The first time you try a case shouldn't be in front of a real jury. Geoff Hamby, a partner at Oliver Law Firm, rehearses jury selection and opening with mock jurors — two rounds a day across two days — in the trial venue before pulling the trigger. His firm even starts wearing suits 30 days out to get into the right mindset. Hosts Caleb Miller and Eleanor Aldous unpack the preparation behind Geoff's $5.3 million verdict against First Student in Portland, Oregon, in only his second first-chair trial, and how he passed a Sharpie-marked brain around the jury box. Tune in to learn how relentless preparation can turn trial nerves into readiness.

☑️ Geoff Hamby | LinkedIn

☑️ Oliver Law Firm | LinkedIn | Instagram | Facebook | X | YouTube

☑️ Charla Aldous, Caleb Miller, Eleanor Aldous

☑️ Aldous Law

☑️ Connect: Facebook | LinkedIn | Instagram

☑️ Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | YouTube

Produced and Powered by LawPods, a podcast marketing agency for law firms

Jury trial consultant Jesse Wilson built his victim-to-victor framework not in a courtroom, but in a prison theater program, where removing judgment became the key to authentic communication. A former Julliard-trained actor turned full-time trial consultant for nearly 15 years, Jesse now travels the country helping lawyers reach record verdicts, drawing on his two books. He joins host Charla Aldous to explain why a witness is not her pain but the strength of trying to overcome it, why joy functions as courtroom evidence, and why choosing the victor story over the victim story reshapes case strategy. Tune in for his approach to witness preparation and opening statement.

☑️ Jesse Wilson | LinkedIn

☑️ Tell the Winning Story | LinkedIn | Instagram | Facebook | YouTube

☑️ Charla Aldous, Caleb Miller, Eleanor Aldous

☑️ Aldous Law

☑️ Connect: Facebook | LinkedIn | Instagram

☑️ Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | YouTube

Produced and Powered by LawPods, a podcast marketing agency for law firms

Most lawyers build their case around closing argument — but the trial is already decided long before that. Shane Read, jury consultant, trial trainer, and author of six books on trial advocacy, joins host Charla Aldous to break down the brain science of trial storytelling. A former assistant U.S. attorney who tried more than 100 jury trials in 30 years, Shane explains why modern juries — digital natives and digital immigrants — process information differently, why pictures outperform word-heavy slides, and how the "curse of knowledge" blinds lawyers to their own case's weaknesses. He reveals the three questions every winning story must answer and his WIN acronym for keeping the jury's needs front and center.

☑️ Shane Read | LinkedIn | YouTube

☑️ Shane Read LLC | LinkedIn

☑️ Charla Aldous, Caleb Miller, Eleanor Aldous

☑️ Aldous Law

☑️ Connect: Facebook | LinkedIn | Instagram

☑️ Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | YouTube

Produced and Powered by LawPods

Private investigation isn't just for criminal law — it's how plaintiff attorneys win before they ever file. Caleb Miller hosts Mike Thompson, founder of Ideal Intel, a Texas-based investigation firm. A former Liverpool police officer turned surveillance specialist, Mike now works exclusively with plaintiff law firms on personal injury and wrongful death cases. The conversation covers evidence preservation windows — video footage disappears after 30 days — and Mike's "discovery before discovery" approach. A background check on a truck driver in a death case exposed incomplete employment records and a dishonorable discharge the company didn't know about. Mike identifies where lawyers most commonly fall short: reactive fact-finding and failing to vet witnesses and experts.

☑️ Mike Thompson | LinkedIn

☑️ Ideal Intel | Facebook | LinkedIn

☑️ Charla Aldous, Caleb Miller, Eleanor Aldous

☑️ Aldous Law

☑️ Connect: Facebook | LinkedIn | Instagram

☑️ Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | YouTube

Produced and Powered by LawPods

The key to winning a big verdict in a wrongful death case often lies in showing jurors the opposite of big money: scarcity. What is it that the decedent didn’t have? It could have been the last lick of ice cream. Or getting their affairs in order. Whether they were 20 or 80, they lost valuable parts of life. Dirk Vandever suggests that the job of the plaintiff’s lawyer is to put a value on that scarcity. In this conversation with host Charla Aldous, he explains how he’s done it in his successful wrongful death practice over the past 50 years. Tune in as he unpacks his "two oaths" approach to unlocking honest panel responses and his two-word advice for young lawyers.

