Latte With a Lawyer

Welcome back to Latte with a Lawyer—a leading podcast for lawyers exploring the strategies behind landmark legal victories. In this episode, Stuart Davidson, who runs the Consumer Fraud and Privacy practice at Robbins Geller Rudman & Dowd, unpacks the largest privacy settlement in history: his firm's $650 million win against Facebook. Stuart details how Facebook's 'tag suggestions' feature violated an Illinois biometric privacy law, leading to a massive class action. He also reveals how the case achieved an unheard-of 22% claims rate, putting $400 in the pockets of millions of consumers, a stark contrast to the typical 1-3% engagement in class action suits.

Beyond that historic case, Stuart discusses his team's work fighting corporate overreach, including securing a settlement of over $600 million for consumers affected by the EpiPen's 600% price hike. He shares his unconventional career path, explaining why he turned down lucrative Big Law offers despite graduating ninth in his class to become a public defender. For Stuart, it was a mission to protect the Constitution and gain invaluable, hands-on trial experience—a path he recommends to every young lawyer. He breaks down the three skills he believes are critical for long-term success: persuasive writing, professional patience, and meticulous organization.

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/stuart-davidson-3531986/
Firm Website: https://www.rgrdlaw.com/&nbsp

Learn more about EmotionTrac and our AI-driven Emotional Intelligence Platform: https://legal.emotiontrac.com/

Welcome to Latte with a Lawyer, a leading podcast for lawyers exploring unconventional paths to success. Most attorneys go to law school right after college, but Mike Borella took a different route: he spent over a decade as a software and hardware engineer with a PhD before even considering a legal career. In this episode, Mike, now a partner at patent boutique McDonnell Boehnen Hulbert & Berghoff, shares his remarkable transition into law after his future firm identified his talent, recruited him, and sponsored his entire law school education. He explains how he built his own successful practice within the firm, leveraging a network he had cultivated for 15 years before ever becoming an attorney.

Mike pulls back the curtain on his time inside the tech industry, sharing firsthand accounts of corporate giants on the brink of collapse. He reveals why he turned down a job at Research in Motion in 2007, correctly predicting the BlackBerry's demise at the peak of its success, and recounts his time at US Robotics as it failed to pivot from the dying dial-up modem market. He connects these invaluable lessons to his current work, where he manages massive 300-patent-a-year portfolios for enterprise software companies and guides high-stakes startups where a single patent can determine the company's future.

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mikeborella/
FIRM Website: https://www.mbhb.com/

Learn more about EmotionTrac and our AI-driven Emotional Intelligence Platform: https://legal.emotiontrac.com/

Welcome back to Latte with a Lawyer—an essential podcast for attorneys tracking unique career paths in the legal industry. In this episode, Erin Ezra, a partner at Berger Kahn, shares her unconventional journey into law. Initially pursuing a finance and risk management career, Erin's trajectory was completely altered by the 2001 market crash following 9/11. She details her pivot, starting as a paralegal before earning a JD/MBA, and how a "baptism by fire" experience in New York courts inspired her current passion for intentionally mentoring the next generation of lawyers, ensuring they have the guidance she wished she'd had.

Erin also provides a look inside her dual practice in employment and insurance coverage law, where she's shifted from pure litigation to proactive counsel. She discusses advising employers on navigating complex post-COVID workplace rules and counseling national insurance companies on coverage claims before they escalate. Drawing on her MBA, Erin explains how she approaches managing her firm's office with a business-first mindset and how her firm maintains its collaborative culture using tools like Slack. She also reflects on the key influences in her career, from a pioneering female managing partner who built an all-woman firm in the 80s to her current "what you see is what you get" managing partner.

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/erinmindoro/
FIRM Website: http://bergerkahn.com/

Learn more about EmotionTrac and our AI-driven Emotional Intelligence Platform: https://legal.emotiontrac.com/

Welcome back to Latte with a Lawyer—the essential podcast for attorneys seeking a masterclass in high-stakes plaintiff's work. In this episode, Mark Apostolos of Sullivan Papain pulls back the curtain on his firm's decades-long fight for New York's first responders, detailing the evolution of 9/11 litigation from the initial pro bono efforts to the ongoing, heartbreaking cancer cases stemming from toxic dust. Mark explains his firm's 'fewer, bigger cases' philosophy, revealing why capping a partner's caseload at 50-60 cases is the key to maximizing value and maintaining a reputation for being ready for trial.

