Legal Talk Network

The Section Annual Conference is the premier event for litigators. It brings together top litigation professionals from across the country to discuss timely legal issues and the latest in trial advocacy, litigation strategy, and case management. Hear highlights from this year’s 2022 Litigation Section Annual Conference with special guests Beth Kaufman, Rick Gross and Harout Samra.

Facial recognition software is becoming a greater part of our everyday lives. But the technology is controversial and not without its critics. Questions about its accuracy—especially relating to recognizing minority faces—remain.

Special thanks to our sponsors, Alert Communications and Smokeball.

On the cover of Brian Hochman’s book The Listeners: A History of Wiretapping in the United States is a martini cocktail, complete with skewered olive. Someone attempting to judge a book by its cover may think this is a riff on James Bond and his brethren in espionage. But international espionage is not the primary use of wiretapping in the United States; it’s a longer, stranger tale than that.

Hochman shares the real story that inspired the cover in this episode of the Modern Law Library with the ABA Journal’s Lee Rawles. It involves a private detective with a showman’s instincts, a congressional hearing and an electronic bug hidden in a martini olive. It was an incident that spooked the legislature so much that in 1968, they banned the “martini olive transmitter”–even though a working prototype had never been built.

In this episode, Hochman also talks about America’s long history of wiretapping, from Civil War saboteurs to confidence tricksters, from suspicious husbands to rival corporations, from drug dealers to district attorneys. Wiretapping was often seen as “a dirty business,” as Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes opined in Olmstead v. United States (1928), but also as a necessary tool in the arsenal of law enforcement, particularly once the War on Crime kicked off in the wake of civil rights protests. In the late 1950s, wiretapping was considered by some to be so necessary that New York district attorney Edward S. Silver compared being asked to prosecute criminals without it to being asked to “hunt lions with a peashooter.”

Hochman kicks off the episode by telling the tale of the first American to be jailed for tapping a wire–and it’s a tale with a twist.

Special thanks to our sponsor, Posh Virtual Receptionists.

Mediation poses unique challenges and isn’t always successful. In order to present your most persuasive case, what facts or documents should you prepare for the mediator? If you think the mediator is being biased, what can you do? And when the final offer is on the table and you’re not happy, should you stay or should you go? Get pro tips on preparing your client and your case for mediation in this encore episode of Heels in the Courtroom.

Large-scale disputes often require large-scale investment. Finance for commercial litigation allows law firms to unlock the value of their lawsuits, and makes it possible for firms, companies and businesspeople to commit the resources needed without the risk of repayment if the case is lost – continuing to engage in business as usual.

In this special episode of the ABA: Litigation Section, guest Jason Levine discusses how law firms and their clients can obtain litigation financing for commercial litigation cases, and the value of this increasingly mainstream funding solution.

As an Investment Manager and Legal Counsel for Omni Bridgeway, a publicly-traded litigation finance company, Jason Levine helps corporations and law firms obtain non-recourse financing for commercial litigation, mitigate risk, and achieve their growth strategies with financing solutions. These include using litigation portfolios as collateral for off-balance sheet operating capital financing and monetizing claims and judgments.

[3:36] What is commercial litigation financing

[7:04] What are the benefits of litigation funding

[8:04] Types of commercial cases best fit for litigation finance

[16:00] Why are law firms increasingly engaging in litigation finance

[17:18] How do you value a litigation claim

[24:15] Litigation Funding disclosures and requirements

Many lawyers have difficulty staying mindfully present during depos, cross-examination, and client consultations because of stress, the fear of making a mistake, and worrying about what to say next. Learn the 3 rules for constructive cross-examination and improv techniques like looping from improvisational acting experts Steve Hohman and Olivia Espinoza to help steer the narrative and improve communication in every aspect of your practice.

Consider the courtroom as a live drama unfolding before you. How can you direct the characters to tell their most authentic story and utilize breathing, dramatic structure, voice control, and more to make that story as persuasive as possible? The conclusion of our fascinating two-part discussion with Andrew Caple-Shaw and Alexandra Wright of ACT of COMMUNICATION will change the way you prep and practice and leave you laughing with two instructive stories about termites and the best witness in the world. Don’t miss this episode.

A trial is a contest of competing stories and the jury is your audience. Prepare your witness for their best performance with tenets from acting and theater explained by Andrew Caple-Shaw and Alexandra Wright of ACT of COMMUNICATION, a unique litigation consulting group. Their powerful and highly effective communication techniques, such as identifying non-verbal micro-expressions, harnessing the power of metaphor, and strengthening sensitivity and listening skills, will help your witnesses tell the essence of their story more effectively and help you command center stage in the courtroom.

How do you figure out what your law firm is worth? And why would you need to do so in the first place?

Whether you’re planning to retire or simply sell off your firm, there are crucial factors you need to consider before making any decisions.

In this episode, I sit down with Bharat Kanodia, who has valued over 2000 businesses and signed off on assets worth $2.6 trillion in value.

He has appraised unique assets like the Golden Gate Bridge, Atlanta Airport, Uber, Airbnb, Yahoo!, Brooklyn Bridge, Mirage Casino LV, among many others.

Bharat is the Founder of Veristrat, a company that helps startup founders and VCs by telling them what their companies are worth. He lives in the San Francisco Bay area with his family and enjoys sailing, golfing, skiing, and horseback riding.

Bharat gives listeners actionable tips on:

[1:10] Why you would need a valuation on your firm

[4:00] What you’re looking for in a valuation

[9:45] The importance of looking at valuation from the potential buyer’s perspective

[13:15] How to figure out your valuation

[15:10] The process of getting a valuation

[26:00] Bharat’s book recommendation

Resources mentioned in this episode:

What's a Law Firm Worth? | Bharat Kanodia | Ep. 19

What’s a Law Firm Worth? | Veristrat Inc.

Bharat Kanodia's Articles | Inc.com

Never Split the Difference: Negotiating As If Your Life Depended On It by Chris Voss

How do you avoid social media overwhelm? How do you turn your social media audience into a real community?

We’re discussing the power of social media for your firm in this episode.

Joining me is Andréa Jones, who has built an online business committed to empowering businesses to utilize the power of social media in a positive and impactful way, without being overwhelmed and drained by it.

With over 7 years experience in the game, Andréa hosts the acclaimed podcast, the Savvy Social Podcast, leads a team providing done-for-you service inside of her marketing agency that was named a Top Digital Marketing Agency in 2021, and serves over 200 students in her membership, the Savvy Social School.

Andrea gives listeners actionable tips on:

[1:35] Where Andréa begins when clients come to her with overwhelm

[4:15] Where to start with your social media ‘why’

[8:40] How much time to spend on creating content, checking in with your social media, and being active online

[13:45] The benefits of outsourcing your social media content creation

[16:40] The ROI when it comes to social media

[18:00] Andréa’s book recommendation

Resources mentioned in this episode:

Dare to Lead by Brene Brown