing in the Supreme Court changed throughout the years?

27 Sep 2021

Contributed by Lukas

A few decades ago, there were no page limits for U.S. Supreme Court briefs, and that brought considerable headaches for the clerks who had to read the...

How to market your legal services to Hispanic clients

22 Sep 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Hispanics are becoming an increasingly large segment of the U.S. population, and for an enterprising lawyer, serving the legal needs of Spanish-spea...

A Trip Down Memory Lane

22 Sep 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Joe and Kathryn break down the long-awaited John Durham indictment that tagged former Perkins Coie partner Michael Sussmann and find it... less than p...

Lawyers Behaving All Kinds Of Badly

15 Sep 2021

Contributed by Lukas

We talk about misbehaving lawyers a lot, but there must be a full moon (per statute a moon "at least 95 percent wholly spherical when measured by appr...

Why an online legal marketplace has added tech companies and other alternative providers

15 Sep 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Priori is an online platform known for using data and technology to connect in-house legal teams with lawyers and law firms who can assist with a wide...

A tale of love, loss and conservatorships in the Golden Age of Hollywood

08 Sep 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Britney Spears' legal battle over the conservatorship that put her under the control of her father brought international attention to the conservators...

Following a viral video, Harvard Law School student finds ways to connect remotely

30 Aug 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Many Harvard Law School students knew of classmate Rehan Staton through a July 2020 video that went viral, which featured him opening a Harvard Law Sc...

How LinkedIn can help lawyers develop and market their brands

25 Aug 2021

Contributed by Lukas

How do you use LinkedIn? Do you see it as a static resume, or is it the equivalent of your morning newspaper? For Marc W. Halpert, LinkedIn is the mos...

This online platform aims to help pro se litigants with complex civil cases

18 Aug 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Sonja Ebron and her wife, Debra Slone, saw firsthand how difficult it can be to represent yourself in civil cases through experiences they had being s...

How neurodiverse lawyers can thrive in the profession–and change it for the better

11 Aug 2021

Contributed by Lukas

There’s a business case to be made for hiring attorneys with ADHD, autism, learning disabilities and other neurological differences. Businesses have...

ABA Journal: Asked and Answered : For this lawyer, becoming more flexible was a benefit of the pandemic

26 Jul 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Patrick Krill, a lawyer who has a consulting business focused on addiction, mental health and well-being in the legal profession, left all social medi...

ABA Journal: Modern Law Library : Can the raucous history of Chicago's lakefront teach us how to preserve land for public use?

21 Jul 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Chicago's lakefront with its parks, museums, beaches and public spaces is an accident of history. But can we take lessons from that history to create ...

ABA Journal: Legal Rebels : How one bankruptcy software company had a banner year despite filings hitting a low

21 Jul 2021

Contributed by Lukas

When COVID-19 began hitting the United States hard in spring 2020, Janine Sickmeyer was among those in the bankruptcy world who thought that there wou...

ABA Journal: Modern Law Library : Do we need to rethink how we handle classified leaks?

07 Jul 2021

Contributed by Lukas

As the 50th anniversary of the Pentagon Papers case approached, First Amendment scholars Lee Bollinger and Geoffrey Stone knew they wanted to mark the...

ABA Journal: Asked and Answered : Saying yes has been part of this law school dean’s strategy during the COVID-19 pandemic

28 Jun 2021

Contributed by Lukas

As the dean of Pennsylvania State University's law school during the COVID-19 pandemic, and at a time of significant social unrest, Hari Osofsky tried...

ABA Journal: Modern Law Library : Summer reading and a book coming to the silver screen

23 Jun 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Summer is upon us, vaccinations are making travel safer, and you may be looking forward to getting some leisure reading done. In this episode of the M...

ABA Journal: Legal Rebels : A new evidence management tool aims to help public defenders process video and audio

16 Jun 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Devshi Mehrotra and her classmate Leslie Jones-Dove, who was also passionate about criminal justice reform, contacted local public defenders in the Ch...

ABA Journal: Modern Law Library : 'Vice Patrol' examines how police and courts enforced anti-gay laws before Stonewall

09 Jun 2021

Contributed by Lukas

A red tie. Manicured nails. Bleached hair. Loafers. The width of a person's hips. These are just a few of the things cited by vice patrol cops as indi...

ABA Journal: Asked and Answered : A year after his COVID-19 recovery, Above the Law founder David Lat makes some big changes

01 Jun 2021

Contributed by Lukas

In May 2020, lawyer and author David Lat was starting his recovery from a life-threatening bout with COVID-19. A little over a year later, Lat, founde...

ABA Journal: Modern Law Library : Little-known labor history is illuminated in union attorney's new book

26 May 2021

Contributed by Lukas

When Mark A. Torres was researching his first novel, A Stirring in the North Fork, he came across a piece of local history he'd never known about. Sta...

ABA Journal: Legal Rebels : New AI-powered legal writing tool aims to help lawyers craft winning briefs

19 May 2021

Contributed by Lukas

A gratifying legal victory sparked Jacqueline Schafer's desire to create a legal technology product that would help other lawyers efficiently craft ...

ABA Journal: Modern Law Library : Are you good in a crisis? There may be a growing practice area for you

12 May 2021

Contributed by Lukas

When they were putting together their new book, Crisis Lawyering: Effective Legal Advocacy in Emergency Situations, editors Ray Brescia and Eric K. St...

ABA Journal: Asked and Answered : The pandemic brought this lawyer to legal commentary, and the work includes sponsorship deals

26 Apr 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Emily D. Baker wanted a diversion from 2020, so she started doing her own legal commentary about pop culture, with topics including a pair of "Satan S...

ABA Journal: Modern Law Library : Sen. Mazie Hirono speaks out in 'Heart of Fire'

21 Apr 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Sen. Mazie Hirono's newly released book, Heart of Fire: An Immigrant Daughter's Story, is part political memoir and part love letter to her family and...

ABA Journal: Legal Rebels : How one firm is trying to convince technology clients to embrace subscription pricing

14 Apr 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Joyce Tong Oelrich and Zohra Tejani, the founders of Tong Tejani, which specializes in government contracts and has mainly technology-sector clients, ...

ABA Journal: Modern Law Library : Increasing revenue while cutting down on billable hours? 'AI for Lawyers' says it's possible

07 Apr 2021

Contributed by Lukas

As the founders of a company that provides AI-powered contract analysis software, Kira Systems' Noah Waisberg and Dr. Alexander Hudek are used to faci...

ABA Journal: Asked and Answered : The pandemic has not slowed down Howard Bashman of How Appealing

29 Mar 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Although the COVID-19 pandemic has caused there to be fewer court filings in some jurisdictions, Howard Bashman’s blog, How Appealing, continues to ...

ABA Journal: Modern Law Library : 'Watergate Girl' give an inside look at special prosecution team that brought down Nixon

24 Mar 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Jill Wine-Banks was barely 30 when she became an assistant Watergate special prosecutor investigating President Richard M. Nixon. In Watergate Girl: M...

ABA Journal: Legal Rebels : Experienced cloud-based law firm thrives during COVID-19, firm co-founder says

17 Mar 2021

Contributed by Lukas

When the spread of the novel coronavirus last spring prompted traditional law firms across the country to shutter their physical offices amid much eco...

ABA Journal: Modern Law Library : Interested in infectious disease litigations? Before you accept a case, read this

10 Mar 2021

Contributed by Lukas

When Davis M. Walsh and Samuel L. Tarry began assembling Infectious Disease Litigation: Science, Law, and Procedure, they had no idea that soon a pand...