Episodes

Our conversation with healthcare attorney Katie O'Neill takes us from the emergency room to the administrative law classroom, from Chicago to California and back again. In episode 68, Katie emphasizes the importance of understanding clients' businesses to provide effective legal advice. She explains how she draws from her nursing background in her work as a healthcare attorney and highlights the critical thinking and problem-solving skills that translate from her nursing experience into her legal work. Katie also encourages law students to focus on their strengths and passions, advising them to leave room for creativity in their careers and in their personal lives.

For the first time on Personal Jurisdiction, we are excited to speak to a state Supreme Court law clerk! In this episode, Jacob Abudaram shares his unique experience clerking for the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Hawai'i, including how the history of the state impacts judicial decision making and why policy and advocacy work is part of his role. We also chat with Jacob about his desire to pursue a career in public interest and how his personal and educational background led him to seek out a Skadden Fellowship at the American Civil Liberties Union's (ACLU) Disability Rights Program, where he will focus on the intersection of climate change and disability rights and justice for the 2024-2026 term. Not to be missed: Jacob shares the secret to making delicious hummus and why he started a hummus business in law school!

Calling all July 2024 Bar Exam Takers! We have the perfect thing for you to listen to during your breaks from studying. Rebecca Petrilli and Taylor Williams are the experts when it comes to preparing for the bar exam in any jurisdiction. Rebecca and Taylor provide concrete tips for studying for and taking the bar exam, and they also share their career journeys and why they enjoy engaging with the legal industry in a way that does not include the practice of law.

We may have recorded Season 2 back in 2022 but our guests' answers about the meaning of success are just as fresh as they were two years ago. Even if you have been listening since the beginning, we're sure you'll enjoy hearing 19 answers to the question, "What does success mean to you?"

Loyal friends of the pod know we end every episode with the same question: "What does success mean to you?" And now, to kick off Season 5 of Personal Jurisdiction, we are looking back at the first set of answers to that question from our Season 1 guests. In this episode, we hear 11 different answers to our question, and then we discuss our thoughts on success during Due Diligence.

Season 4 is a wrap! Join Hallie and Allison for their reflections on Season 4, including the best advice from Season 4 guests, and exciting news about what's next for Personal Jurisdiction.

We're rounding out Season 4 with Roshanna Toya, Attorney & Chief Justice of the Pueblo of Isleta Appellate Court. This is a special episode because Roshanna is not only a tribal court Justice, but she has also clerked at both the state and federal levels. Her vast experience across various parts of the judiciary make her advice and insights one of a kind. Roshanna shares her pre-law school experience as an associate justice of the Pueblo of Isleta Appellate Court, her inspiration to attend law school, her clerkship experiences both at the state and federal levels, and what it means to be the first woman to serve as Chief Justice of the Pueblo of Isleta Appellate Court. We're grateful to have the opportunity to share this inspiring conversation with Roshanna Toya as Episode 62.

Calling all interested in clerkships! In this special episode, Preston Hollis and Jacqueline Martinez share their experience as current co-clerks on the U.S. District Court for the District of New Mexico. They discuss their path to clerking (hint: neither of them knew they wanted to clerk, or really even what a clerkship was, when they started law school), how different judicial externships led them down the path to clerking, what their day-to-day looks like as a federal district court clerk, and advice they have for people who want to clerk. Spoiler--one of their best pieces of advice is to not count yourself out! So if you've ever thought about clerking, this episode is for you.

It's the 60th Episode of Personal Jurisdiction and we're celebrating this milestone with a timely conversation with Ross Guberman, Legal Writing Expert and Founder and CEO of BriefCatch. Ross shares why he left a Ph.D. program to go to law school, what steps he took from BigLaw to becoming a legal writing expert and author advising federal judges on legal writing and, eventually, how he started a legal tech company. We dive into the role of AI in the law and hear from Ross about his #1 piece of advice about legal writing.

