Civility within the legal profession can be defined as the courteous and respectful behavior exhibited by legal professionals throughout their practice. Personal attacks, not agreeing to reasonable requests, writing inflammatory emails, briefs, or motions, are just a few examples of incivility within the profession. These actions have prompted calls for a return to civility. Where some states have adopted codes of civility, a fight for mandatory civility continues. In this episode, Craig is joined by David A. Grenardo, a professor of law and associate director of the Holloran Center for Ethical Leadership in the Professions at St. Thomas School of Law. Craig & David spotlight civility in the legal profession, and take a look at mandatory civility and teaching the importance of civility to our law students and to those within the legal profession.Mentioned in This Episode:Civility Rules: Debunking the Major Myths Surrounding Mandatory Civility for Lawyers and Five Mandatory Civility Rules That Will WorkHear more from David on State Bar of Texas Podcast  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The 27th Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Texas, the Honorable Nathan L. Hecht retired from the bench at the end of 2024 as the longest-serving member in the history of the Texas Supreme Court. In this conversation, Hecht reflects on how his time on the bench shaped his perspective on access to justice. He describes the current challenges that civil courts face and shares what recent innovations he finds most exciting. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this “Super Episode,” host Adriana Linares is joined by Stephanie Everett, a host for the Lawyerist podcast on the Legal Talk Network and the chief growth officer, lab coach, and speaker with Lawyerist, a firm dedicated to helping solo and small legal practices flourish in every area including marketing, finance, staffing, and legal tech. Twice the hosting! Together, they tackle the transition to flat-fee billing and explain how it can sometimes be a better solution for lawyers and their clients. Clients are used to the traditional billable hour, but in reality, they aren’t paying for your time, they are paying for results. They are paying you for what you achieve. So why not bill that way? This doesn’t have to be all or nothing. Some jobs can be better handled with a straight up, flat fee or a subscription model. Others may still require hourly billing. Or maybe one part of the case is a set amount, with hourly add-ons if the case drags on. The goal is never to see your practice earn less revenue, but flat-fee billing can benefit both client and lawyer. Think of how many times clients were afraid to call you or chat a bit to build a relationship because they worried the clock was ticking. Hear how you can try it out, “play with” a rate shift. Maybe even present clients with an option. If you’ve been curious about how flat-fee billing can work, this is the episode for you. Questions or ideas about solo and small practices? Drop us a line at NewSolo@legaltalknetwork.com  Topics: Flat-fee billing? It can be done, and it can offer advantages to both clients and law firms. Clients are paying for results, not “hours. How you price your services doesn’t have to be one way or the other. It can be both. Some tasks can be set for a straight up, transparent flat fee. Others may work best at an hourly rat Explaining fees to clients is a new concept. But clients often warm up to new ways of doing things if they’re given the chance and understand their options. It starts with honest, clear conversations. (Don’t forget to help your own staff understand, too.)  Mentioned in This Episode:Previously on Lawyerist podcast, “#547: Legal Tech You Need for Flat Fees, with Adriana Linares”ABA TECHSHOW 2025Clio Cloud Conference 2025Clio Legal Trends Report Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Dreaming of launching your own law firm or leveling up your current practice? In this episode, Stephanie Everett shares the top five game-changing strategies you need to know to build a thriving law firm. From crafting a crystal-clear vision to mastering your tech stack and establishing solid legal and financial foundations, they’ve got you covered. Links from the episode:  Amplify your legal practice with Paxton AI   Paxton AI  We just announced a $22M Series A funding round  Listeners can sign up for our webinar - accelerating your practice with AI on 2/19 here.   Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

 Today’s legal evidence, more than ever, is digital. We’re not digging through boxes of paperwork and memos anymore. In its own way, paper evidence was easy – if time consuming – to request, sift through, organize, present, and protect. But today, evidence lives in the digital universe. We find evidence in emails, tablets, mobile devices, computers, the cloud, cell phones, even digital doorbells and devices connected through the Internet of Things (IoT). Guest John Sammons is an author and professor teaching digital forensics at Marshall University and is the associate director of the Marshall Institute for Cyber Security. He explains how vital paralegal professionals have become in the struggle to gather, understand, decipher, explain, and protect today’s digital evidence. More than ever, well-educated and up-to-date paralegal professionals become indispensable as they help their legal teams understand what to ask for, where digital evidence might be hiding, and how to clearly explain these complex clues to a judge and jury. Sammons explains how advancing technologies, AI, digital duplicates, and speech replication tech are making tech-savvy paralegal professionals irreplaceable components inside their organizations. Get inspired to get out there and learn something new today. Mentioned in This Episode:American Academy of Forensic SciencesCES, Consumer Electronics ShowAppalachian Institute of Digital EvidenceNALA, The Paralegal AssociationNALA Conference & Expo 2025 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The new federal deficit is the government's research deficit.