In today's episode I share some reflections with the newest members of the legal profession, the Class of 2024. In these remarks, first delivered to Section 4 of the Georgetown Law Class of 2024, I talk about how career trajectories are rarely linear and I encouraged the graduates to embrace serendipity. It is a message I think we all need to hear.…

In today’s episode I speak with Ryan McKeen who is the Co-Founder and CEO of the Connecticut Trial Firm which focuses on representing plaintiffs in personal injury cases. In addition to his expertise and experience in the courtroom, Ryan is a sought after speaker on topics related to law firm leadership and success for personal injury lawyers. He i…

Hello & Welcome Back! In today’s episode I am excited to speak with Mike Spivey who is the Founding Partner and CEO of The Spivey Consulting Group LLC and previously a senior level administrator and admissions dean at Vanderbilt University, Washington University in St. Louis, and The University of Colorado. Mike is an expert on law school administr…

In today’s episode I speak with Regan Smith, who is Senior Vice President and General Counsel at the New/Media Alliance as well as an Adjunct Professor at GW Law where she teaches copyright law. Regan is a trustee of The Copyright Society of the U.S.A and the Chair of the ABA’s Copyright Legislation Committee. Before joining New/Media Alliance, she…

Welcome back to another episode of the How I Lawyer Podcast, where Professor Jonah Perlin interviews lawyers about what they do, why they do it, and how they do it well. This episode features the hosts of the Lawyers Behaving Badly Podcast, Karen Delaney and Jennifer Judge. Karen is the Principal of Delaney Legal PLLC, where she serves corporate cl…

Welcome back to another episode of the How I Lawyer Podcast, where Professor Jonah Perlin interviews lawyers about what they do, why they do it, and how they do it well. Today’s guest is Rachael Bosch, the CEO and Founder of Fringe Professional Development (a leading professional development provider for lawyers and executives) and Candorly (an onl…

Welcome back to another episode of the How I Lawyer Podcast, where it is my job to interview lawyers about what they do, why they do it, and how they do it well. Today’s guest is Emily Stedman, a Partner at Husch Blackwell, where she helps clients resolve complex commercial litigations. Emily represents a wide range of corporate clients at all phas…

Welcome back to another episode of the How I Lawyer Podcast, where it is my job to interview lawyers about what they do, why they do it, and how they do it well. Today’s guest is Astor Heaven, a Partner at Crowell & Moring, where he is a trial lawyer and commercial litigator working on a range of matters, with a focus on defense industry and govern…

Welcome back to another episode of the How I Lawyer Podcast, where Professor Jonah Perlin interviews lawyers about what they do, why they do it, and how they do it well. For today’s special episode (and the final episode of 2023), we bring to you How I Lawyer’s first-ever live-recorded episode featuring former guests of the podcast, Eli Albrecht an…

Welcome back to another episode of the How I Lawyer Podcast, where Professor Jonah Perlin interviews lawyers about what they do, why they do it, and how they do it well. Today’s guest is Michelle Kallen, who is a Partner in Jenner & Block’s Supreme Court and Appellate practice and previously served as the seventh Solicitor General for the Commonwea…

Welcome back to another episode of the How I Lawyer Podcast, where it is my job to interview lawyers about what they do, why they do it, and how they do it well. Today’s guest is Ayyan Zubair, who is a Litigation Associate at Allen & Overy, where he has experience practicing commercial litigation, intellectual property litigation, and white-collar …

Welcome back to another episode of the How I Lawyer Podcast, where it is my job to interview lawyers about what they do, why they do it, and how they do it well. Today’s guest is Danielle Garno, who is a Partner and Co-Chair of the Entertainment Practice at Holland & Knight, where she focuses on legal issues faced by fashion, beauty, and luxury bra…

Welcome back to How I Lawyer, where I interview lawyers about what they do, why they do it, and how they do it well. Today’s guest is Lindsay Barnes who is a Senior Counsel at Capital One, where he advises on consumer financial services for one of the largest credit card issuers in the United States. Lindsay began his legal career clerking for both…

In today’s episode I am excited to speak Scott Oliver. Scott is a Partner at Lewis Kappes in Indianapolis where he represents banks and non-bank lenders in SBA transactions nationwide. Scott became the youngest equity partner in his firm’s history after closing thousands of SBA loans and has counseled clients at every stage in the lending process. …

In today’s episode, I speak with Jason Mehta & Natalie Adams who are partners in Foley & Lardner LLP’s Tampa, Florida office where they defend companies and individuals facing government investigation and civil and criminal prosecution. Between the two of them, they have represented clients in healthcare, defense contracting, procurement, higher ed…

In today’s episode I speak with Peter Orlowicz who is Senior Counsel and an Alternate Designated Agency Ethics Official at the United States Railroad Retirement Board (RRB) speaking in his personal capacity. Peter previously served as a General Attorney for the RRB for 8 years before being promoted to Senior Counsel in 2022. He started his career i…

