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I’m not really into the whole brevity thing. I already wrote a brief post (only 800 words) that concludes with succint advice to law departments on discounts, AFAs, panels, outside counsel guidelines, RFPs, and, in particular, a humbling recommendation they not ask law firms about the use of technology unless the answers will inform structured dialogue to improve business outcomes at scale and pace (because I’d previously written a book on this subject).

At the conclusion of this off-brand concision, I promised my tiny corps of hard core readers an extended universe of nerd content. Fair warning, this is not for everyone.Continue Reading Scary Stories about our Wicked Problems (Legal Nerd Halloween)

This week we reached out to local Los Angeles counsel, lawyer Ashley Carlisle, who is the Head of Marketing at HyperDraft to help break down Ep. 8 of She-Hulk: Attorney at Law, “Ribbit and Rip It.” And there is a lot to talk about in the penultimate episode of season one.

We’d really like it if Jennifer/She-Hulk would take a little more time interviewing her clients before representing them in court. Specifically, ask more detailed questions of anyone who runs around in a superpowered Frog suit and calls themselves LeapFrog. Even if, or maybe especially if, your client’s father is a big client at GLK/H.

We finally get to see Matt Murdock, AKA Daredevil, in action, both in the court and fighting goons in dark hallways. Not to mention the chemistry between Jen and Matt. For two people who can fight and discuss legal defense strategy at the same time, we need to see them team-up much more often. (Maybe there is a future Murdock and Walters law firm in the making??? Please, MCU, say yes!!)

Just how much property damage can She-Hulk cause, and still feel like she needs to leave a note confessing to it?

And finally, the Gala Awards for “Female Lawyer of the Year” starts off bad, and immediately gets worse.

Huge thanks to Ashley Carlisle for lending a hand this week in discussing all the legal and other issues. To find out more about Ashley and HyperDraft, check out the links below.

Listen on mobile platforms: Apple Podcasts | Spotify

Links:

TranscriptContinue Reading She-Hulk and Daredevil: Attorneys at Law (SHLD Ep. 8)

For the first time, Law360 and Major, Lindsey, and Africa team up to survey BigLaw partners in their 2022 Partner Compensation Survey. We are joined by Craig Savitzky, Senior Data Analyst at Law360 and Jeffrey Lowe, Global Practice Leader of the Law Firm Practice at Major Lindsey and Africa. With this being the first survey of law firm partners since most firms have made some effort to return to the office, there were some surprises on how much remote work partners want to take versus how much their firms are offering. It may not be what you think.

Women and minority partners made some strong gains according to this survey in narrowing the pay gap. While the gap is still significant between women/minority partners and their white male colleagues, this was the smallest percentage in the history of the survey which began in 2010.

For the first time, the difference between average equity partner pay was more than $1 Million over average non-equity partner pay.

Savitzky and Lowe unpack a lot of data from the survey for us.

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Links:

Crystal Ball Answers from LVNx

This week we talk with Properoware founder Keith Lipman, who recently merged into Litera, about the role that ALSP’s and others will play in filling the gap left by law firms when the economy begins its expected downturn.

Contact Us:

Twitter: @gebauerm or @glambert
Voicemail: 713-487-7821 (note the NEW NUMBER!)
Email: geekinreviewpodcast@gmail.com
Music: Jerry David DeCicca

Transcript

Continue Reading An Overview of the 2022 Partner Compensation Survey with Law360’s Craig Savitzky and MLA’s Jeffrey Lowe (TGIR Ep. 178)

In a recent ALM Pacesetter survey, the report found “that innovators among professional services providers are grappling less with technology installation and more with process and culture reengineering.” We sit down with one of the people behind that report, Tomek Jankowski,  Director, ALM Intelligence Pacesetter Research, and dive into the ways law firms and in-house legal departments are working to change the cultural roadblocks to advance innovation and improve overall client experiences. We discuss some specific examples of firms going to great lengths to improve their interactions with clients, but that Jankowski reminds us that it doesn’t take a Moon Shot project to improve overall satisfaction with your clients. Sometimes, it is as simple as talking with your clients.
Tomek Jankowski also sees a future filled with challenges over the next few years with financial, social, and global political issues bringing back old Cold War problems than not many lawyers today experienced first-hand like he did.
Links Discussed:
Crystal Ball Question:
This week we continue our crystal ball answers from the recent Legal Value Network eXperience conference in Chicago. This week we have Damien Riehl from Fastcase and SALI discussing the need for a true organized method of allowing legal vendors, attorneys, clients, and governments to label and share information.

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Contact Us:
Twitter: @gebauerm or @glambert
Voicemail: 713-487-7821 (note the NEW NUMBER!)
Email: geekinreviewpodcast@gmail.com
Music: Jerry David DeCicca

Transcript

Continue Reading It’s Not Legal Technology That’s the Problem… It’s the Culture – ALM’s Tomek Jankowski (TGIR Ep. 177)

I should be taking a victory lap. Instead, I am on an apology tour urging in-house departments not to listen to me—i.e., ignore my long-standing advice re asking law firms about their use of technology. I’ve concluded that the common application of my advice only adds unnecessary friction to an already friction-laden system—similar to the value-subtractive frictions introduced by ubiquitous, well-intentioned, and misguided approaches to discounts, panels, outside counsel guidelines, AFAs, etc.

