What happens when a young associate trained by the Dean of Chicago Defense Attorneys — the man who represented R. Kelly and Rod Blagojevich — decides to bet on himself and launch his own federal criminal defense firm?

In this episode of the Trustcast Show, Zane Myers speaks with Vadim Glozman, founder of Glozman Law in Chicago, about the full acquittal he won for R. Kelly's former business partner Darryl McDavid on every count after five weeks of federal trial, why he almost never fights the facts and instead reframes what they mean, and what the first 24 hours should look like when someone learns they're being investigated by the DOJ. Vadim explains how his mentor Eddie Jensen changed the way he reads a courtroom, why federal conviction rates above 90% don't scare him, and why talking to a federal agent without a lawyer is one of the most dangerous things an innocent person can do.

They also discuss the internet's most notorious spammer who walked away with time served when prosecutors asked for 12 to 14 years, how storytelling at sentencing can matter more than anything that happens at trial, what it's like to represent someone you were already friends with when they get indicted, and why after every verdict — win or lose — he still spends two or three days overthinking how it could have gone differently.

Vadim Glozman is the founder of Glozman Law in Chicago, Illinois, a federal criminal defense and white collar crime firm. Chambers USA has recognized him in their Spotlight rankings for white collar crime in Illinois for two consecutive years.

Connect with Vadim Glozman:

glozmanlaw.com

Phone: 312-726-9015

LinkedIn: Vadim Glozman

Chicago, Illinois

Chapters

00:00 Introduction to Vadim Glozman

00:53 Interning at Cook County State's Attorney and walking out wanting to defend people

01:34 Eddie Jensen's courtroom theatrics and the most outrageous thing Vadim saw

02:20 The single best lesson Jensen drilled into him — reframing facts without changing them

03:00 Why his approach to going to trial is different from Jensen's

04:02 Taking the R. Kelly co-defendant case and why it was never going to settle

04:41 The note that made the team fear the worst — and the verdict that followed

05:23 Do lawyers ever get to talk to jurors after trial

06:07 How much time he spends on jury selection and what he's really trying to do

07:07 Why federal prosecutors have their ducks in a row compared to state

07:48 A real world example of winning by reframing — the gun that wasn't brought to the deal

09:22 The bear hug in the courtroom when McDavid was acquitted

10:11 Building personal relationships with clients and why the McDavid case was different

11:06 The actual charges against Darryl McDavid and how they connected to the 2008 R. Kelly trial

13:07 The almost unheard of $850,000 attorney fee motion against the prosecution

13:38 Rapid fire questions including My Cousin Vinny and pop punk music

15:01 Federal conviction rates above 90% — the first 48 hours after a DOJ target letter

15:46 White collar crime versus violent crime — how preparation is different

16:36 Mock trials and the new AI simulation tools he's intrigued by

16:54 Getting the internet's most notorious spammer sentenced to time served

17:27 How much of criminal defense is storytelling

18:12 The Peter Levashov cyber crime case and what made it famous

18:53 The biggest mistake people make in the first 24 hours after learning they're under investigation

19:30 Going from Jensen's firm to launching Glozman Law

20:14 What the first week was like and the business reality of running a firm

20:35 How clients come in — results, communication, and word of mouth

21:29 Chambers Spotlight ranking for white collar crime in Illinois

21:52 The mix of clients across white collar and other federal crimes

23:29 What being on trial costs him personally — and why his wife was happy he was in Cleveland

25:33 What keeps him up at night before a verdict

26:38 How to reach Vadim Glozman

#VadimGlozman #GlozmanLaw #FederalCriminalDefense #RKelly #DarrylMcDavid #ChicagoDefenseLawyer #WhiteCollarCrime #TrustcastShow #EddieJensen #FederalAcquittal

What happens when a patent attorney who got his wake-up call staring at a 47-page office action at 3 a.m. decides to teach himself Python, machine learning, and blockchain development — and then builds a proprietary AI called Abigail to handle the 70% of his work that delivered zero value to clients?

In this episode of the Trustcast Show, Zane Myers speaks with Roger Hahn, founder of Haunan Associates in Washington DC, about what it actually means to run a next-generation patent law firm, how he built an AI architecture that prevents hallucinations by design, why most attorneys using general-purpose AI are inadvertently destroying attorney-client privilege, and why Elon Musk and Jack Dorsey are wrong about patents being dead.