But what happens when those cases don't settle? Mark shares his ground-level insights on winning over a jury, arguing that likability is the ultimate 'X-Factor' that can sway a verdict more than legal technicalities. He breaks down his voir dire strategy for building credibility from the first moment and explains why his firm skips formal focus groups in favor of intense, in-office collaboration. From discovering his love for litigation in a moot court competition to building his entire career at a single New York powerhouse, Mark provides a candid look at what it takes to thrive as a dedicated trial lawyer.

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mark-apostolos-70098439/
FIRM Website: https://www.triallaw1.com/

Learn more about EmotionTrac and our AI-driven Emotional Intelligence Platform: https://legal.emotiontrac.com/

Welcome back to Latte with a Lawyer—an essential podcast for attorneys navigating the high-stakes world of litigation. In this episode, Amanda Cachaldora of Bice Cole Law Firm shares her remarkable journey from being a Miami-Dade homicide prosecutor to a top civil defense attorney. Amanda explains how a fluke text message while on maternity leave pivoted her career into the complex realm of asbestos and cosmetic talc defense, where she now spends 75% of her time. She reveals how the puzzle-solving skills honed in criminal court are critical to defending companies against claims stretching back decades.

Amanda pulls back the curtain on the ever-evolving world of asbestos litigation, where the plaintiff’s bar continually finds new companies to target long after the original suppliers went bankrupt. She gives a raw account of her time as a prosecutor, including a memorable case where a man hunted his coworker with a shotgun, and contrasts it with the challenges of her current practice. Amanda also offers a rare and candid perspective from her own experience as a plaintiff in a trial, explaining the immense stress that drives many to settle and how it informs her defense strategy for clients ranging from mom-and-pop shops to large international corporations.

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/amanda-cachaldora-b10a6a120/
FIRM Website: https://bicecolelaw.com/

Learn more about EmotionTrac and our AI-driven Emotional Intelligence Platform: https://legal.emotiontrac.com/

Welcome back to Latte with a Lawyer—an essential podcast for lawyers seeking an edge in their practice. This episode features Clarke Newton, a partner at Bluestein Attorneys who forged his trial skills in the trenches of public defense. Clarke shares how his four years as a public defender, where he tried over 30 cases, gave him a unique perspective on burdens of proof and jury psychology that he now leverages to win complex personal injury, medical malpractice, and products liability cases.

Clarke pulls back the curtain on the specific strategies that define his practice, from his three-question framework for developing a trial theme from day one to his belief that mastering the medicine is the single most important, and most challenging, part of PI work. He offers a candid look at how to conduct effective focus groups on any budget—from hiring professional consultants for six-figure cases to ordering pizza for a group of friends to vet a tricky premises liability claim. As an adjunct professor of trial advocacy, Clarke explains why continuous practice is the only way to stay sharp and why he believes the most important question you can ever ask a witness is simply, "How did that make you feel?"

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/clarke-newton-35642a5b/
FIRM Website: https://bluesteinattorneys.com/

Learn more about EmotionTrac and our AI-driven Emotional Intelligence Platform: https://legal.emotiontrac.com/

Welcome back to Latte with a Lawyer—the essential podcast for attorneys tracking what's next in the legal industry. In this episode, Rinat Klier Erlich shares the incredible story of leaving a 180-attorney firm at age 56 to launch her own practice, Zelms Erlich & Mack. Rinat explains how she built a 100% virtual firm from the ground up, growing from 15 to 19 attorneys in the first year alone. She also reveals the grit that defined her career from the start, from graduating #1 in her class at a lower-tier night school while bartending and raising children, to becoming a powerhouse founding partner.

Rinat pulls back the curtain on her unique niche: defending licensed, non-medical professionals—especially other lawyers—when they get sued. She shares fascinating war stories from her practice in Los Angeles, from handling celebrity clients who are completely detached from their own affairs to litigating bizarre high-end real estate disputes, including one infamous case involving a "seagull problem" at a Malibu mansion. A passionate advocate for legal tech, Rinat also delivers a stark warning: "Attorneys that do not use technology are not going to survive," and breaks down how she leverages tools like Zoom to gain a strategic advantage for the defense.

