Talk To My Lawyer

Weekly interviews with interesting people in the legal profession with great stories to tell. 

This week, Adrian is joined by Juliet Schalker, litigation partner at Debenham Ottaway in St Albans. After nearly a decade in the City, Juliet made the bold decision to move to a regional firm, not as a career retreat, but a values-driven recalibration. What followed was a journey to redefine success, build a collegiate team culture and prove that first-class litigation work doesn't require a London postcode.

This conversation follows Juliet’s professional and personal evolution and explores some big career and culture themes along the way:

• How growing up in South Africa and being the first in her family to go to university shaped Juliet's perspective on work, confidence and purpose;
• Why she left a thriving City career for a more balanced role and how she has reclaimed time, team spirit and quality work without sacrificing ambition;
• The reality of making partner, leading a team and building culture, and why Juliet now puts emotional intelligence and curiosity above exam results;
• Her candid thoughts on why the traditional law firm model needs modernising: from presenteeism and burnout, to the scarcity of training contracts; and
• Why Juliet believes regional firms are more than a “lifestyle” move: they are a strategic career choice that better reflects where law is going, not where it’s been.

💬 Stay tuned to hear Juliet reflect on her proudest case: a £20m Commercial Court win that protected an innocent family’s livelihood and why helping people, not chasing prestige, has become her greatest marker of success.

This week, Adrian is joined by the brilliantly energetic and passionate Richard Port MBE, family solicitor specialising in domestic abuse and past president of Birmingham Law Society. Known for taking on the toughest cases and never backing down from a fight for justice, Richard shares a career built on purpose, persistence and a refusal to let victims go unheard.

This conversation dives into Richard’s journey and explores some urgent and compelling themes along the way:

• How an early taste of legal work at 14 led to a lifelong calling in family law and domestic abuse advocacy, even though he never planned to specialise there;
• Why too many victims are still given poor advice and how Richard empowers them to take back control, even after being failed by other lawyers;
• What really happens in family court: from legal U-turns and recorded confessions to Mafia-style wire taps and the lawyer tricks most people never see;
• Why he believes lawyers have a duty to raise the standard and how receiving an MBE for what he sees as working the benchmark, left him more determined, not satisfied; and
• How he used his year as Birmingham Law Society President to turn the spotlight on others, championing underrepresented voices and grassroots talent across the profession.

This one includes court drama, gold Converse and a near-fatal police station prank. No wonder Richard’s known as the “Jeremy Kyle of lawyers” to his peers.

This week, Adrian is joined by the insightful and irrepressibly forward-thinking Electra Japonas, founder of TLB, creator of the OneNDA initiative and now Chief Legal Officer at Law Insider. Electra shares her journey from aerospace contracts to legal entrepreneurship, revealing how she carved out a new kind of legal career by trusting her instincts and refusing to settle for outdated ways of working.

This conversation dives into Electra’s cross-border, cross-discipline legal career and explores some bold and exciting ideas shaping the future of law:

• How Electra's early years in the European Space Agency and Airbus exposed her to process design, supplier complexity, and the (often painful) interface between law and innovation;
• Why she stepped away from traditional practice to found The Law Boutique (TLB) and what she learned from bootstrapping a legal ops consultancy with no funding and two pregnancies;
• The origin of OneNDA, how a single viral LinkedIn post turned into a global standard and why its eventual acquisition by Law Insider gave her “relief, not euphoria”;
• Why Electra believes AI is already reshaping the legal profession and that “prompt engineering is the new drafting”, meaning lawyers must systematize their judgment, not just repeat it; and
• How legal professionals can future-proof themselves by becoming architects, not executors, of knowledge, and why curiosity, collaboration and codified instinct are the new superpowers.

💬 Note: This episode is overflowing with optimism, tech reality checks and one clear message: the future of law isn’t coming, it’s already here.

This week, Adrian is joined by the ever authentic Yetunde Dania, partner at Trowers & Hamlins and Head of the firm’s Birmingham office. Yetunde shares the personal and professional journey that shaped her: from finding her voice in litigation, to becoming a visible leader and passionate advocate for representation, equity and opportunity within the legal profession. 

This conversation follows Yetunde’s rise and explores some inspiring themes along the way:

• How seeing a photo of her cousin in a barrister’s gown first sparked Yetunde's ambition and why being told law “wasn’t for her” only made her more determined;
• What it was like to grow up in foster care, remain in touch with her Nigerian birth family and carve out her own path;
• How she found her calling in litigation, driven by the instinct to protect people’s rights and resolve difficult disputes without point-scoring;
• Why she’s so passionate about mentoring, inclusion and her advocacy for care leavers, including her work with the Care Leaver Covenant and local authorities; and
• What leadership means to Yetunde and how losing her mother just days after stepping into the head of office role shaped a more authentic and people-first leadership style.

Final note: Expect laughter, wisdom and a very practical argument for why the profession doesn’t just need more lawyers — it needs more representative ones.

This week, Adrian is joined by the brilliant Dr. Anna Willetts, partner at Gunnercooke LLP, environmental criminal defence lawyer and, in her former life, a geologist with a PhD in landfill clay permeability. 

