The coronavirus has upended legal operations at law firms, in-house departments and law schools in the U.S. and abroad. In this episode, you’ll hear from Law.com journaiists who are closely covering how the legal industry is coping with the spread of COVID-19.

Eilene Zimmerman, a journalist and the ex-wife of a Wilson Sonsini partner who died of a drug overdose about five years ago, talks to Gina Passarella, editor-in-chief of Law.com affiliate The American Lawyer, about what Zimmerman uncovered regarding the culture inside Big Law and law schools in researching her new book "Smacked: A Story of White-Collar Ambition, Addiction and Tragedy."

Is being a lawyer hard? What happens if a bad client wants to hire you? Why do lawyers keep secrets? On this week's podcast, we put law firm partners to the test of answering questions from the toughest examiners we could find—kids! On the hot seat are Cody Harris of Keker, Van Nest & Peters; Elisa D’Amico of K&L Gates; and Eli Richlin of Wilson, Sonsini, Goodrich & Rosati.

This week's episode is the first in a series from The Careerist Vivia Chen focused on the shortage of African American lawyers, especially in Big Law, where only about 2 percent of partners are black. She talks with Frederick Nance, global managing partner of Squire Patton Boggs. With 42 years of experience practicing law, Nance provides a historical perspective about what’s changed and what hasn’t for black attorneys, particularly at major law firms. 

The Legal Speak team pulled aside several speakers at Legalweek 2020 to ask what tech tools make their lives easier, what technologies are over-hyped, and what they’re doing to transform the organizations they work for. You’ll hear from Daryl Shetterly, director of Orrick Analytics; Kirupa Pushparaj, head of IP and Legal Operations at Square; Karen Hourigan, a San Francisco partner at Morgan, Lewis & Bockius; and Sam Castor, executive vice president of policy for Switch.

This week, we’re globe-trotting, as we look at the key international issues affecting the business of law. In conjunction with the launch of our new website, Law.com International, Lisa Shuchman, senior editor of the site, takes us around the world to explain what the implications of political unrest in Hong Kong, the Coronavirus, Brexit, the growth of class actions in Australia, and much more mean for Big Law and beyond.

Kevin Rosenberg, a 2004 graduate of the Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law, who recently convinced the New York's chief bankruptcy judge in the Southern District to discharge more than $200,000 he was carrying in student loan debt, talks with Law.com reporter Karen Sloan about the decision that's making waves in the bankruptcy world. Sloan also talks with Jason Iuliano, a professor at Villanova University Charles Widger School of Law who has spent 10 years studying student loan debt. He explains what Rosenberg’s case could mean for other student loan debtors.

In this week's Legal Speak podcast from Law.com, host Vanessa Blum talks with Curtis Smolar, general counsel of litigation finance startup Legalist. Smolar, an experienced litigator, discusses his transition from a major law firm to a scrappy startup and shares what he’s learned about litigation funding along the way, including how third-party financing can help Big Law attorneys grow their business. This 20-minute episode also explores the role of legal analytics in vetting cases and where human expertise comes in. Legal Speak is brought to you by Econ One, offering economic expertise, consulting and dispute resolution.

We take a close look at the culmination of factors that drive women attorneys out of Big Law and—importantly—how to stem the exodus. Law.com reporter Dylan Jackson talks with Michelle Browning Coughlin, a partner at Wyatt Tarrant & Combs who is also the founder of the Mothers Esquire, a nonprofit group focused on advancing women in the legal profession. They discuss a recent study by Law.com affiliate ALM Intelligence and American Bar Association, which found a huge gender divide when it comes to lawyers' satisfaction with their firm's operations and policies for women’s advancement.

As 2019 comes to a close, we’re taking a look back at some of our standout episodes during the past year. Among the topics were mental health challenges within law firms, including with staff. We also looked at Big Law defections to boutiques, in-house frustrations with outside counsel, and the growing cannabis industry. Take a listen.