-----Elon Musk's aimless cost-cutting escapades turn to the SEC where DOGE slashed their Westlaw access because no one over there is smart enough to know how legal research works. Apparently now is an opportune time to start committing securities fraud! Speaking of aimless, former judge Alex Kozinski penned a meandering opinion piece about canceling elections in case, maybe, some president might want to consider it. And a few law schools quietly reworked their websites to remove diversity language. They probably won't be the last. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Diversity, Equity and Inclusion is an essential part of the legal profession. Attorneys who recognize, anticipate, and navigate cultural bias can foster deeper connections and achieve better outcomes in their practice. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Today, we unpack Gyi’s beloved catchphrase to see how “meh” he really feels about the significance of links in local SEO. Later—the strategic guide you need for top-knotch link building in 2025.A whole lotta folks like to say links don’t really matter anymore, but are they right? In practice, the guys have seen the positive effects of link building for clients for many, many years, and it’s still a piece of the pie today. However, there’s a ton of misinformation out there, so Gyi and Conrad debunk the most common misconceptions to get you on track for optimized, relevant, business-building links. And, later, what’s working best for link building in 2025? The guys share some great stories of businesses who engaged their local communities through service, scholarships, sponsorships, and more—all while getting awesome PR and plenty of links. Room for dessert? Here's some exclusive bonus content from this week's episode: How to Get Your Website to Rank in ChatGPT Search | SEO Strategy | Lunch Hour Legal MarketingThe News: More mergers & acquisitions! Places Scout was purchased by Yext… so are we all in for some price jacking? Sigh. Probably.  ABA is standing up for the judiciary, and you should too: ABA condemns remarks questioning legitimacy of courts and judicial review Quit ruining our weekends, Googs. Sheesh. Google Confirms Business Profile Reviews Outage Super grateful to Ahrefs for this really well done post: Google Says "Links Matter Less"—We Looked at 1,000,000 SERPs to See if It's True   Mentioned:Google Cites Scholarship Links in a Manual Action PenaltySuggested LHLM Episodes:Is Link Building Worth It Anymore? || Top 10 Link Building TipsConnect:The Bite - Lunch Hour Legal Marketing Newsletter!Leave Us an Apple Review Lunch Hour Legal Marketing on YouTube Lunch Hour Legal Marketing on TikTokChapters (Times Approximate)(0:00) The Consummate One-Upsman(3:26) The News: Places Scout, the ABA takes on Trump, & GBP Outage(10:00) Busting Link Building Myths(24:45) How To Create Backlinks For Your Website In 2025 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

We all try, but who really measures? Who’s paying you on time? If you don’t know, it’s hard to know if the business is working. It comes down to cash flow. And, frankly, lawyering is a business. Guest Karl Maier is a CFO and a business advisor at Abunden. He specializes in helping growing business manage systems and cash flow and putting it all into measurable terms. As you grow, you must know if the cash flow is growing. Maier helps businesses spot problems they aren’t facing today but may need to confront six months down the road.   A growing business can appear profitable in the short term and still face a cash flow problem down the road. Paying staff and keeping the lights on as you grow requires cash and timely client payments. It’s a delicate game. You need to be sure clients are paying, and sometimes that’s elusive. If you’re a growing firm, or you want to be a growing firm, this episode will get you thinking. And it should. Nobody gets excited about spreadsheets – especially lawyers – but if you’re intent on growing your business, you must do this. Mentioned in This Episode:The Un-Billable hour podcast websiteJoin the next Community Table live. What’s on your mind?  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Guest Dr. Peter Yeh is an orthopedic surgeon with more than 15 years in medicine treating shoulder, upper arm, and knee issues. The stuff that happens at the job. When it comes to injured workers, they’re not that much different than an injured athlete. In both cases, the things they do can be a big part of their identity. And getting back to work is imperative. It’s not just physical, it’s mental. We all have different layers of what makes us who we are, and work is a big part of that. Hear how Yeh learned how injured workers depend on doctors and the Workers’ Compensation system to help them cope both mentally and physically and get back to their lives. There’s no “cookie cutter” approach, and your clients depend on your understanding, compassion, and expertise. Medical technology is rapidly evolving. Even the terms you need to know can change. Yeh explains some options that injured workers can explore, especially in cases involving injuries that would have been irreparable just two or three years ago. If you’re representing injured clients, it’s up to you to stay current and help them understand their options, available treatments, and the mental struggle of getting back to normal. If you have thoughts on Workers’ Comp law or an idea for a topic or guest you’d like to hear, contact us at JPierce@ppnlaw.com or APierce@ppnlaw.com. Mentioned in This Episode:Previously on Workers’ Comp Matters, Claire Muselman, “A New Approach to Workers’ Comp: Being Nice?” Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices