TLJ No. 02: A Superior Sequel

An android — a human robot — confidently addressing a courtroom, its digital eyes gleaming with intelligence. The judge and jurors, captivated. What’s remarkable isn’t the futuristic spectacle, but that this AI can outspeak, outthink, and match seasoned trial lawyers head-to-head.

As the cost of providing medical care has increased dramatically in recent years, some healthcare providers resorted to overcharging insurers for out-of-network care needed for emergencies or specialized treatment. To purportedly control such costs, insurers turned to data analytics firm MultiPlan to reduce the amounts they were eventually required to pay. Rather than fixing the…

The Lakota warrior and chief known as Tatanka Iyotake, and as Sitting Bull to the white man, did not display heroism and leadership throughout his life. When he was a young member of the Teton Sioux, he was deliberate and awkward.

I MET HARRY Thompson in the late 1980’s. Back then I was in my mid-30’s — and I was an aggressive young attorney. Some might have described me as arrogant. With the perfect vision of hindsight, that label probably had some truth to it.

JANIE WAS WORKING through the needlessly briny, settled half of her shitty martini, in gulps of two, when she spotted his blazer, jeans, and wingtips breaching the stainedglass gates of the asinine hipster drinking den on which he had insisted via text late night at 2:51 in the morning when she had made the tragic…

We know the practice of law is stressful. But why is the law such a stressful practice? What drives the high rates of mental health and substance use issues in the profession? What contributes to a lawyers’ unhappiness and dissatisfaction over time?

In 2020, a dear friend lost his fight with alcohol and mental health. He was a brilliant lawyer. He was first in his law school class, clerked for the Supreme Court, and had the successful career to match. And then he wasn’t there any more. I miss my friend.

Dear World Trade Center:

ON THE 50TH floor at 40 Wall Street in New York City, Nicholas Liakas stares out the window of his corner office as a slow-moving, gray layer of fog wraps around the downtown skyscrapers looming across a city block.

Big bad oil companies and their big bad, money-hungry legal teams. Sound familiar? Across the globe, corporations have tried to build countless new projects at the expense of environmental sanctuaries, oceans, wildlife, and our communities. Key word:tried.

The legal marketing industry has a well earned reputation for tying lawyers up in one-sided engagements, deliberately obfuscating data to mask poor performance and over-promising while under delivering. Yet, there are a handful of agencies out there who actually have their clients’ best interests in mind, who sit on the same side of the desk…

Passion is a mysterious thing. It can manifest in one way, then completely subvert your expectations and reappear as something else. For example, one passion is at the heart of the wildly different careers of doctors, firefighters, teachers, and trial lawyers: helping others. For creative and open-minded pro golfer Evan Schiller, his life took many…

I was born with an artist’s soul. Fortunately, nature and nurture aligned to bestow me with creative ability and attitude. My mother is a gifted choral singer and soloist, and my father has a talent for drawing and gardening. Growing up, I was creative most of the time and seldom bored.

You work hard. Long hours, stressful cases, endless meetings — always striving for the best, always at the top of your game. As a trial lawyer, your focus is unwavering, your dedication unmatched. But every so often, even the most committed attorneys need a moment to breathe, step back, and find a space that’s just…