They also discuss the Dentons-style landmine problem of freedom to operate, how blockchain could turn patents into a licensing machine, what China was really doing in Shenzhen research parks 15 years ago, the new Project Glasswing from Anthropic and why a major infrastructure attack using AI is coming, and why the patent system doesn't need to be abolished — it just needs to be accelerated.

Roger Hahn is the founder of Haunan Associates, a patent and IP law firm in Washington DC, and creator of Abigail, a proprietary AI system built for patent prosecution. He holds a JD, MBA from Columbia, and MS from Johns Hopkins.

Connect with Roger Hahn:

Haunan Associates

Washington, DC

Chapters

00:00 Introduction to Roger Hahn

01:04 The 3 a.m. office action that changed everything — and the birth of Abigail

03:16 How the name Abigail was born — Artificial BIG AI Lawyer

04:07 What pulled him into patent law from biomedical engineering

05:28 Five years at big firms, then hanging his own shingle in 2006

06:54 His first client — a Korean inventor who didn't know he didn't speak Korean

08:28 Patent trolls, submarine patents, and the freedom to operate problem

10:01 Willful infringement and treble damages — why FTO is a business survival tool

11:58 IBM Columbia Blockchain Accelerator and the licensing machine idea

14:41 Blockchain as a patent assignment and licensing ledger

16:08 Patenting DNA testing systems and building genomic deep learning classifiers

18:21 What his proprietary AI does that traditional patent software does not

20:15 Why general purpose AI hallucinations are catastrophic in patent prosecution

22:05 The architectural bifurcation that keeps Abigail's data layer pristine

24:22 Is Abigail a real product and how does the credit-based model work

26:41 Why he is the Antichrist of SaaS software

27:03 Who his AI product solves problems for and exactly what it automates

29:03 Why he pursued ISO 27001 — and the New York court ruling that killed privilege on LLMs

30:46 How opposing counsel finds out you used an LLM in discovery

32:19 Rapid fire questions

34:03 Project Glasswing, Anthropic's Methos model, and why a cyberattack using AI is coming

36:34 OpenClaw, AI-to-AI communication, and what was actually happening

43:39 Bitcoin or Ethereum — which still matters

45:14 What a typical client engagement looks like across corporate, startup, and solo inventors

49:52 The most common mistakes companies make with their IP portfolios

52:24 How to protect IP when selling into China — a story from a Shenzhen research park

56:19 Who Roger's ideal client is

59:23 Why patents are not cooked — and why the system just needs to be accelerated with AI

#RogerHahn #HaunanAssociates #PatentLaw #AIPatentProsecution #BlockchainIP #FreedomToOperate #TrustcastShow #PatentAttorney #AbigailAI #NextGenerationLaw

What happens when a woman who survived sexual assault, an arranged marriage, and a traumatic divorce spends 25 years watching her clients repeat the same emotional spiral she lived through — and then decides to build something the legal system never could?

In this episode of the Trustcast Show, Zane Myers speaks with Poonam Bhuchar, divorce strategist and founder of the SAFE Method, about why the divorce system is fundamentally broken, why most people wait far too long to get help, and what it actually costs — emotionally and financially — when you let anger drive your divorce. Poonam shares how she went from a corporate immigration practice and family law firm to becoming the strategist that KTLA, Fox, and Pfizer's Women's Resource Group all called first, and why she believes if you've already hired your attorney, you may be too late.

They also discuss the four steps of the SAFE Method — Stop, Accept, Forgive, Embrace — why self-forgiveness is the one that surprises people most, what golden divorce looks like for couples over 50, how Poonam helped a client win the custody schedule she wanted without spending tens of thousands in legal fees, and the wheelchair blanket she invented after watching her mother come home from a brain hemorrhage with nothing dignified to cover her.

Poonam Bhuchar is the founder of EmotionallySafe.com and creator of the SAFE Method. She is a licensed attorney in New Jersey and California, a TEDx speaker, and a co-author with Les Brown. She can be reached at emotionallysafe.com.