☑️ Dirk Vandever | LinkedIn

☑️ Popham Law Firm | X | Facebook | LinkedIn

☑️ Charla Aldous, Caleb Miller, Eleanor Aldous

☑️ Aldous Law

☑️ Connect: Facebook | LinkedIn | Instagram

☑️ Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | YouTube

Produced and Powered by LawPods

Here’s the scenario: Jarrett Stone and counsel for a major insurance company are emailing each other. One of them is sitting in a massive high-rise. The other is in his sweats in a converted attic office space. If you guessed that Jarrett is the second one, you’d be right. “It’s kind of trippy…” he says in this conversation with hosts Caleb Miller and Eleanor Aldous. The founder of Law Venture and author of Win the PI Game, Jarrett pulls back the curtain on how he built a thriving solo firm on word-of-mouth referrals, zero advertising, and disciplined case selection. He challenges the myth that you need hundreds of thousands saved before going solo or that more cases means more success. And if you’re starting out, tune in for Jarrett’s list of tools that you need. The internet ranks high.

☑️ Jarrett Stone | LinkedIn | Instagram | X | Facebook | Book: Win the PI Game

☑️ Law Venture | YouTube

☑️ Stone Firm, PLLC | LinkedIn | Instagram | Facebook

☑️ Charla Aldous, Caleb Miller, Eleanor Aldous

☑️ Aldous Law

☑️ Connect: Facebook | LinkedIn | Instagram

☑️ Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | YouTube

Produced and Powered by LawPods

"The best advice for a trial lawyer is: this is not about you," says Meg Simonian, a medical malpractice trial lawyer practicing in Alaska who has navigated some of the most challenging trial conditions in the country. Meg joins host Charla Aldous to discuss building a career in a state with restrictive caps on non-economic damages — and how she pushes past those limits. She shares her hard-won strategies for trying cases in remote Alaska communities — including how to understand the "personality" of the community you're in. She also opens up about balancing a career with raising five children and the lessons she’d pass on to younger lawyers. Tune in for Meg's insights on exhibit organization, deposition strategy, and why getting out of your own way is the most important skill a trial lawyer can develop.

☑️ Meg Simonian | LinkedIn

☑️ Dillon Findley & Simonian, P.C. on LinkedIn | X

☑️ Charla Aldous, Caleb Miller, Eleanor Aldous

☑️ Aldous Law

☑️ Connect: Facebook | LinkedIn | Instagram

☑️ Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | YouTube

Produced and Powered by LawPods

“He has threatened to commit a mass shooting.” An Army reservist texted those chilling words to the commanding officer about Robert Card, a fellow reservist. Tragically, Card followed through on his threat at a Maine bowling alley. Today, Ben Gideon is leading claims against the U.S. Army and Army Reserve for failing to take steps to stop the risk that Card presented. “Part of our thinking in this case and our presentation is: If we can't stop this, we're hopeless,” he explains to host Charla Aldous. Tune in to hear Ben reveal how he’s approaching this high-profile case and how he’s approached others – including one where he secured the largest med-mal and PI verdict in Maine – to confirm his reputation among the nation’s elite med-mal lawyers.

☑️ Ben Gideon | LinkedIn | Facebook | Instagram

☑️ Gideon Asen on LinkedIn | Facebook | YouTube | Instagram

☑️ Charla Aldous, Caleb Miller, Eleanor Aldous

☑️ Aldous Law

☑️ Connect: Facebook | LinkedIn | Instagram

☑️ Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | YouTube

Produced and Powered by LawPods

How do you go from prosecuting a fish snagger (yup, it’s a crime) in your first jury trial to becoming a personal injury trial legend? Rick Friedman reveals all in this candid discussion with the host. The author of influential books, including “Rules of the Road,” shares hard-won wisdom about building a successful plaintiff's practice. You don’t necessarily need to be the smartest one in the courtroom, he says, but you do need resilience and authenticity. Therapy helps, too. Most of all, get in the courtroom. Even if it’s to prosecute a fish snagger. 

☑️ Rick Friedman | LinkedIn

☑️ Friedman Rubin Trial Lawyers | LinkedIn | Facebook

☑️ Charla Aldous, Caleb Miller, Eleanor Aldous

☑️ Aldous Law

☑️ Connect: Facebook | LinkedIn | Instagram

☑️ Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | YouTube

Produced and Powered by LawPods

Sach Oliver and his team were taking depositions on a mega-trial when it hit him: “Oh, my gosh. This is not a discovery deposition! This deposition is what the jury will watch someday!” The game-changing breakthrough led to his transformative approach to trial and his book “Depositions Are Trial.” Tune in to learn how Sach puts insights into practice, in this conversation with host Caleb Miller. Stay tuned for his winning strategies, from focus groups to dress rehearsals to taking Fridays off.

☑️ Sach Oliver | LinkedIn

☑️ Oliver Law Firm | LinkedIn | Instagram | Facebook | X | YouTube 

☑️ Charla Aldous, Caleb Miller, Eleanor Aldous

☑️ Aldous Law

☑️ Connect: Facebook | LinkedIn | Instagram

☑️ Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | YouTube

Produced and Powered by LawPods