The Mostly Legal Podcast

He published more than 100 articles while practicing law full time, then walked away from the firm to build a job that barely existed yet. Meet Ari Kaplan, a former McDermott Will & Emery attorney who has spent nearly 20 years as a legal industry analyst studying how the profession actually works.

In this episode of The Mostly Legal Podcast, Amanda Koplos and Rob Joyner sit down with Ari for a candid and very funny conversation about why most firms are not as far behind on AI as they fear, why efficiency is the wrong thing to measure, and why the firms that win will sell judgment instead of manpower.

Topics Covered:

• Why "you're fine" might be the most honest thing anyone has told legal about AI
• The shift from selling manpower to selling judgment, and what it does to associate hiring
• Why 2026 is the pivotal year firms stop dabbling and start disrupting themselves
• What Ari learned interviewing Anthropic's general counsel, and why character beats any tool
• The AI sweet spot, and why midlevel and senior associates see the biggest gains
• How junior lawyers can steal time, upskill, and leapfrog their peers
• Why great client service still beats licensing the newest tool
• The Virtual Lunch, the very exclusive Best Behavior Club, and fixing a washing machine with an AI chatbot

She tore up her law school applications in her senior year, planned to get a PhD, and instead built a career that did not exist yet. Meet EJ Stern, co-founder of Fractional Law Firm CMO and a 20-plus-year veteran of AmLaw business development.

In this episode of The Mostly Legal Podcast, Amanda Koplos and Rob Joyner sit down with EJ for a candid and very funny conversation about how small and mid-sized firms can compete with the big shops, why succession planning for business services is the issue keeping her up at night, and how LinkedIn quietly became the most important business development tool in legal.

Topics Covered:

• Why she chose marketing over law school, for a dollar more and an extra half hour of sleep
• How women build business differently, and the book No Clubs Required
• The fractional CMO model and why a 30 to 75 attorney firm is the sweet spot
• Why less than 10 percent of partners are classic rainmakers, and the other paths that work
• Succession planning for the people who actually keep the firm running
• Why "non-lawyer" is the wrong word, and what to say instead
• Building a personal brand on LinkedIn without the cringe and skipping the AI slop
• Being a mom boss and getting real presence, not just the promise of it

You spent years and a small fortune training your best associate. They just left, and it probably was not about the money.

In this episode of The Mostly Legal Podcast, Amanda Koplos and Rob Joyner sit down with Dawn Anderson, Chief Human Resources Officer at Butler Snow, to talk about the people side of running a firm and why the old playbook for keeping talent no longer works. Dawn has a JD she never wanted to practice, an MBA, and a reading habit of five or six books a week, and she brings all of it to a candid conversation about culture, retention, and respect.

Dawn explains what firms keep getting wrong about the next generation of associates, why the partner track is no longer the only finish line, and how AI is about to reshape what the associate role even looks like. She also makes a sharp case for why law firm administrators are professionals and experts in their own right, with a story about one managing partner you will not forget.

Topics Covered:

• Why what worked before will not work for retaining today's associates
• The shift away from the partner track and what associates actually want now
• How AI will change the associate role and the path to partner
• Non-monetary benefits that move the needle, including caregiver support through CareLoop
• Succession planning for firm management, not just the managing partner
• Building a non-competitive culture that still drives hard work
• Public speaking, Toastmasters, and getting your point across in two minutes
• Why administrators deserve a seat and the respect that comes with it

You'll come away with a clearer view of what it takes to keep good people and a new appreciation for the professionals who keep firms running.

What does it actually take to keep a law firm running when everything goes wrong? On this episode of The Mostly Legal Podcast, Amanda Koplos and Rob Joyner sit down with Kathy Scourby, founder of K&S Consulting and one of the most quietly fearless people you will ever meet.

Kathy spent more than three decades inside a global law firm, holding seven different roles along the way, before launching her own consulting practice focused on business continuity, disaster preparedness, and operational resilience. She is also a Team USA triathlete who has competed at the national and world level, and she has a survival story that will make you rethink open water swimming forever.

We cover the mindset it takes to finish a triathlon, the September 2024 race weekend that turned into a fight for her life, why judges are now issuing sanctions to firms that are not prepared, how to get leadership to take active assailant planning seriously, and what real resilience looks like when the day you hoped would never come actually arrives.

It is candid, it is occasionally uncomfortable, and it is one of our favorite conversations yet.

In this episode:

• What CBCP and CCRP actually mean
• The triathlete's rule for getting through anything: don't drown, don't wreck, don't puke
• Surviving flesh-eating bacteria and what it taught her about resilience
• Why clients, insurers, and courts now demand a written continuity plan
• How to talk to law firm leadership about the threats nobody wants to discuss
• Pitch Your Passion with Kathy

The Mostly Legal Podcast is proudly sponsored by Centerbase, the cloud-based legal practice management platform built for the way modern firms work.

Subscribe so you never miss an episode, and let us know your favorite moment in the comments.

Your $3,400/hour partner is spending their week reviewing pre-bills and chasing late invoices. Your firm thinks that's billing. It's not. It's money being lit on fire.

In this episode of The Mostly Legal Podcast, Amanda Koplos and Rob Joyner sit down with Cecy Graf, co-founder and CEO of Federate Legal, to talk about why the back office is the most misunderstood—and underinvested—part of your firm. Cecy breaks down her dream: getting lawyers completely out of the billing process so they can actually practice law.

From change management in law firms to restructuring through managed services organizations (MSOs), Cecy reveals how the best firms are separating their back office operations—and why it's about to become the competitive advantage nobody's talking about. She covers AI in the business of law (the unglamorous, highly profitable kind), why your cycle time from work to cash matters more than you think, and how to shift from billing as a pain point to billing as a profit driver.