Connect with Poonam Bhuchar:

emotionallysafe.com

Instagram: @emotionally_safe

Chapters

00:00 Introduction to Poonam Bhuchar

00:58 Growing up in London with Indian parents and an arranged marriage

02:23 What kept showing up in divorce court that the legal system couldn't fix

03:46 What accountability really means when a marriage falls apart

05:22 The single biggest thing the divorce system gets wrong

06:53 From corporate immigration to divorce strategist — how it happened

09:10 Why January is divorce month and what the phone looks like then

09:57 The SAFE Method — Stop, Accept, Forgive, Embrace

11:14 What her practice actually looks like today

13:51 How she saved a client thousands by catching a missed motion for support

15:27 Her client base — executives and professionals across the US

16:03 Arbitration and mediation for divorce

16:19 The three types of forgiveness and which one surprises people most

18:35 How the SAFE Method applies to corporate burnout

21:24 Her TEDx talk and the moment everything changed

23:00 What she works on first with a high net worth executive mid-divorce

25:22 How her coaching and strategy model works — not hourly, flat rate

28:04 The golden divorce — couples over 50 splitting up after 25 to 30 years

30:17 Helping clients find therapists and other support alongside the strategy

31:39 Which phase of divorce do most people wait too long to get help with

32:15 Rapid fire questions

34:25 How she ended up co-authoring with Les Brown

34:36 The wheelchair blanket — inventing Cozy Wheels after her mother's brain hemorrhage

37:03 Time management, calendar blocking, and how she handles when things go off track

39:56 The couples retreat concept and what it was built to accomplish

40:37 What to do first if you're dreading another day in your marriage

#PoonamBhuchar #SAFEMethod #DivorceStrategist #EmotionallySafe #DivorceCoach #GoldenDivorce #TrustcastShow #CozyWheels #DivorceSupport #FamilyLaw

What happens when a kid from Utica who argued with every teacher in high school founds the first mock trial team at his college, trains at one of the most selective trial programs in the country, and then launches a firm from a 10-by-10 office with no secretary, no marketing budget, and no roadmap — and grows it into one of the fastest growing law firms in the nation?

In this episode of the Trustcast Show, Zane Myers speaks with Nick Passalacqua, founder of Passalacqua & Associates in Utica, New York, about what it really took to build a criminal defense and personal injury firm from scratch, how he secured what is believed to be the largest playground liability settlement in New York state history at $3.2 million, and why doing murder trials in New York with no depositions makes civil trial work look easy by comparison.

They also discuss what he learned at the Jeffrey Feiger Trial Practice Institute that law school never taught him, how he uses courtroom technology to hold a jury's hand through complex evidence, the trial development program he built to train the next generation of attorneys, and the father and son who showed up unannounced at his office after his client got out of prison — to thank him for saving his life.

Nick Passalacqua is the founder of Passalacqua & Associates, a criminal defense and personal injury firm with offices in Utica and Syracuse, New York. The firm can be reached at cnytriallaw.com, 315-500-NICK or 877-TRIALLAW.

Connect with Nick Passalacqua:

cnytriallaw.com

Phone: 315-500-NICK or 877-TRIALLAW

Utica and Syracuse, New York

Chapters

00:00 Introduction to Nick Passalacqua

00:55 Mock trial in high school and founding the first team at Sacred Heart University

01:46 Playing Division I football and running a mock trial team at the same time

02:08 Getting into the Jeffrey Feiger Trial Practice Institute at Michigan State

04:10 Clerking for a Supreme Court justice and leaving a Utica firm with no plan

05:17 The first two weeks of solo practice — and the phone call about rent

06:42 Growing the firm through word of mouth with no marketing budget

07:26 The most awkward part of being a solo — talking about fees

08:45 Named 36th fastest growing law firm in the nation based on revenue growth

10:11 The trial lawyer development program from undergraduate intern to courtroom

12:47 How he spends his time now — 75% management, 25% practice

13:54 Criminal and personal injury attorneys staying specialized in separate silos

15:36 The $3.2 million playground liability settlement and how it happened

17:53 How courtroom technology changed the outcome of a murder trial

20:55 Why criminal trial work is harder than civil trial work

23:01 The biggest misconception people have about what a trial attorney does

24:15 Rapid fire questions

25:50 Over 1,500 criminal defense cases — the one that stays with him most

28:38 Why father is listed first on his LinkedIn headline

29:37 His youngest daughter diagnosed with stage four cancer at seven weeks old

30:24 How to reach Passalacqua and Associates

Hashtags

#NickPassalacqua #PassalacquaAssociates #CriminalDefense #PersonalInjury #UticaLawyer #TrialLawyer #PlaygroundLiability #TrustcastShow #CNYTrialLaw #JeffreyFeigerInstitute

What happens when a Chicago trial lawyer trained in Xerox sales techniques clerks for an Illinois Supreme Court justice, then goes on to win the biggest legal malpractice judgment in Ohio history against the self-proclaimed largest law firm in the world — and spends eleven years on the side writing a 720-page biography of Huey Long?