I understand the motivations. I also understand the constraints. Everyone operating in our space should be able to connect the dots on these four statistics:

  • 75% of GCs recognize workloads will outpace budgets (problem)
  • 80% of in-house lawyers are burned out (consequence)
  • 70% of law departments are not investing in digital transformation (unavailable solution due to resource constraints)
  • 70% of law departments are asking law firms about technology usage (attempt to cope within resource constraints)

Continue Reading Legal Buy: We’re Asking the Wrong Questions (and it is my fault, kind of)

A great Lawyer Wellness Program is something that Jennifer Walters could really benefit from with her stressful life of being the face of the GLK/H law firm’s SuperHuman Law Division. Unfortunately, it doesn’t look like that is offered by the firm, so she accidentally ends up in a group wellness session at Emil Blonksy’s ranch retreat. 
We discuss the various legal and personal issues raised in Episode 7: The Retreat of She-Hulk: Attorney at Law. After being ghosted by “Too Good to Be True” Josh, Jen finds that Emil Blonsky (AKA The Abomination) may have violated his parole requirements after his inhibitor bracelet malfunctions. The Retreat may be just what Jen needs to find a balance between working at a BigLaw firm, dating life, and the fact that someone seems to be out for blood… gamma-radiated blood, specifically.
While we do not appear in court this week, there are still many legal issues ranging from simple assault, to property damages, insurance claims, and possible fraud and sexual assault. Just for fun, we also talk about how Disney is bringing in more and more Mutant (X-Men franchise) characters into the MCU fold.
Joshua Lenon joins in from the airport as he winds his way across the US this week before landing in Nashville for the Clio Cloud Conference, October 10 – 11, 2022 in Nashville, TN. He is looking forward to everyone asking him more legal questions about She-Hulk, so make sure to find him if you are in attendance. We are also hoping that he’ll have some SHLD Podcast Stickers to hand out!
We are making our way to the end of Season One of She-Hulk: Attorney at Law. Reach out to us on Twitter to make suggestions of what we should cover next on the podcast. Maybe Batman’s Trial on the animated series? More She-Hulk comic book storylines? The legal standing of The Boys? A look back at Netflix’s Daredevil series? Let us know!!

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Share/Contact/Subscribe
Contact us at @glambert, @JoshuaLenon, or @SuperHumanPod and let us know what you think!
We have a website: SuperHuman Law Division 
Artwork by @ChangoATX
Share this with friends, and don’t forget to subscribe on your favorite podcast platform.
Stay Super Everybody!!
Transcript

Continue Reading ABOMASTE: The Work/Life Balance of a SuperHuman Attorney (SHLD Ep. 7)

Adam Curphey’s new book, The Legal Team of the Future: Law+ Skills guides the reader through the need for less silos in legal practice and much more reliance upon teams and collaborative efforts. The idea of a “Law+” model for the profession brings in the essential processes of adding people, business, change, and technology to the law and creating legal teams to solve legal problems.
Curphey’s experiences at law firms like White & Case LLP, Reed Smith LLP, and Mayer Brown LLP helped provide insights into what worked and didn’t work in legal innovation. His membership on the O-Shaped Lawyer Steering Board also provided the human-centric skills needed for the integration of teams into an industry filled with accomplished individuals used to going it alone. This expansion of the T-Shaped and the Delta Model Lawyers brings in more of that human interaction that is needed in today’s complex legal environment.
The Legal Team of the Future: Law+ Skills also lays out multiple case studies and examples of collaboration, teamwork, and professional progression. We talk about some of the case studies along with Adam Curphey’s view into his crystal ball on what is on the horizon for the legal industry in terms of legal innovation.

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Links to Order The Legal Team of the Future: Law+ Skills
LVNx Crystal Ball Answer
This week, Purvi Sanghvi  from Paul Hastings, and a current Legal Value Network Executive Board Member, explains how the legal industry may approach a potential economic downturn in 2023, and how that must be different from the 2008 or the 2020 approaches on previous challenges to the profession.
Contact Us:
Twitter: @gebauerm or @glambert
Voicemail: 713-487-7821 (note the NEW NUMBER!)
Email: geekinreviewpodcast@gmail.com
Music: Jerry David DeCicca
Transcript

Continue Reading Preparing for the Legal Team of the Future – Adam Curphey (TGIR Ep. 176)

Clients will do a lot of things to get out of legal predicaments, but Mr. Immortal would literally prefer to die than listen to attorneys and paralegals arguing.

In Episode Six, “Just Jen,” it looks like Disney+ was trying to save on CGI costs. That issue to the side, we look at three parts of the show that looks at legal issues ranging from Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act, to divorce laws and when is a dead spouse, not really dead. Sprinkle in a little assault with a deadly superpowered weapon, and you have a full rundown of this week’s She-Hulk: Attorney at Law.

Can an Attorney Really Ever Take Time Off?