In today’s episode I speak with Hilary Gerzhoy who is a Vice Chair of HWG LLP’s Legal Ethics and Malpractice group where she focuses her work on legal ethics, white collar defense, and complex civil litigation. She has represented lawyers before various disciplinary bodies at both state and federal levels, including the USPTO’s Office of Enrollment…

In today’s episode I speak with Aliza Shatzman who is the Founder and President of the non-profit Legal Accountability Project based in Washington, DC an organization dedicated to ensuring that law clerks have positive clerkship experiences while extending support and resources to those who do not. Aliza writes and speaks about judicial accountabil…

In today’s episode I speak with Josh Scharff who is the General Counsel & Director, Programs at Brady, the Campaign to End Gun Violence. Before joining Brady more than 5.5 years ago, Joshua served as an associate at Peer, Gan, & Gisler LLP, a Washington, D.C.-based law firm with a nationwide litigation practice and a special focus on effective reso…

In today’s episode I speak with Allison J. Snyder, a long-time construction attorney, arbitrator, and mediator based in Houston, Texas. She has over 35 years of experience as a construction attorney specializing in construction and commercial litigation, arbitration and mediation, construction contract negotiation and drafting and the resolution of…

In today’s episode I am excited to speak with Betsy Philpott who is a Senior Vice President & General Counsel of my hometown Major League baseball team the Washington Nationals. After starting her career as an associate in BigLaw for 4.5 years, she took a career pivot by starting over as an intern and going back to school for her Masters in Sports …

In today’s special Panel Opinion episode of How I Lawyer produced in collaboration with The Appellate Project I am excited to welcome four lawyers to talk about the judicial clerkship process and how to secure a judicial clerkship. Specifically I speak with: Megan Moffett Grayce Zelphin Ramon Ryan Justin Lam I am excited to partner with the Appella…

In today’s episode I speak with Beth Kurtz. Beth, who is appearing on the show in her personal capacity, currently works as a Trial Attorney in the Civil Rights Division at the Department of Justice in Washington, D.C. Before DOJ, Beth was an Attorney at the American Bar Association at the Center on Children and the Law and before that worked for f…

In today’s episode I speak with veteran Aviation Lawyer Mark Fava. Mark started his career as a judicial law clerk and litigation attorney in Charleston, South Carolina but for the past 20+ year he has worked in aviation. In August 2001 mere weeks before 9/11 he went to work for Delta as a Chief Operations Attorney managing passenger litigation and…

Hello & Welcome Back! In today’s very special panel opinion episode, I am excited to welcome four FUTURE lawyers to the podcast to talk about their paths to law school, their lives as Georgetown Law students, and their tips for success. I think this episode is a great starting place if you think you might want to go to law school. It is also a grea…

In today's episode I speak with Entertainment Lawyer Paul Sarker who was recently named a Shareholder at Greenberg Traurig’s New York Office. Paul represents clients in mergers and acquisitions, television affiliation and retransmission consent agreements, content licensing, business affairs, television production, music, copyright, recording agree…

In honor of Well-being Week in Law I speak with Jordana Alter Confino. Jordana plays many different roles but what they all share is a focus on the skills, well-being, empowerment, mental health, and growth of lawyers & law students. She is the Assistant Dean of Professionalism at Fordham Law where she oversees all aspects of the Professionalism Of…

In today’s episode I speak with Priya Coffey who is a Partner at Jackson Walker in Houston, Texas where she practices Real Estate law. Specifically, Priya assists clients with complex commercial real estate transactions, including the representation of buyers and sellers in the acquisition and disposition of raw land, office buildings and retail ce…

In today’s episode I speak with Donald Sherman who is a government ethics and oversight lawyer who is currently the Senior Vice President & Chief Counsel at Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington, CREW (where, full disclosure, he works with my wife). In addition to his non-profit litigation experience at CREW, Donald has worked in all…

In today’s episode I speak with Kevin Elliker who is currently Counsel at Hunton Andrews Kurth in Richmond, Virginia where he focuses on Appeals, Litigation and Investigations. Prior to rejoining the Firm in October 2022, Kevin spent three years in government service first as an Assistant United States Attorney in Richmond and most recently as an I…

In today’s episode I am excited to speak with Dan Cotter. Dan is currently an attorney at Howard & Howard in Chicago where he represents businesses at many different stages in corporate and transactional matters. He has a particular emphasis on privacy and cybersecurity law. But over the course of his 25-plus years as a lawyer, Dan has had a varied…

In today’s episode I am excited to speak with Brian Farkas. Brian is an Associate at Arent Fox Schiff in New York City where he handles complex commercial disputes in federal and state courts as well as in arbitrations and mediation proceedings. Before joining that firm Brian served as a law clerk to Judge Robert W. Lehrburger of the US District Co…

In today’s episode I am excited to speak with John Strohmeyer. John is a Tax and Estate Planning Attorney in Houston, Texas. After working in several law firms, John started his own firm about five years ago where he helps clients through the maze of estate planning, tax, & probate law to help them leave No Unfinished Business® John is active in th…

