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Join host Ben Chiriboga, Chief Growth Officer at Nexl as he interviews guests to get their lessons learned from a life in legal. From overcoming practice silos to fostering collaboration and battling toxic work environments while building strong client relationships -- This Legal Life leaves no stone unturned.</p>
In this episode of This Legal Life, host Ben Chiriboga sits down with David Sazant, a former litigator turned therapist and founder of Pursuit Counseling and Therapy. The conversation explores David’s unique journey from the courtroom to counseling, delving into how his legal background shapes his therapeutic practice. Together, they discuss the emotional toll of legal careers, the importance of mental health in the profession, and practical insights for navigating career transitions with purpose and resilience.
About David:
David is a former litigator turned men’s therapist. After coming to terms with his own reality that a career in litigation wasn’t in line with his values nor his strengths, David decided to leave litigation for a career in mental health where he now helps clients navigate similar concerns, among others. In helping others navigate anxiety, self-doubt, low self-esteem, low assertiveness, depression, and more, David’s mission is to have clients find their confidence, clarity, and drive.
In this episode of This Legal Life, host Ben Chiriboga engages with Jen Leonard, founder of Creative Lawyers and former Chief Innovation Officer at Penn Carey Law. The conversation spans Jen's dynamic career journey, from her roots as a litigator to her current role driving change in the legal profession through innovation and education. Jen shares insights on the transformative potential of generative AI, the importance of diverse professional networks, and how design thinking can reshape the future of legal services. This episode is a masterclass in resilience, creativity, and embracing change in an evolving industry.
Guest Bio:
Jen Leonard is the Founder of Creative Lawyers, a company dedicated to supporting law firms, corporate legal departments, and courts that understand the urgency to modernize practice and services. Jen works with leaders to cultivate innovative cultures, build nimble strategies to navigate a volatile environment, and promote mindsets that drive change. She leads design thinking workshops, facilitates innovation challenges, delivers retreat keynotes, provides ongoing strategic support, designs educational Generative AI content, and offers structured events that help lawyers reflect on their careers as they build the next stage in their journey.
Before launching her company, Jen was the first Chief Innovation Officer and Executive Director of the Future of the Profession Initiative at Penn Carey Law. She practiced law for ten years after graduating from Penn Carey Law in 2004 and before returning to build the Law School's Center on Professionalism, which became a nationally-recognized law student professional development program.
At Penn, she teaches Generative AI in Law Practice, Design Thinking for Lawyers, Modern Law Firm Business and Innovation Strategy, and Attorney Well-Being as Ethical Obligation. She has also taught design thinking and ideation techniques to industry leaders in Wharton's Executive MBA program and Penn Nursing's Summer Innovation Institute.
Jen is a Fellow of the College of Law Practice Management, a member of Penn's Inn of Court, served on NALP's Driving Inclusion Task Force, and received Penn's Beverly Edwards Award for Exceptional Leadership. The American Bar Association honored Jen in its 2024 list of Women in Legal Tech. She also serves on the Board of Pro Bono Institute.
Jen hosts several podcasts about the legal profession, including 2030 Vision: AI and the Future of Law (co-hosted with the President & CEO of the American Arbitration Association, Bridget McCormack), Law 2030, Future-Proofed (co-hosted with Kirkland's Chief Innovation Officer, Rachel Dooley), and Practising Law Institute's Fast-Tracked: Emergent Issues in the Legal Profession. She writes and speaks frequently about innovation and the legal industry's future.
Links:
In this episode of This Legal Life, Ben Chiriboga sits down with Elizabeth Kennedy, Principal at New Edge BD, to explore her remarkable journey in the legal industry. From her early days at Jaffe Associates to leading innovative business development strategies at top firms like Weil Gotshal and Mayer Brown, Elizabeth shares insights on cross-practice collaboration, lateral integration, and client-focused growth. With reflections on the evolution of legal marketing and the challenges of aligning multidisciplinary teams, this conversation unveils practical strategies for adapting to an ever-changing legal environment while driving client success.
Meet Our Guest:
With three decades of experience driving business development and revenue growth in AmLaw 50 firms, Elizabeth founded NewEdge BD to help law firms drive value through their business development initiatives.
In-house Experience: Directed strategic initiatives and built business development infrastructure and teams at Mayer Brown, Bryan Cave Leighton Paisner (formerly Bryan Cave), Debevoise, Weil, and Hogan Lovells (formerly Hogan & Hartson).
Consulting Experience: Led impactful BD and strategic projects for law firm clients of all sizes, including boutique and mid-sized firms, at Jaffe Associates.
Favorite Projects: Busting practice silos by creating collaborative and multi-disciplinary solutions that bring the best of the firm to market.