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rinat-klier-erlich-72512146/
FIRM Website: https://zelmserlich.com/

Learn more about EmotionTrac and our AI-driven Emotional Intelligence Platform: https://legal.emotiontrac.com/

Welcome back to Latte with a Lawyer—the dynamic podcast for attorneys who thrive on high-stakes litigation. In this episode, trial lawyer Eve Brackmann of Stuart Kane LLP shares war stories from the front lines of commercial real estate disputes. Eve pulls back the curtain on a wild case where she represented a national grocery chain fighting to protect a "food desert" community after their landlord leased adjacent space to a cannabis grower, leading to rooftop parties and major disruptions. She also discusses her pandemic-era work, navigating complex force majeure clauses for a restaurant chain with 80 locations facing financial crisis.

Eve reveals how she turns seemingly minor conflicts into major victories, detailing how one landlord's refusal to return a $15,000 security deposit for a condemned property ballooned into a $450,000 judgment against him. A third-generation professional woman with a Bronx and Queens upbringing, Eve offers a candid perspective on what it takes to succeed as a trial lawyer, from her unique trial prep strategy of hiring retired justices for moot courts to her strong stance on protecting the integrity of the profession from outside investment. She also explains how she leverages modern legal tech to gain an edge, whether it's using advanced research tools or arguing appeals remotely from her office.

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/evebrelit/
FIRM Website: https://www.stuartkane.com/

Learn more about EmotionTrac and our AI-driven Emotional Intelligence Platform: https://legal.emotiontrac.com/

Welcome back to Latte with a Lawyer—a dynamic podcast for attorneys navigating the intersection of law and entrepreneurship. In this episode, Kyle Kaufman of Hawley, Kaufman & Kautzer shares his unconventional journey from criminal defense to becoming a powerhouse in family law. After initially wanting nothing to do with divorce cases, Kyle explains how getting his "butt kicked" by seasoned lawyers forced him to master the complexities of the field, from high-stakes financial discovery in business valuations to contentious child custody disputes. He reveals his core mission: ensuring clients exit a divorce with their dignity, their money, and their kids intact.

But Kyle's story is also a masterclass in building a firm with intention. He details his ambitious goal to get out of the day-to-day production of lawyering by age 45 by hiring lawyers who are even more skilled than he is. Kyle gives a raw account of his first-ever jury trial, where he went from shaking with nerves in the morning to connecting with the jury and securing a 'not guilty' verdict in the afternoon. He also explains how simple tech, like being the first firm in his county to offer online scheduling, became a key differentiator that fueled his firm's growth and allowed him to serve clients on their own terms—even on a Sunday morning.

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kylekaufman/
Firm Website: https://www.hkklawoffices.com/

Learn more about EmotionTrac and our AI-driven Emotional Intelligence Platform: https://legal.emotiontrac.com/

Welcome to Latte with a Lawyer—an essential podcast for attorneys seeking an edge in their practice. This week, host Jonathan Brickman sits down with Jeffrey O'Brien, a transactional partner at Chestnut Cambronne who found his calling in an unexpected place: the craft beverage industry. Jeffrey shares the wild story of his first brewery client—a business on the brink of collapse where he was running daily checks to the power company to keep the lights on. He explains how that crisis launched a thriving niche practice guiding breweries and distilleries like Tattersall Distilling through securities, licensing, and real estate, and the satisfaction of enjoying a pint in a business he helped build.

Jeffrey also reveals the mindset of a successful dealmaker, explaining why his engineering background makes him a self-described "control freak" who prefers the collaborative puzzle of a transaction over the unpredictability of the courtroom. He offers candid advice for ambitious lawyers, arguing why finding mentorship is crucial before hanging your own shingle and how to achieve true career security. He breaks down the path from being a "grinder" to becoming a "rainmaker" by consciously developing your own book of business to gain a real voice within your firm.

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jeffreycobrien/
FIRM Website: https://www.chestnutcambronne.com/index.html

Learn more about EmotionTrac and our AI-driven Emotional Intelligence Platform: https://legal.emotiontrac.com/