Lawyers Weekly Podcast Network

Since 2007, experienced in-house counsel David Sinclair has been leading expeditions to the Arctic and Antarctic. He's discovered, during his multiple ventures to the polar regions, that there are more similarities between leading such trips and in-house legal work than one might think. In this episode of The Corporate Counsel Show, host Jerome Doraisamy speaks with Islands and Ice Travel director David Sinclair, who is also an experienced legal counsel who has worked for BHP, Newcrest Mining, Orica, BlueScope, and Energy Australia. He speaks about how and why he decided to set up a travel company that explores the polar regions, the perspective he's gleaned on the challenges facing those corners of the globe, and how he balances his in-house roles with running his travel company. Sinclair also delves into being able to engage with people from all over the world that he otherwise would not have met, what he's learnt (personally and professionally) that have improved him as a legal practitioner, the transferable skills he's picked up from his time in the polar regions, how other in-house lawyers can craft their own personal adventures, realising one's sense of self, and the importance of being kind and creative.

If you like this episode, show your support by rating us or leaving a review on Apple Podcasts (The Lawyers Weekly Show) and by following Lawyers Weekly on social media: Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn.

If you have any questions about what you heard today, any topics of interest you have in mind, or if you'd like to lend your voice to the show, email [email protected] for more insights!

Local Court solicitors often do not have enough time to communicate with clients in ways that might assuage fears. If those practitioners can better adapt their approaches, there will be positive flow-on consequences – not just for those clients, but for the community at large.

In this episode of The Lawyers Weekly Show, host Jerome Doraisamy speaks with Legal Aid NSW Local Court criminal lawyer Matthew Wade and lived experience expert Jody Letts about why it is so important for lawyers to be better at delivering bad news, whether bedside manner is lacking for lawyers, whether lawyers have the capacity and bandwidth to learn how to be more empathetic in their news delivery, and the consequences of not delivering bad news in the right ways.

The guests also discuss the solutions for lawyers to improve on this front, evolving and adapting one's approach, questions a lawyer should be prepared to answer, what works and doesn't work, and how and why the community will be better placed if lawyers can get better at delivering bad news.

If you like this episode, show your support by rating us or leaving a review on Apple Podcasts (The Lawyers Weekly Show) and by following Lawyers Weekly on social media: Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn. If you have any questions about what you heard today, any topics of interest you have in mind, or if you'd like to lend your voice to the show, email [email protected] for more insights!

As a corporate lawyer, the idea of moving into a not-for-profit (NFP) role initially didn't appear logical to Elisabeth Flett. However, since making the decision to transition and settling into such work, she has discovered that working as a lawyer in the NFP space has provided her with an elevated sense of personal and vocational purpose.

In this episode of The Corporate Counsel Show, host Jerome Doraisamy speaks with Cancer Council NSW general counsel and company secretary Elisabeth Flett about the day-to-day work she does with her organisation, being at the coalface of such important work for Australian communities, how and why she came to transition from a corporate role to work in the NFP space, and the questions one has to ask of one's self in making such vocational decisions.

Flett also delves into overcoming self-limiting thought processes about what a legal career can or should look like, looking for NFP opportunities rather than waiting for them to present themselves, and why making this career transition has been so rewarding and purpose-driven for her.

If you like this episode, show your support by rating us or leaving a review on Apple Podcasts (The Lawyers Weekly Show) and by following Lawyers Weekly on social media: Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn.

If you have any questions about what you heard today, any topics of interest you have in mind, or if you'd like to lend your voice to the show, email [email protected] for more insights!

The passage of legislation allowing for a right to disconnect for Australian workers provides law firm owners across the country an opportunity to challenge the paradigms that they hold around flexible working and design a workplace that works for their employees and fosters productivity, argues one director.

In this episode of The Boutique Lawyer Show, host Jerome Doraisamy welcomes back in house nous director and employment legal counsel Natasha Hannah to discuss what is meant by the term "right to disconnect", whether and how professional services firms are responding to the passage of its legislation, the concerns that employers have, and hurdles to be overcome in the new environment.

Hannah also details the contractual and policy changes that small-firm owners will have to undertake, the various conversations that should be had both with one's staff members and a firm's clients, how to navigate those conversations and textual changes, designing a workplace accordingly, striking the right balance with generational attitudes and business needs, undertaking such changes against the backdrop of other firm concerns, and seeing the new legislation as a business opportunity.

If you like this episode, show your support by rating us or leaving a review on Apple Podcasts (The Lawyers Weekly Show) and by following Lawyers Weekly on social media: Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn. If you have any questions about what you heard today, any topics of interest you have in mind, or if you'd like to lend your voice to the show, email [email protected] for more insights!

Having reflected on the relationships in her personal and professional life that have helped her feel "most secure, supported, and passionate", Giovanna Bongiorno has advice for the next generation of lawyers on whom they need to invest time in so as to thrive.

In this episode of The Protégé Podcast, host Jerome Doraisamy speaks with Curtin University commerce/law student and KPMG employment tax consultant Giovanna Bongiorno about the relationships that have been most meaningful and inspiring for her, how and why she learnt about the importance of a three-tiered relational network, and how those tiers intersect and complement each other.

Bongiorno also discusses the extent to which the next generation of lawyers are cognisant of the need for these tiers and whether they invest time in them, whether virtual learning impedes one's ability to develop networks, practical steps to develop and maintain networks, carving out time to invest in relationships, and how and why she is a better emerging professional for having a three-tiered relational network.