Education: Fordham University, BS, Psychology and Economics
Personal: Native Washingtonian and long-time New Yorker, Elizabeth lives in Charlotte NC with her spouse, David, and their two Siberian husky-mix puppies, Jake and Roxy.
In this episode of This Legal Life, Ben Chiriboga talks with Carolyn Elefant, founder of MyShingle.com, about her diverse career in law, from energy regulatory work to pioneering solo practice and AI integration. Carolyn shares insights from her 30+ years of experience, discussing the evolution of solo law practice, the impact of technology on the legal profession, and her journey through entrepreneurship and advocacy. The conversation highlights Carolyn’s passion for innovation and empowering lawyers to embrace change.
In this episode of This Legal Life, Ben Chiriboga sits down with Josh Anisfeld, Chief Digital Officer at Baretz+Brunelle, to discuss the evolving role of digital strategies in law firms. Josh shares his journey from working in media and marketing to helping top law firms embrace digital growth. The conversation covers the impact of digital tools on client engagement, talent acquisition, and personalized content. Josh also offers insights on how law firms can adapt to the new legal economy by leveraging technology for competitive advantage.
Josh's Bio:
Josh Anisfeld is the Chief Digital Officer at Baretz+Brunelle, a growth advisory firm to the world’s preeminent businesses in the legal industry. He heads all of B+B’s digital services, working with law firms and other legal industry businesses to develop digital marketing initiatives, firm-wide digital transformation, and innovative campaigns that directly support their business goals.
Prior to joining Baretz+Brunelle, he created the digital marketing function at Heidrick & Struggles, the international executive search firm, managing all efforts across the firm’s 50+ offices and 2,200 professionals globally. During his tenure at Heidrick & Struggles, he built a fully integrated digital ecosystem within the global marketing team, which generated a significant return on investment.
Throughout his career, Josh has built a reputation for being a forward-thinking marketer and effective problem solver. Josh develops digital initiatives that advance well-defined goals, focus on the user and lead to measurable results. Josh’s past experience includes work with top global brands at Edelman Digital, Critical Mass, Golin (previously GolinHarris), and Zeno Group.
Connect with Josh on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/joshanisfeld/
Learn more about Baretz+Brunelle:: https://www.baretzbrunelle.com
In this episode of This Legal Life, Ben Chiriboga speaks with Ben Paul, founder of BD Ladder, about the evolving role of AI in legal business development. They explore how AI can enhance client relationships, streamline content creation, and support personalized outreach. Ben shares practical examples of how AI serves as an enabler of efficiency, allowing lawyers to focus on authentic connections while still benefiting from AI’s data analysis and automation.
Ben Paul has over 20 years of experience in sales and marketing, specializing in business development coaching, facilitation, and consultancy for professional services firms. He primarily works with lawyers, accountants, engineers, and other consultants, helping them understand the business development process and build their brands. Previously, Ben served as the Business Development and Marketing Director at Kensington Swan, where he played a key role in the firm's combination with Dentons and its subsequent rebranding. He has also worked for global accountancy firms, delivering best-practice proposals across networks.
For more details, visit: https://www.bdladder.com/
In this episode of This Legal Life, Ben Chiriboga sits down with David Wood, former senior partner and founder of David Wood Consulting, to discuss the intricacies of succession planning in law firms. With over 25 years of experience, David shares insights on transitioning client relationships, preparing successors, and the cultural and compensation challenges that hinder successful succession. The episode delves into David's personal journey and the lessons learned from navigating multiple firm environments and his transition to consulting.
About David:
In the lead-up to his retirement, David Wood spent hundreds of hours migrating his $6 million practice to top-flight younger partners. An inspired motivational speaker, David now presents to firm leaders and partner gatherings about the urgency of replacing senior partners who generate disproportionate shares of firm revenue. He also advises firms on how to plan and execute intergenerational turnovers of their top producers and managing partners.
David has written about succession topics for The American Lawyer, Bloomberg Law Insights, the Business of Law Digest, the ALM Marketing the Law Firm Newsletter, the Association of Legal Administrators’ Legal Management magazine, the ALM Accounting and Financial Planning newsletter, and Legal Business World magazine. He has presented at ALM events including its regional General Counsel Roundtables and its Pro Webinar series, and at conferences produced by marketing consultant PipelinePlus. David has appeared on the Association of Legal Administrators’ Legal Management Talk podcast and the Furia Rubel podcast On the Record. He is a faculty member for Lawline CLE on retirement succession topics.
Please follow David’s thought leadership on his blog and on LinkedIn. He can be reached at david.wood@davidwoodconsulting.com.