You'll also hear why value-based billing is the future, why the partnership model is holding you back, and how giving ownership to your CFO and COO actually unlocks growth.

Topics Covered:

• Why the billing process is a shared pain point for firms AND clients
• How to get practice assistants and staff—not partners—managing collections
• AI's real impact on the business of law (spoiler: it's not the practice side)
• The change management strategies that actually work in law firms
• Why restructuring your back office into a separate entity is genius
• The leadership indicators that predict cash flow problems
• How value-based billing beats hourly rates (in some cases)
• Why the partnership model is your biggest constraint

You'll come away with a completely different view of what your back office should be—and why it's worth restructuring.

Still printing checks, chasing collections by hand, and reading 90-page reports that are stale before they hit your desk? You're not alone, but you're also leaving money on the table.

In this episode of The Mostly Legal Podcast, Amanda Koplos and Rob Joyner sit down with Laurence Winters, CEO of 4L Managed Accounting and Chair of ALA's Future Readiness Advisory Council. Laurence makes the case that the paper check is dead, the monthly report packet is on life support, and your firm's profitability now depends on how aggressively you automate the back office. From credit cards and ACH to real-time dashboards and AI-driven decision making, Laurence walks through what modern firm operations actually look like and where most firms are still stuck in the past.

You'll also hear his personal take on DEIA in today's political climate, the data moat every firm should be protecting, and why a 99 percent collection realization rate is actually a sign you need to raise your rates.

Topics Covered:

• Why the paper check is dead and what should replace it
• Credit cards, ACH, and the fastest ways to improve cash flow
• The five to seven KPIs every firm should be watching in real time
• AI, historical data, and why your firm's data is its moat
• The succession crisis quietly hiding inside your accounting department

Tune in for a mix of straight talk, sharp insights, and operational moves you can make this week.

Jessica VanTroost, Chief Strategy and Operations Officer at McGlinchey Stafford, talks with Amanda Koplos and Rob Joyner about what it really takes to build a thriving law firm culture where “fun is not illegal.”

From McGlinchey’s famous “Ministry of Fun” to its nationwide “Snack Bracket,” Jessica shares how intentional culture-building drives engagement and inclusion across the firm's 18 offices. She also discusses her path from a chance babysitting gig to a leadership role at one of the country’s top firms, her game-changing ideas for legal support structure, her work with her beloved Jacksonville ALA chapter, and why her leadership philosophy starts with people, purpose, and play.

Expect laughter, football banter, and some truth bombs about the future of law firm management. Tune in for practical takeaways, inspiring stories, and insights that will leave you rethinking how law firms can work, grow, and thrive.

Are you buried under emails, notifications, and open browser tabs? You’re not alone.

In this episode of The Mostly Legal Podcast, Amanda Koplos and Rob Joyner sit down with Paul Unger, founding partner of Affinity Consulting Group and author of “Tame the Digital Chaos: Distraction, Time, Task & Email Management in an Age of Information Overload."

Paul shares how lawyers can reclaim focus, improve productivity, and bring calm back to their workdays. From AI tools like Microsoft Copilot to practical strategies for email management, time blocking, and centralizing firms’ data, Paul offers real-world advice for law firms drowning in digital clutter.

You’ll also hear his personal insights on ADHD, self-care, and why he thinks time management is really about managing energy and living a healthier, happier life.

Topics Covered:

• The evolution from analog lawyering to digital overload
• How to build your firm’s “digital house”
• AI’s role in productivity (and where lawyers get it wrong)
• Why multitasking is a myth
• Paul’s favorite tools and time management secrets

Tune in for a mix of humor, honesty, and practical advice you can use today!

In this episode of The Mostly Legal Podcast, hosts Amanda Koplos and Rob Joyner welcome William Washington III, Global CFO at Baker McKenzie, for a deeply personal and inspiring conversation.

William shares his unconventional journey, from being a high school and college dropout, a young father facing eviction, and coping with personal tragedy, to rising to the C-suite of one of the world’s largest law firms. He explains how resilience, mentorship, and relentless focus on improvement propelled him forward.

The discussion covers William’s approach to leadership as an introvert, the importance of professionalizing law firm operations, and his creative strategies for finding and developing talent. He also shares candid thoughts on AI in law firms, how technology will reshape the industry, and why leaders need to create space for every personality type to thrive.

Along the way, you’ll hear stories that are both entertaining and insightful, including a surprise encounter with Brooke Shields and how William once applied Lean Six Sigma principles to shorten a church service.

This episode is a must-listen for anyone interested in leadership, resilience, and the business side of law firms.

AI is transforming the legal world, but where do law firms even begin? In this episode of The Mostly Legal Podcast, hosts Rob Joyner and Amanda Koplos talk with Melissa “Mel” Ballesteros, Manager of AI and Legal Technology Adoption, to explore her career journey from tech support to becoming an AI leader in law. Mel shares practical insights on:

• How law firms can dip their toes into AI without getting overwhelmed
• Why training programs need to evolve into workshops and communities
• The role of AI tools like Copilot, ChatGPT, Claude, and Gemini in everyday legal work
• Why women in AI and cybersecurity need more support and visibility

It’s part tech talk, part career journey, and all-around inspiring. Whether you’re an attorney, a law firm administrator, or just curious about AI’s role in legal, this episode is packed with insights (and a few laughs along the way).

Remember to subscribe to The Mostly Legal Podcast for more conversations at the intersection of law, business, and technology!