In this episode of the Trustcast Show, Zane Myers speaks with Tom Patterson, founder of Patterson Law Firm in Chicago, about the Revelaze v. Dentons case, how a small family-owned tech company with a revolutionary laser denim process ended up suing a global law firm over a conflict of interest that should never have happened, and why six years of litigation and a 55-page appellate opinion still affirmed the verdict. Tom also explains what a business emergency actually looks like when a panicked client calls, why he offers a billable hour guarantee, and what the Dennis Hastert breach of promise settlement taught him about the intersection of power, secrecy, and accountability.

They also discuss what Huey Long got right about inequality, why populism is more of a style than an ideology, how sales technique and trial advocacy share more DNA than most lawyers admit, and why Broderick Crawford was simply born to play Willie Stark.

Tom Patterson is the founder of Patterson Law Firm in Chicago, Illinois, author of the ABA book on business emergencies, and author of the LSU Press biography of Huey Long, winner of the Landry Press Award.

Connect with Tom Patterson:

pattersonlawfirm.com

Chicago, Illinois

Chapters

00:00 Introduction to Tom Patterson

01:13 Paying for law school selling photocopiers — what Xerox sales taught a trial lawyer

03:40 Clerking for Illinois Supreme Court Justice William G. Clark

04:36 Launching Patterson Law Firm in 2000 and the first client call

06:34 DNC on the DiSC profile — driven for results and obsessed with accuracy

08:04 The $32 million Ohio verdict and how the appellate court upheld it

09:39 Suing Dentons — a case within a case and how legal malpractice works

11:00 Why being collegial with opposing counsel actually helps you win

13:01 Six years of discovery across Washington, New York, and Ohio

13:33 What a business emergency really looks like when someone calls in a panic

15:24 How to take a case anywhere in the country using pro hac vice

16:20 The billable hour guarantee and why it almost never gets used

17:33 Three months before trial on an $8 million guarantee case — and a zero liability verdict

18:41 Revelaze and the laser denim patent that changed how blue jeans are made

21:00 The Swiss Varine structure that Dentons used and why it failed on conflicts

22:54 Rapid fire questions including Huey Long versus FDR

26:04 Why Huey Long became an eleven-year obsession

29:33 Inequality, World War II, and why Long's ideas came back into view after 2008

31:10 Carl Weiss — who shot Huey Long and why

34:35 Populism, Trump, and drawing lines from 1935 to today

38:01 Broderick Crawford, Sean Penn, and All the King's Men

38:23 Did Huey Long have a real shot at the presidency against Roosevelt

39:44 One confession from a future memoir called Confessions of a Trial Lawyer

40:11 The biggest mistake business owners make before they ever call a lawyer

41:54 Representing one of Dennis Hastert's victims in a breach of promise case

44:57 What he wants Patterson Law Firm to be known for in 20 years

45:37 How to reach Tom Patterson

#TomPatterson #PattersonLawFirm #LegalMalpractice #BusinessLitigation #HueyLong #ChicagoTrialLawyer #DentonsLawsuit #TrustcastShow #BusinessEmergency #ConfessionsOfATrialLawyer

What happens when a boy adopted at four months old in Green Bay, Wisconsin grows up to become one of only a hundred divorce trial lawyers in the country selected for the American College of Family Trial Lawyers — and then represents the most famous athlete in the world?

In this episode of the Trustcast Show, Zane Myers speaks with James Quigley, equity partner at Beermann Law, Chicago's largest divorce-only family law firm, about his extraordinary journey from small-town Wisconsin to the Michael Jordan divorce, the founding of a sports and entertainment division built on discretion, and what thirty-five years of high-stakes family law actually looks like from the inside. James shares why he refuses to tell clients what they want to hear, how a courtroom testimony about narcissistic abuse moved him to silence, and when he will walk away from a case rather than let a train go off the rails.