Together, they unpack Anna’s refreshingly non-traditional route into law and explore how science, waste and Wellington boots led to a courtroom career that’s anything but conventional.

This conversation explores Anna’s dual-life career journey and some fascinating themes along the way:

• How a childhood fascination with rocks (and a quartz geode from her dad) sparked a love of geology and ultimately led to a PhD in landfill engineering;
• Why Anna left a successful career as an environmental consultant to retrain as a lawyer and how she still gets to keep her boots muddy;
• What it’s really like defending businesses accused of environmental crimes and how she balances legal precision with scientific expertise;
• How the waste industry has evolved from “holes in the ground” to complex, highly regulated systems and what that means for clients today; and
• Why the UK’s environmental law hasn’t changed as much as you might think, but the case law, interpretations and sentencing have moved rapidly.

And finally, stay tuned to hear why Anna believes good environmental lawyering starts with understanding the science and how clay, crime scenes and courtroom drama all come together in the world of waste. 

This week, Adrian is joined by the inimitable James Quarmby, partner at Stephenson Harwood, private client tax specialist and one of the UK’s most outspoken voices on tax policy and reform. Known for his no-nonsense commentary and deep economic insight, James brings clarity (and a few provocations) to the world of tax.

This conversation unpacks James’ unconventional route into law and economics and covers some intellectually rich, and yes, occasionally political, ground along the way:

• How growing up in Essex, working at British Telecom and running a department at 21 gave James a commercial edge long before he ever studied law;
• Why he believes a good tax lawyer must understand economics, business incentives and the real-world impact of policy (not just theory);
• His admiration for the Singapore model of taxation and why he thinks the UK could learn from its simplicity, low rates, and innovation-first ethos;
• What his new podcast with Dan Neidle, Inside Tax, will bring to the debate - from sharp disagreement to surprising consensus; and
• Why he thinks the UK tax system is too complex, too political, and needs radical simplification — even if nobody in power is brave enough to do it.

🎙️ (Light-hearted) Disclaimer: While Talk To My Lawyer usually steers clear of politics, James and Adrian do occasionally fall off that wagon in this episode, but only in the name of good tax policy, of course.

In the studio today is the brilliant Rachel Waller, Consultant Solicitor at Excello Law and a specialist in contentious probate, trusts and Court of Protection work. Rachel joins Adrian to explore the importance of justice, the hidden dynamics of vulnerability and how she’s built a purpose-driven legal career from activist roots.

This conversation unpacks Rachel’s legal path and draws out several thought-provoking themes along the way:

• How early work in care homes and a personal encounter with injustice inspired Rachel to pursue law as a tool for social change;
• Why she gravitated toward complex, emotionally charged work involving vulnerable clients, coercive control and contested estates;
• Her experience at the Official Solicitor’s Office and how it shaped an understanding of legal oversight and mental capacity law;
• The realities of running a legal business within a consultant-led model and why Rachel calls it the “sweet spot” of autonomy and support; and
• How she builds deep client trust while setting professional boundaries and why empathy and strength go hand-in-hand in advocacy.

And finally, stay tuned to hear Rachel share the case she’s most proud of - a story of persistence, protection and justice in the face of abuse and manipulation.

With us today is the thoughtful and engaging Emma Geale, Principal Associate at Mills & Reeve and a specialist in private client law. Emma joins Adrian to reflect on her career journey, the evolving nature of wealth planning and how lawyers can bring both expertise and empathy to high-stakes family matters.

This conversation traces Emma’s progression through law and highlights some fascinating themes along the way:

• How a chance exposure to her grandmother’s estate process helped shape her interest in private client work and the power of being truly “advisory”;
• Why she believes private client law combines the best of technical detail with real human connection and what that looks like in practice;
• How she’s using LinkedIn (and Taylor Swift lyrics) to open up conversations around mental health, personal identity and business development;
• What the changing inheritance tax landscape means for business owners, farmers and entrepreneurs, and how her team is helping clients navigate uncertain waters; and
• Why she believes confidence in law grows from competence, curiosity and the courage to say, “Let me get back to you.”

And finally, stay tuned for a candid discussion on introversion, influence and what it really takes to build trust, whether it’s with clients, colleagues, or your in-laws at the dinner table.

Joining Adrian today is Ruben Perin, Commercial Director at Taylor Rose and an experienced conveyancing solicitor. Ruben enters the studio to explore the realities of modern property law and what it takes to thrive in a fast-moving legal landscape.

This conversation traces Ruben’s professional rise and reflects on some powerful industry truths along the way:

• How growing up with a structural engineer father sparked his early fascination with buildings, planning and property law;
• Why conveyancing demands a rare combination of legal precision, commercial pace and calm under pressure;
• How the hybrid firm model (with both consultants and employees) is helping Taylor Rose adapt to client needs and legal career trends;
• Ways that technology is reshaping onboarding, ID checks and file management, but legal judgment remains irreplaceable; and
• What makes a great lawyer in his eyes: hard work, sponge-like curiosity and taking ownership from day one.

And finally, stay tuned to hear why Ruben calls conveyancers “the rock stars of law” and why he believes more lawyers should be joining the profession, not leaving it.