If you're interested in hearing from longtime practitioners turned law professors, this episode is for you! In Episode 59, Elizabeth Elia and Serge Martinez share how the many different jobs they had before becoming professors shaped who they are, their legal practice, and how they approach teaching. Elizabeth discusses the importance of not losing track of your passions in the early years of practice, and Serge highlights the fact that there are an infinite number of ways to be a lawyer. Serge and Elizabeth also discuss the awesome and varied types of housing work they did prior to academia, and how they are continuing that work today. We also flip the mic, and chat with Serge, Elizabeth, and Allison (PJx co-host) about their recently founded nonprofit--the New Mexico Center for Housing Law (also known as NMCHL or CHL), which is dedicated to promoting housing stability and justice for people of the state of New Mexico. During this episode, they share why they started the Center, wh…

Jessica Paduganan is back! During S2:E31, Jessica was a 3L at Michigan Law. Back then, she joined us for the Student Clinic Spotlight Series to share her experience in the Civil-Criminal Litigation Clinic and the Workers' Rights Clinic at Michigan Law. Today, Jessica is a Litigation Associate at Davis Polk & Wardwell LLP in New York City and she's back to share her insight into what working at a large law firm in New York City has looked like in her first ten months. She discusses the transition from law school to practice, what aspects of law school were most valuable in preparing her for work at a firm, strategies for maintaining some balance while in a high-paced litigation environment and why that looks different from week to week, as well as why consistently doing quality work and remaining authentically yourself are two of the most helpful things a young associate can do.

Attention law students and new lawyers! If you are interested in working at a law firm of any size, Episode 57 with Rachel Levick is a must-listen. Rachel Levick is an environmental litigator and enforcement defense specialist practicing in Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher’s Litigation Department and in the firm’s Environmental Litigation and Mass Tort Practice Group in Washington, DC. During this episode, Rachel shares her thoughts on gaining trial experience as a new associate, explains environmental litigation and enforcement defense (including examples of cases she has worked on), and reflects on what it means to be a true mentor and advocate.

In Episode 56, we speak with Lisa Haidostian, Senior Director of Healthcare Compliance at Walgreens in Chicago. Lisa discusses her journey to becoming a litigation partner at a large law firm and the significance of building genuine connections with colleagues and clients. We discuss Lisa's transition from big law to her in-house role at Walgreens, her thoughts on OCI interview strategies, and the evolving nature of boundaries in the legal profession.

On Episode of 55 of Personal Jurisdiction we chat with Megan Richardson and Lauren Myerscough-Mueller of The Exoneration Project, a non-profit based in Chicago, Illinois, which provides free legal services to fight for the wrongfully convicted and free the innocent. Although Megan and Lauren both currently work at the same organization, they took very different paths to get there--Megan started in big law and Lauren started as a public defender. They also both have awesome teaching experience, so their advice for law students and young lawyers is particularly helpful. Tune in to hear about these topics and more!

What do laughing, clapping, and squeaking chairs have in common? Our first LAW SCHOOL LIVE episode! On November 2, we recorded our first live episode of Personal Jurisdiction at the University of New Mexico School of Law in Albuquerque. Our guests, Sovereign Hager of the New Mexico Center on Law and Poverty, Leon Howard of the ACLU of New Mexico, and Riley Masse of New Mexico Legal Aid joined us live to discuss (1) how they started their legal careers; (2) what they do in their current roles, including the how their organizations use tools such as direct services, impact litigation, legislation, and media to effectuate social change; and (3) what advice they have for law students getting ready to start their legal careers. If you missed us in person in ABQ, that's okay! We're so excited to bring you this conversation from our first Law School Live.

On Episode 53 of Personal Jurisdiction, we chat with Andrew Herrington-Gilmore, Associate General Counsel of the Chicago Bulls. Andrew discusses why he decided to pursue transactional work, what an M&A deal actually looks like, the most important things an associate can do on a deal team, and why "becoming comfortable with the uncomfortable" is such a valuable skill. He shares how working at a large law firm provided him with foundational skills for moving in-house, the tools that helped him get to his dream job at the Chicago Bulls, and what the day-to-day looks like for a transactional lawyer in the sports world. Andrew also discusses his family life and why he founded the Gilmore Family Foundation, an organization to help support children with rare diseases. This episode is packed with advice for law students, young lawyers, partners, and in-house counsel--there is something for everyone!