They also discuss what it was like meeting his biological Sicilian family in a Milwaukee restaurant, the moving visit to his birth mother Barbara wearing a Packers shirt and Chuck Taylors shortly before she passed, and the day he drove to a Denny's parking lot in the Chicago suburbs and picked up his son Giovanni rather than let him spend one more night in foster care.

James Quigley is an equity partner and founder of the Sports and Entertainment Division at Beermann Law in Chicago, Illinois. He is a Fellow of the American College of Family Trial Lawyers.

Connect with James Quigley:

beermannlaw.com/team/james-m-quigley

jamesmquigley.com

Chicago, Illinois

Chapters

00:00 Introduction to James Quigley

00:45 Born Frank Anthony Balastriari — growing up adopted in Green Bay

01:55 From journalism at Wisconsin to law school at DePaul

02:40 First legal job running the family law department for the Fraternal Order of Police

04:12 Going solo at Quigley and Associates

05:22 Joining Beermann Law in 2005 and why resources matter in high-stakes divorce

07:28 Financial pressures of running a small divorce practice versus a large firm

09:20 The Michael Jordan case and what it taught him about discretion

14:25 Practicing in other states via pro hac vice

16:01 What most people misunderstand about celebrity divorce

17:36 Managing a team of a dozen lawyers and what his role looks like now

21:07 MSNBC, Today Show, Fox News, People Magazine — does media help or hurt cases

23:05 Divorcing a narcissist — litigation against someone who won't play by the rules

26:01 How to tell that story in a courtroom so the judge really gets it

28:40 Why he prefers to settle and how he coaches clients down from the ledge

32:42 His wife Charisse's search that led him to his biological father Frank

35:50 Meeting biological mother Barbara in Las Vegas before she passed

38:21 Adopting son Giovanni from a Denny's parking lot because he wouldn't wait one more day

#JamesQuigley #BeermanLaw #CelebrityDivorce #MichaelJordan #DivorceAttorney #ChicagoFamilyLaw #NarcissisticAbuse #TrustcastShow #SportsAndEntertainmentDivorce #AdoptionStory

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What happens when a Philadelphia prosecutor who spent nearly a decade putting people behind bars starts to see the other side — and eventually crosses over entirely to fight for the people the system failed?

In this episode of the Trustcast Show, Zane Myers speaks with Laurie Jubelirer, founder of Jubelirer Law, about her remarkable evolution from DA to defense attorney, the wrongful convictions she uncovered in her own past cases, and the life sentence she's been fighting to overturn for a man convicted of felony murder who never intended to kill anyone. Laurie explains why Pennsylvania's felony murder law just got struck down as unconstitutional, what police brutality cases really look like behind closed doors, and why she believes the entire American prison system has failed at its only job.

They also discuss the judge who told her to settle down until she looked him in the eyes and refused, her civil rights pilgrimage to Selma and Montgomery, why criminalizing addiction and mental illness makes both worse, and how her father's three words — make a difference — have shaped everything she does.

Laurie Jubelirer is the founder of Jubelirer Law, a criminal defense and civil rights firm serving the Philadelphia region. She is also the host of the Voices of the System podcast. She can be reached at jubileerlaw.com.

Connect with Laurie Jubelirer:

jubileerlaw.com

LinkedIn: Jubelirer Law or Laurie Jubelirer

Podcast: Voices of the System

Chapters

00:00 Introduction to Laurie Jubelirer

00:52 Why she crossed from prosecutor to defense attorney

02:02 Did her former colleagues think she lost her mind

03:07 The hardest part of switching sides

04:01 Does she carry guilt over cases she won as a prosecutor

05:25 Starting Jubelirer Law from zero in 2013

06:48 The Tyreme Rivers case — life without parole for a purse snatching

08:49 How often does the system fail versus the client make a real mistake

10:20 What police brutality and prison civil rights cases look like day to day

12:33 Treating opioid addiction with support instead of prosecution

14:17 How her thinking has completely shifted since leaving prosecution

15:33 Over 1,000 people in Pennsylvania on life without parole who never intended to kill

17:56 What a criminal justice system that actually worked would look like

20:04 The solution — and what Norway and Scandinavia got right

21:35 Speaking at Colgate about Yahya Moore — handcuffed for three days without food