In today’s special Panel Opinion episode of How I Lawyer produced with The Appellate Project I am excited to welcome four appellate lawyers who share their paths to becoming appellate lawyers and the tools they have learned for success along the way. I am excited to partner with the Appellate Project on this episode. TAP is a non-profit dedicated t…

In today’s episode I am excited to speak with my friend Matt Schwartz. Matt is a transactional partner and law firm leader at the international law firm DLA Piper where he serves as Chair of the US Finance Practice and the Head of Venture & Growth Lending. He has been at DLA for more than 20 years since graduating from Harvard Law School (Go Crimso…

In today's episode I speak with Freelance Attorney Michelle K. Camp. Michelle is an experienced litigator who has handled all aspects of litigation from pre-litigation to drafting pleadings and motions, conducting discovery, and assisting with trials and appeals in both state and federal court. She began her career and worked for nearly seven years…

💯 Welcome to Episode #100 of the How I Lawyer Podcast! 💯 I started the podcast in January 2021 to help junior lawyers, law students, and the legal community learn from the stories of lawyers from across the profession about what they do, why they do it, and how they do it well. 100 episodes later the podcast has grown beyond my wildest dreams. If y…

In today's episode I speak with Jenni Katzman who is a government & policy lawyer with experience in all three branches of government, several political campaigns, and non-profit advocacy organizations. Currently, she is the General Counsel and Chief of Domestic Policy for Senator Ron Wyden (D-Or). Before working on Capitol Hill, Jenni worked as a …

In today’s special episode of How I Lawyer, Panel Opinion I am excited to speak with two law firm partners on how to succeed as a junior associates at a law firm with Sean Marotta and Michelle Strowhiro. Michelle is an employment partner and M&A transaction advisor in McDermott’s LA and Orange County Offices. She leads McDermott’s Transactions and …

In this final episode of 2022, I decided to share a little bit about how I lawyer. Yes, after 96 episodes as your host, I thought it fitting to end year 2 of the podcast with a little bit more about what I do, why I do it, and how I do it well (or try to). As the host of the show I really like finding interesting guests and asking the questions. I …

In today’s special episode recorded LIVE at ClioCon I spoke with Karine Sokpoh who practices immigration, family law, and intellectual property at 402 Legal in Omaha. She also teaches at her local university and helped found the first and only Black Chamber of Commerce in Nebraska. Originally from Togo, Karine recently won the first Reisman Award f…

In today’s special episode recorded LIVE at ClioCon I spoke with Kevin Buckley of the Torrey Pines Law Group. Kevin is an accomplished international patent attorney & executive. He founded Torrey Pines Law Group in 2013 to help his clients bring lifesaving, enduring, and commercially valuable technologies to market after previously working in Big L…

In today’s episode I speak with Legal Technologist and Clio Founder & CEO Jack Newton. Although not a lawyer himself, Jack is a technologist and entrepreneur who has long been at the forefront of cloud-based legal technology who is recognized as one of the profession’s foremost experts on security, ethics, and privacy issues related to lawyers’ use…

Hello & Welcome Back! In today’s episode I speak with John Grant. John worked in the technology industry for a decade before going to law school and then went on to practice in-house, in his own law firm, and as the executive director of the Commons Law Center in Portland Oregon which works to fill the access to civil justice gap for people who qua…

Hello & Welcome Back! In today’s special episode recorded at ClioCon I spoke with Mark Palmer. He is the Chief Counsel at 2Civility, the Illinois Supreme Court Commission on Professionalism where he works to facilitate the promotion of professionalism, civility, and integrity among lawyers and judges in Illinois. He is also an Adjunct Professor at …

Hello & Welcome Back! In today’s special episode recorded LIVE at ClioCon I spoke with family lawyer Angela Lennon. Angela is a Partner at the Omaha Law Firm Koenig Dunne where she focuses her practice on collaborative divorce. Angela is active in legal and local business organization and has won a number of awards for her work. She recently won Cl…

In this mini-episode of How I Lawyer recorded live at ClioCon in Nashville, I spoke with Neal Katyal who is a partner at Hogan Lovells and the former Solicitor General of the United States. Most importantly for my purposes, he also was my criminal law professor when I was a student at Georgetown Law. In our brief chat, we discussed the importance o…

In today’s special, mini-episode recorded LIVE at ClioCon I spoke with Michigan Criminal Defense lawyer Mary Chartier. Mary has successfully defended clients in numerous federal and state trial courts and on appeal at the Michigan Supreme Court. Mary’s practice is not limited to one single area of criminal law but instead she has developed a reputa…

In today’s episode I speak with Joshua Lenon who is the Lawyer in Residence and Data Protection Officer at major legal software company Clio. Joshua has served in this role at Clio for the past decade and before that he worked at Thomson-Reuters. I interviewed Josh just a few days before I attended ClioCon—a major legal technology convention where …

In today's episode I speak with Eli Albrecht who is an Associate at Gibson Dunn’s Washington D.C. office where he is a member of the corporate practice with a focus on private equity and mergers and acquisitions. In addition to his day job, Eli writes about his own path in the legal profession primarily on LinkedIn where, in his words, he focuses o…