Welcome back to another episode of the How I Lawyer Podcast, where Professor Jonah Perlin interviews lawyers about what they do, why they do it, and how they do it well.
Today's guest is Kyle Robisch, a Partner at Latitude Legal, a premier flexible legal talent company providing top-notch legal professionals on a temporary or project basis. Before joining Latitude a year ago, Kyle was a litigation partner at Bradley, an associate at Venable, and a law clerk in the Middle District of Florida. He's a graduate of the University of Florida and Vanderbilt Law School and lives in Tampa with his wife and two children.
In this episode, Kyle shares valuable insights about the legal profession including:
🎤⚖️ How his high school policy debate experience put him on a 12-year path to becoming a lawyer, teaching him to argue both sides of an issue and work within established rules [2:00]
🎓💰 How his desire to attend a top law school influenced his undergraduate decision, choosing the University of Florida to maintain financial flexibility for future law school options [4:54]
👨⚖️📝 How clerking for a federal judge provided invaluable experience that accelerated his career development, allowing him to function at a higher level when he entered private practice [11:00]
🌎🏠 How his decision to leave DC for Florida initially felt like a career downgrade but ultimately accelerated his path to partnership and broadened his practice areas [13:47]
🔄🧠 How he realized litigation wasn't the right fit for him despite external success, leading to his career pivot into the flexible legal talent space [18:00]
👥🤝 How his current role at Latitude Legal allows him to help both law firms/companies needing talent and lawyers seeking flexible work arrangements, creating a people-centric career that leaves him energized [23:24]
🚪🔑 How increasing your "surface area for serendipity" by saying yes to opportunities and meeting new people opens more doors in your legal career [39:00]
🤖⚖️ How AI will transform legal practice but won't eliminate lawyer jobs—instead creating new opportunities for those willing to adapt [33:55]
👨👩👧👦⏰ How intentionality is the key to balancing legal work with family life, including practical strategies like putting your phone on airplane mode during family time [45:46]
🛣️🔄 How it's never too late to change career paths, even after achieving traditional markers of success like making partner [50:00]
This episode is sponsored, edited, and engineered by LawPods, a professional podcast production company for busy attorneys.