22:52 The judge who told her to settle down — and what she said back

24:09 Being called a beast in the courtroom while also caring deeply

26:01 How she handles new client intake

27:10 How she gets new clients and the podcast she launched in January

29:17 Her father's three words — make a difference

30:04 The civil rights journey to Selma and Montgomery

31:32 How to find and contact Laurie Jubelirer

#LaurieJubelirer #JubelireLaw #WrongfulConvictions #CriminalJusticeReform #PoliceBrutality #FelonyMurder #PhiladelphiaLawyer #TrustcastShow #VoicesOfTheSystem #CriminalDefense

What happens when a family law attorney builds the largest family law department at a major Utah firm, walks away to sell LegalTech, and then decides within 10 months to come back and build something entirely his own — from zero clients to 10 attorneys, 3,000-plus clients served, and a national ABA leadership role in under three years?

In this episode of the Trustcast Show, Zane Myers speaks with Ryan Gregerson, founding partner of RCG Law Group in South Jordan, Utah, about the philosophy, purpose, and practical systems that drive his firm's remarkable growth. Ryan explains why he believes most divorces should never go to trial, how a mediation fight over three used bar stools changed the way he prepares clients, and why he thinks every person getting married already has a prenup — they just didn't choose the terms.

They also discuss the holistic divorce model that connects clients with therapists, CPAs, mortgage officers, and financial planners from day one, the tragedy of a client who took his own life that reminded him how real this work is, the time management framework that he says is the single biggest mistake solo attorneys make, and how his plans to scale RCG Law Group to $20 million and into five states by 2028 are already in motion.

Ryan Gregerson is the founding partner of RCG Law Group, a family law firm with four offices in Utah and expansion plans into Arizona, Idaho, Washington, and Oregon. He also coaches law firm owners on business development and time management.

Connect with Ryan Gregerson:

RCG Law Group

South Jordan, Utah

Chapters

00:00 Introduction to Ryan Gregerson

00:54 From building a 35-attorney firm to selling LegalTech to launching his own shop

02:42 How he got his very first client at the new firm

04:10 What family law actually covers beyond divorce

05:52 How he stays positive doing work that is almost always someone's worst chapter

07:45 The Simon Sinek why that anchors the firm's entire culture

09:05 Why most divorces should never go to trial

10:38 When the friends and family of a client make things worse

11:48 Being part counselor and part attorney

12:46 Zero to 10 attorneys and 3,000 clients in three years

14:09 The holistic divorce model — therapists, planners, realtors, and loan officers

16:13 Helping a spouse who doesn't even know where the money is

18:55 Is Utah a community property state

19:31 Why he built a team instead of staying solo

21:20 The bar stools mediation that changed how he prepares clients

24:00 The client who took his own life and what it reminded him about this work

25:17 The next steps meeting after the decree is signed

27:27 High asset divorces and the tax and contingency traps most people miss

30:51 Why everybody should have a prenup

32:41 The most common mistake solo law firm owners make

34:30 How he got into coaching other law firm owners

37:09 The vivid vision — $20 million and five states by 2028

#RyanGregerson #RCGLawGroup #FamilyLaw #DivorceAttorney #UtahFamilyLaw #HolisticDivorce #LawFirmGrowth #TrustcastShow #BusinessCoaching #DivorceWithPurpose

What happens when a business litigation attorney who runs an improv theater wakes up one morning and gets the phone call that changes everything — and then spends the next several years fighting for his wife, his family, and eventually himself, in ways law school never prepared him for?

In this episode of the Trustcast Show, Zane Myers speaks with Matt Ames, partner at Balch & Bingham in Atlanta and author of Through the Impossible, about the July morning in 2019 when his wife Liz was diagnosed with a rare aggressive cancer and how journaling in the early morning hours became a memoir he never intended to publish. Matt shares what it means to be a male caregiver when most of the literature is written for someone else, why rage is one of the emotions caregivers never admit to, and what it felt like to keep expressing gratitude every Friday night even on the darkest weeks.

They also discuss what a business divorce actually looks like in the real world, how he got an injunction after a former employee hacked a client's network to steal trade secrets, the improv workshop for lawyers he created nearly 20 years ago, and why he believes what trial attorneys do in a courtroom and what improvisers do on a stage are closer than most people think.