If you like this episode, show your support by rating us or leaving a review on Apple Podcasts (The Lawyers Weekly Show) and by following Lawyers Weekly on social media: Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn. If you have any questions about what you heard today, any topics of interest you have in mind, or if you'd like to lend your voice to the show, email [email protected] for more insights!

The domestic and global appetite to consume sports and entertainment keeps growing. As such, legal work – in its myriad forms – will continue to expand alongside it, says a global firm partner. In this episode of The Lawyers Weekly Show, host Jerome Doraisamy welcomes back Squire Patton Boggs partner Tony Chong to discuss what's happening in sports and entertainment law, the issues and challenges being faced on the ground by practitioners, the need for legal teams to continually anticipate evolutions in the sporting and entertainment realms, and staying on top of the social, cultural and even political zeitgeist in understanding how the environment will evolve. Chong also details the need to immerse one's self in the industry, engaging with other practice groups, the potential need to be a jack-of-all-trades, taking a case-by-case approach, how legal work in these spaces will continue to grow, and why it is so exciting to be at the forefront of such change. If you like this episode, show your support by rating us or leaving a review on Apple Podcasts (The Lawyers Weekly Show) and by following Lawyers Weekly on social media: Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn. If you have any questions about what you heard today, any topics of interest you have in mind, or if you'd like to lend your voice to the show, email [email protected] for more insights!

In an evolving sociocultural landscape, criminal lawyers must continually adapt their approaches to clients and service to the broader community. Recent rises in instances of offending by youths, for example, offer a chance for such practitioners to ensure best practice and step up their game. In this episode of The Boutique Lawyer Show, host Jerome Doraisamy speaks with Gallant Law senior in-house advocate Jonathan Brancato about how and why he became a criminal lawyer, his passion for advocacy, what's happening on the ground for practitioners and the reported increase in offending by youths, and why practitioners are seeing such increases. Brancato also delves into how practitioners can respond to such changing circumstances, the need to adapt one's approach to client management, approaches he has adopted that have worked and not worked, broader sociocultural challenges that criminal lawyers have to grapple with in the current age, opportunities for best practice that can be grasped, and the need to take a more holistic approach in servicing one's broader community. If you like this episode, show your support by rating us or leaving a review on Apple Podcasts (The Lawyers Weekly Show) and by following Lawyers Weekly on social media: Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn. If you have any questions about what you heard today, any topics of interest you have in mind, or if you'd like to lend your voice to the show, email [email protected] for more insights!

Much is made of what law firms can and must do to support their clients. But what of the client itself? Here, we explore the responsibility of law departments to create and maintain better relationships with their external providers. In this episode of The Corporate Counsel Show, host Jerome Doraisamy welcomes back Cognetic Legal & Consulting founder and principal Damien Sullivan to discuss why it is so important for law departments to ensure their clients want to remain on their legal services panels, the things law firms are looking out for from their clients at this juncture, and how and why law firms should be comfortable providing constructive criticism and feedback where necessary. Sullivan also reflects on how front of mind such concerns are for law departments right now and how high a priority it should be, some of the things that those departments are currently getting wrong, the need to strip things back to basics and get the fundamentals right, and other practical steps that in-house teams can and must employ, as well as how those legal teams can better balance internal pressure against how they treat their external providers. If you like this episode, show your support by rating us or leaving a review on Apple Podcasts (The Lawyers Weekly Show) and by following Lawyers Weekly on social media: Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn. If you have any questions about what you heard today, any topics of interest you have in mind, or if you'd like to lend your voice to the show, email [email protected] for more insights!

Sven Burchartz knew he wanted to be a lawyer in year 10. Since then, his vocational journey has taught him a lot about what it takes to succeed as a business leader – including how leaning into his passion for motorsports has aided his growth. In this episode of The Boutique Lawyer Show, host Jerome Doraisamy speaks with Kalus Kenny Intelex principal Sven Burchartz about how he realised he wanted to be a lawyer as a teenager, whether the principals of growing and managing boutique law firms have evolved in recent decades, being different and memorable as a business, adapting to what's happening within one's practice, and knowing the right questions to ask of one's self. Burchartz also reflects on his passion for motorsports, how he is mindful that it's the only time he is truly on his own, how he is better personally and professionally for having time behind the wheel, and what other lawyers can learn from race car driving. If you like this episode, show your support by rating us or leaving a review on Apple Podcasts (The Lawyers Weekly Show) and by following Lawyers Weekly on social media: Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn. If you have any questions about what you heard today, any topics of interest you have in mind, or if you'd like to lend your voice to the show, email [email protected] for more insights!

In this episode of LawTech Talks, produced in partnership with LexisNexis, host Lauren Croft speaks with LexisNexis executive vice-president and chief technology officer Jeff Reihl, executive vice-president and chief product officer Jamie Buckley, and Asia-Pacific managing director Greg Dickason about all things generative artificial intelligence (AI) and its transformative impact on legal workplaces. The guests dive deep into the world of emerging tech and explore how generative AI is reshaping legal workflows, the competitive advantages it offers for lawyers, challenges and opportunities in the Australian legal market, and the importance of retrieval-augmented generation (RAG) for AI accuracy, as well as share vital advice for integrating AI into legal practice.

Reihl, Buckley and Dickason also share their perspectives on the future of AI in the legal profession, potential areas of significant impact, and best practices for law firms navigating the evolving landscape of technology and AI.

To learn more about LexisNexis and its work in this space, click here.