In this episode of This Legal Life, Ben Chiriboga sits down with Moray McLaren, a seasoned legal consultant and thought leader, to explore the evolving landscape of leadership in law firms. Over the course of 30 years, McLaren has observed significant shifts in client relationships, strategy implementation, and law firm cultures. They discuss the role of leadership in addressing profitability challenges, partner alignment, and the future of law firm structures. With insights from his extensive experience, McLaren offers a critical reflection on the behaviors holding law firms back and the growing need for empathetic, accountable leadership.
Moray has been advising law firms for almost 30 years. A lawyer by training, he completed an MBA in legal services before assisting a London law firm on its global expansion.
Today he advises top independent law firms as they review their practice focus, governance, remuneration and ownership models. Many are coming to terms with the changing needs of their people and their clients during what are increasingly challenging times.
He is a member of the Möller Institute at the University of Cambridge and a Professor at the LawAhead Centre at IE Business School in Madrid.
As a business school professor and executive coach, Moray works with leaders who want to improve their team performance. He speaks and publishes widely on law firm strategy and was the inaugural Chair of the Strategy Group of the IBA´s Law Firm Management Committee (LFMC).
10 part series on the Path into Partnership:
The Spanish language introduction by Mari Cruz:
¿Qué supone ser socio de capital en una firma de abogados? | Pathway to Partnership (Intro) (youtube.com).
Our other thought leadership is available on the website here: Market Trends | lexingtonconsultants
In this episode of "This Legal Life," host Ben Chiriboga sits down with Matt Schwartz, a partner and the US Finance practice group leader at DLA Piper. They discuss Matt's journey in the legal industry, his role at DLA Piper, and his perspectives on the evolving landscape of legal finance. The conversation provides valuable insights into the challenges and opportunities within the legal finance sector and highlights the importance of innovation and strategic thinking in legal practice.
In this episode of This Legal Life, Ben Chiriboga sits down with Craig Budner, Global Strategic Growth Partner at K&L Gates, to discuss his 33-year journey in the legal industry. They explore the power of mentorship, the importance of curiosity, and the evolving role of lawyers in today’s dynamic legal landscape.
About Craig:
Craig W. Budner is the Global Strategic Growth Partner for K&L Gates LLP. In this role, he manages the global recruiting and integration functions for the firm. He also manages the firm’s Client Growth department, which provides business development, marketing, and media relations services. Additionally, he plays a key role in managing the firm’s business and operations as a member of the management and advisory committees.
Craig maintains a national practice focused on commercial litigation, arbitration, and strategic counseling, with a strong emphasis on litigation outsourcing. His experience is particularly valuable to clients in the financial services sector, helping them navigate complex sourcing challenges. In addition to his work in outsourcing, Craig has extensive experience representing major creditors and bondholders in bankruptcy-related litigation, as well as handling a wide variety of commercial disputes for technology companies and financial institutions.
In 2020, Craig was recognized as “Lawyer of the Year” in Dallas/Fort Worth for Litigation – Banking & Finance. He was also named to the 2022 inaugural class of D Magazine's Best Lawyer Hall of Fame. Since 2020, Craig has moderated over 100 panels around the world with leading general counsels and other executives and has moderated the plenary panel for the last seven years at the Association for Corporate Counsel Europe’s Annual meeting. He also hosts a podcast entitled, K&L Gates Client Conversations with Craig Budner that has earned hundreds of thousands of listeners and followers around the globe.
Among his civic and charitable activities, Craig is a Past President of the Vogel Alcove Board, a day care facility for homeless families in Dallas. Craig and his wife Dawn founded, and Craig served as Chair of the Dallas Urban Debate Alliance for 12 years, a program offering debate to inner city students in the Dallas school district. He was awarded the 2013 Ann Loeb Sikora Humanitarian Award and the 2010 Prince Henry Navigator of the Year Award for Public Service. Most recently, Craig was the 2023 Honoree during the National Association for Urban Debate Leagues Annual Dinner at the George W. Bush Presidential Center.
Amanda is a wife. A mother. A blogger. A Christian.
A charming, beautiful, bubbly, young woman who lives life to the fullest.
But Amanda is dying, with a secret she doesn’t want anyone to know.
She starts a blog detailing her cancer journey, and becomes an inspiration, touching and
captivating her local community as well as followers all over the world.
Until one day investigative producer Nancy gets an anonymous tip telling her to look at Amanda’s
blog, setting Nancy on an unimaginable road to uncover Amanda’s secret.
Award winning journalist Charlie Webster explores this unbelievable and bizarre, but
all-too-real tale, of a woman from San Jose, California whose secret ripped a family apart and
left a community in shock.
Scamanda is the true story of a woman whose own words held the key to her secret.
New episodes every Monday.
Follow Scamanda on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you listen.
Amanda’s blog posts are read by actor Kendall Horn.