On episode 52 of Personal Jurisdiction, we chat with Kate Ferlic, managing partner at Egolf, Ferlic, Martinez and Harwood in Santa Fe, New Mexico. Kate shares why she believes it is important to be your authentic self and strive for excellence when practicing law, tips for starting and building a successful law firm, and why striving for balance in legal practice and life is key. Kate also highlights several major cases she has been involved in, including the case that paved the way for legalizing same-sex marriage in New Mexico. This is not one to miss!

On episode 51 of Personal Jurisdiction, we chat with Maria Griego, Director of the New Mexico Center on Law & Poverty’s Economic Equity Team. Maria shares how owning a furniture store led her to law school, how a clinic case in law school inspired her to begin her career in family law, why she decided to switch from direct services to a more impact litigation and legislative-focused practice, what tools she uses to combat a sometimes emotionally taxing legal practices, and so much more!

Personal Jurisdiction is celebrating its 50th episode with a showstopper of a conversation with Jessica Fairchild and Drew Beres. Jessica and Drew are two of the founding partners of the Chicago-based law firm of Croke Fairchild Duarte & Beres. During this conversation, we learn so much from Jessica and Drew, including what it means to start, grown, and lead a mid-sized law firm and why it's okay to practice an area of the law that doesn't coincide with the classes you took in law school.

He's back! You may remember Dan Sharpe from Season 1 of Personal Jurisdiction. Back then, we talked to Dan about his journey to becoming a patent attorney and his dedication to Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion efforts. Dan came back to participate in our first LinkedIn Live event this summer and to share about his new role as a Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Manager at Foley & Lardner LLP in Washington, D.C. We're bringing this conversation to you as part of Season 4 because Dan's advice about how law firm associates can be allies and support their colleagues in promoting a culture of DEI and what law firm partners can do to promote a culture of DEI from the top down is not to be missed.

For Episode 48, we're excited to share the audio from a LinkedIn Live event with MC Sungaila, the host of the Portia Project, in August 2023. During this episode, Allison, Hallie, and MC discuss lessons learned from our interviews with attorneys, judges, and law students over the course of many seasons and hundreds of episodes of Personal Jurisdiction and the Portia Project.

On Episode 47 of Personal Jurisdiction, we chat with Karla Johnson, Senior Staff Attorney with the Kinship Caregiver Law Project at the New York City-based civil legal services organization, Mobilization for Justice (MFJ). Karla shares the wide variety of experiences she had in law school that helped her find her current practice, how her Master of Public Health helps inform her work, the benefits of having a broad legal practice that touches on both litigation and legislative advocacy, why it's important to cultivate cultural competency when serving clients, ways she engages in self-care when her legal practice gets tough, why being true to yourself is key to finding work you're passionate about, and so much much!

Welcome back! We're thrilled to begin Season 4 of Personal Jurisdiction with Sara Coulter. Sara is a First Amendment Fellow at Case Western Reserve University School of Law. In this episode, Sara tells us about the "Rory Gilmore" generation, how traveling abroad to Oxford was one of the most memorable experiences of her law school years, why her experience in her law school legal clinic informed her view of the fairness of the law, and how diving deep into e-discovery helped her to gain the skills necessary to apply for a position in her dream area of First Amendment Law. We're so glad to be back for Season 4!

For our 45th episode and the final episode of Season 3, we speak with Adria Kimbrough, Laura Rose, and A.J. Bellido de Luna, three of the mock trial coaches who appeared on the Class Action with Katie Pfang podcast. We thought it would be great to hear from Adria, Laura, and AJ to learn more about their career journeys, why they have dedicated their time to coaching mock trial teams, and the advice they have for aspiring lawyers. Adria, Laura, and A.J. help us to end Season 3 with a bang! Don't miss this special conversation with our friends from Class Action.