Jennifer Walters is asked to be a brides maid for an inconvenient Thursday wedding. (Really, aren’t all wedding inconvenient?) But, how does taking a couple day off for an attorney at a BigLaw firm affect those all important billable hours?

If You Cannot Die… Can You Fake It (and end a marriage)?

Mr. Immortal is a new client of GLK/H and is needing to negotiate a divorce settlement. With eight former spouses. Mallory Book and Nikki Ramos are there to represent him, but their hearts aren’t really in it. This quasi-arbitration/divorce settlement brings in some interesting concessions, and somehow they keep Mr. Immortal from jumping out another window.

Intelligencia – The Website for Man-Babies

Speech is protected, even in the MCU. But, there is some serious hate-speech directed at She-Hulk in this episode through the Intelligencia website. This mix between Reddit and 4Chan tests the limits of free speech in Earth 616 and in our own world. What’s protected, and what is outside the protections of the laws? It’s an issue that all universes apparently face.\

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Share/Contact/Subscribe
Contact us at @glambert, @JoshuaLenon, or @SuperHumanPod and let us know what you think!
Artwork by @ChangoATX

Share this with friends, and don’t forget to subscribe on your favorite podcast platform.

Stay Super Everybody!!

Transcript

Continue Reading Talking to a Lawyer Shouldn’t Make You Want to Jump Out a Window (SHLD Ep. 6)

In both the real world, and on Marvel Comic’s Earth 616, Intellectual Property Law can be a super weapon to inflict serious pain upon your enemies. On the latest episode of The SuperHuman Law Division Podcast, we look at the legal issues raised when She-Hulk loses the rights to call herself She-Hulk after Titania stakes her claim to that trademarked term.
New Logo… and a Shoutout to our Friends at Law360’s Pro Say Podcast!
We are excited to roll out our new logo for the SuperHuman Law Division Podcast. Thanks to ChangoATX for the great artwork! We love it!!
Also, our friend Amber McKinney had her Law360 Podcast, Pro Say, mentioned in this episode. We’re hoping to get Amber on the show later to do a recap on what she thinks of the show. Congrats Amber!!
Is First to File Really a Thing in Trademark Law?
Jennifer receives a lot of mansplaining on trademark law and who gets to claim ownership of the name She-Hulk. But, is that really how it works?
Lawyers and Firms Should Not Represent Themselves!!
“A person who represents themselves has a fool for a client.” That rule applies in this episode not only to Jennifer, but to the law firm of GLK/H as well. There is a huge conflict of interest in what GLK/H wants with the She-Hulk name versus what Jennifer Walters wants with the name.
Can a Tailor of SuperHuman Clothes be Liable?
We meet Luke, the tailor for superpowered individuals. What are the legal implications of making designer clothes for superheroes, supervillains, and vigilantes?

Listen on mobile platforms:  Apple Podcasts LogoApple Podcasts |  Spotify LogoSpotify
Share/Contact/Subscribe
Contact us at @glambert, @JoshuaLenon, or @SuperHumanPod and let us know what you think!
Share this with friends, and don’t forget to subscribe on your favorite podcast platform.
Stay Super Everybody!!
Transcript

Continue Reading A True Supervillain Uses IP Law to Attack Their Enemies (SHLD Ep. 5)

Four speakers and a moderator were presenting at a conference. 
That sounds like the beginning of a joke, but according to the 2022 ILTACon Conference Co-Chair, Martha Breil, that type of conference presentation just won’t draw in the next generation of conference attendees. Workshops, hands-on experiences, and interactive presentations are needed for conferences to stay relevant as we emerge from the two and a half years of lost conferences due to COVID. 
While ILTACon made an appearance in 2021, it was this year’s conference which was extremely successful. With nearly 3,000 attendees, the conference held at the National Harbor, MD, was completely sold out (thanks to those pesky fire codes!) Breil was very happy with how she and the team of ILTA staffers and volunteers pulled together the 2022 ILTACon and shares with us some of the experiences and comments from the event. 
Legal Conferences are a collaboration of Association leaders, members, volunteers, as well as partnerships with vendors and sponsors. As more and more conferences take place over the next few years, there will be different expectations from all of those different groups on how to attract attendees, volunteers, and sponsors. Once the honeymoon of 2022 is over, those expectations will need to be met to continue making conferences, and the money they bring in to organizations like ILTA, a success.

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LVNx Crystal Ball Answer
Speaking of conferences, Greg just returned from the Legal Value Network eXperience in Chicago with a fresh batch of answers to our Crystal Ball Question. First up is Kate Boyd, COO at Sente Advisors on the new generation of professionals and the diversity of experiences and knowledge they are bringing to the legal industry.
Contact Us:
Twitter: @gebauerm or @glambert (We have stickers… tweet Greg for more info!)
Voicemail: 713-487-7821 (note the NEW NUMBER!)
Email: geekinreviewpodcast@gmail.com
Music: Jerry David DeCicca
Transcript

Continue Reading What Does a Post-Pandemic Conference Look Like? Martha Breil on ILTACon (TGIR Ep.175)