Matt Ames is a partner at Balch & Bingham in Atlanta, Georgia, specializing in business litigation and business divorces. He is the author of Through the Impossible and a former president of Dad's Garage Theater. Liz Ames is five-plus years cancer free.

Connect with Matt Ames:

balch.com

Book: Through the Impossible on Amazon

LinkedIn, Facebook, Instagram: Matthew Ames

Atlanta, Georgia

Chapters

00:00 Introduction to Matt Ames

00:49 July 2, 2019 — the phone call that changed everything

02:10 When Liz said she wouldn't want to be in his shoes

03:55 How journaling turned into a Facebook group and then a memoir

06:43 Why there is almost nothing written for male caregivers

07:05 Five-plus years cancer free and what that imprint leaves behind

08:47 What it means that Balch and Bingham supported him through all of it

09:43 How he decided which personal moments to share and which to keep private

12:11 The patient-caregiver book he and Liz have talked about writing together

12:55 Business divorces explained in plain terms

15:47 How to handle a party who wants the business to fail out of anger

19:17 Getting an injunction after a former employee hacked a client network

23:46 Representing arts organizations versus tech companies

25:00 The overlap between improv theater and trial advocacy

26:20 Rapid fire questions

29:30 What improv teaches an attorney that law school never could

30:51 My Cousin Vinny and being light on your feet in the courtroom

31:06 The Friday night gratitude ritual through the worst weeks

32:31 Why he got involved with Jewish Family and Career Services

34:48 What he wants the legacy of Through the Impossible to be

36:32 How to find the book and connect with Matt Ames

#MattAmes #ThroughTheImpossible #BusinessLitigation #CancerCaregiver #CaregiverSupport #BusinessDivorce #ImprovForLawyers #AtlantaLawyer #TrustcastShow #DadsGarageTheater

What happens when a first-generation college student from a military family grows up to argue a case before the United States Supreme Court — twice — and then builds his own firm on the Texas-New Mexico border handling everything from federal criminal defense to cycling accident cases he knows personally?

In this episode of the Trustcast Show, Zane Myers speaks with Gabriel Perez, founder of Gabriel S. Perez Law in El Paso, Texas, about his journey from collegiate cross country runner to Supreme Court advocate in the landmark Hernandez v. Mesa border shooting case. Gabriel explains what it's like to defend a federal agent in a politically charged cross-border shooting, why federal criminal cases require preparation from day one of indictment, and why he keeps criminal defense in his practice even as he focuses more on injury work — because jury trials are like athletics, and if you don't do them regularly, you get rusty.

They also discuss what it means to practice across two state bar licenses on the Texas-New Mexico border, how being hit by a car while cycling gave him a personal connection to his injury clients, his seven years teaching criminal law at the college level, and why he believes education is the great equalizer.

Gabriel Perez is the founder of Gabriel S. Perez Law in El Paso, Texas, licensed in both Texas and New Mexico. His practice covers federal criminal defense, personal injury, civil rights litigation, and civil litigation across the border region.

Connect with Gabriel Perez:

gabrielsperelaw.com

Phone: 915-444-5351

El Paso, Texas

Chapters

00:00 Introduction to Gabriel Perez

00:43 Arguing Hernandez v. Mesa at the US Supreme Court

02:30 Why the case went up twice and what Abbasi changed

04:23 What it took to get the Supreme Court to hear the case at all

05:34 From Coronado, California to practicing law on the Texas-Mexico border

06:32 His father's Navy career and a childhood that included Sicily

07:43 Cross country at UTEP and the path from MBA to law school

09:00 Representing border patrol agents in politically charged cases

10:17 Threats at the office and what it means to do this work

12:29 Going from name partner to solo practice in 2021

13:39 How he keeps overhead low with contract associates

15:23 A typical day — three hearings before lunch and a jury trial next week

16:17 What two state bar licenses gives clients that one state can't

17:09 Where he wants the firm to go from here

19:28 How being hit by a car while cycling shaped his injury practice

20:28 Rapid fire questions

24:18 What separates a case that goes to trial from one that settles

25:44 Preparing for a federal case versus a state case

27:32 How he decides which cases to take and when to say no

29:11 Seven years teaching criminal law and why education is the great equalizer

31:40 The biggest challenge facing attorneys in border communities today

33:12 How to reach Gabriel Perez

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