Call Your Next Witness

Don Gomez joined the United States Army in April 2001, and was in active training when the September 11, 2001 attacks took place.   His recounting of that day is probably a version you've never heard before.   Don has been deployed to the Middle East several times, and has become both a student and an instructor of Arabic.   He remains active in the United States Army, with his current role being a Psychological Operations Officer, and our discussion delves into problem solving techniques common to both legal and military tactics, and also, the value of "getting our of your bubble."   He's also my cousin, and a genuinely good guy. Please note, Don’s comments are his own and do not reflect the position or policies of the United States Army, the Department of Defense, or the United States government.

On this episode of Call Your Next Witness, we welcome fellow attorney, Queens Native and Regis High School alum Matthew McCann.   Matt’s practice areas have varied greatly over the years, spanning white collar criminal defense, securities litigation,  land use, cannabis, Special Education, and appellate practice, now at Moss & Colella in Southfield, Michigan.   Matt’s career and practice areas have evolved and grown in ways he never would have predicted as a younger attorney.   And of course, we spent some time discussing Matt’s other “practice area” -- Battle Rap –both in NYC and Detroit.   This may be the first ever lawyer-centric battle rap podcast ever recorded.

"No Comfortable Advice."   Such is the life of a cannabis attorney, trying to advise clients about the regulatory framework throughout the United States.  First, the federal farm bill has multiple iterations, marijuana is still illegal at the federal level as a Schedule 1 narcotic, but 37 states have legalized marijuana use either recreationally or medicinally.   In other words, regulations are consistently inconsistent.   

Alex Buscher entered into the world of cannabis for personal reasons a few years ago, and has since delved into this world head first.   And since that time, regulations have changed almost by the day.     Not to mention that marijuana and hemp have completely different regulatory frameworks.   Advising clients on what action they can take in this world is a challenge, and Alex's insight on how he navigates that challenge in collaboration with his clients is an instructive listen.  

https://www.buscherlaw.com/alex-buscher

The Cannabis Industry was taboo as recently as 10 years ago.  But now, not only is it a blossoming industry, but its becoming mainstream to the point where attorney and insurance conventions are including presentations specific to cannabis and how to insure that risk.

But how does one actually get into the commercial cannabis space, and what is the day-to-day like?  Ryan Eakes offers some great insight into those questions through his own journey.   With a background in construction and business development -- not in agriculture -- Ryan jumped on an opportunity to get into cannabis on the ground floor.   And as COO of Typhoon Farma (https://typhoonfarma.com), Ryan encounters challenges that are truly unique to the cannabis industry, especially given the ever-changing regulatory framework he has to navigate.   Think of this interview as "Cannabis for Dummies."  

What better topic to discuss during these hot Summer months than effective legal billing?    Georgia and Brian recently compiled our "15 Commandments of Billing," and with new associates starting at firms across the United States after Labor Day weekend, we opted to commit our 15 Commandments to the podcast.     The goal of this episode is to focus on the skill of billing -- and it is a skill -- in order to maximize the recovery on the work we do as attorneys.    Much like insurance, legal billing is a skill that law school ignores completely, but is an essential skill for the majority of attorneys to master.   

M. C. Sungaila is a renowned appellate attorney based in Orange County, California.   Her practice focuses on civil appeals, trial strategy and consulting.   We discussed her role as a trial strategist, and how she recognized early in her career that appellate practice, as opposed to trial practice, was the right fit for her.   We also discussed the unique HR situation we have been facing, given the significant turnover in the legal and insurance industries, and what we can do as law firm managers to keep our teams personally and professionally satisfied.   This is a good listen not only for law firm managers, but also for younger associates looking for some insight on how to advance in the industry.   M.C. also hosts a podcast called the Portia Project, which focuses on women lawyers and judges, and some insights from their respective journeys.

Christon Halkiotis and I have a lot in common, in that we're both former prosecutors who sought a change after a handful of years wearing the "white hat."   But Christon's path took her to criminal defense, where she started her own practice in 2019 in Greensboro, North Carolina after 15 years as a prosecutor.   Her practice flourished immediately, which is a testament to Christon's personality, reputation among colleagues, and also to a ton of hard work!

She shares some lessons learned over the years about how to make yourself a better attorney, what it was like to "hang out a shingle," and how she has dealt with owning a business during the pandemic.   

Have you ever watched a movie with a legal issue and thought to yourself, "Wait, could this plot really happen this way?" In Rain Man, for example, Tom Cruise kidnaps his autistic older brother, played by Dustin Hoffman, to extort his brother's inheritance.  Instead of being presented as the somewhat flawed protagonist in Rain Main, Tom's character probably should have served time under a federal kidnapping statute.  Rain Man is just one example.

Wendy Sheinberg and Jennifer Hillman. partners at Rivkin Radler LLP on Long Island, recently decided to look at some of these movies that mishandle legal issues pertaining to estate handling, litigation and the like.  And in their publication, "Wendy and Jen Wreck the Movies," they comment some of the poetic license filmmakers often take, and offer their two cents on what should have happened, if the filmmakers went by the book.   

On this episode of Call Your Next Witness, Wendy and Jen join Georgia and Brian to talk about some of the movies they are delving into, including Rain Main, Howard's End, and a few others, and to point out how Hollywood consistently gets it wrong.   (At least, from a legal-realism perspective...although realism probably isn't Hollywood's goal most of the time.) Meaning, in real life, Lt. Caffey probably doesn't get Col. Jessup to just admit guilt on cross-examination.   But it sure does make for compelling drama!   

You can find Wendy and Jen at rivkinradler.com, or follow them on Twitter at @wjwreckthemovi1.   

Orthopedic Surgeon and Author -- both with regard to orthopedic surgery, and to his expertise on the Beatles -- and all around interesting guy to speak with, Dr. Ronald Grelsamer is a true renaissance man.  He recently joined me as a guest on the Call Your Next Witness podcast.   Frankly, we could have done an entire podcast on the Beatles.   (For example, any Beatles fan is family with the Red and Blue albums -- but which songs should have been included on those greatest hits albums, and were left off?   That topic alone could prompt hours of debate.)

But before we delved into the Beatles, we discussed orthopedic surgery, and specifically, what attorneys should be looking for when assessing a knee injury, both before and after surgery, to gauge whether there is a causation issue.   This part of the interview is a must-listen for both plaintiff and defense attorneys in the personal injury world.   We also had a frank conversation about the personal injury "machine," and what the defense and insurance industries can do to discourage medically unnecessary surgeries, which Dr. Grelsamer encounters from time to time in his role as an expert orthopedist.