Trial Lawyer Nation

“In order to be a good trial lawyer, you have to have that innate sense of ‘let’s go, I’m ready to go.’”In this episode of Trial Lawyer Nation, host Michael Cowen talks to seasoned trial lawyer Lara Brock of Espinoza & Brock, PLLC about her sports-oriented, competitive mindset that has influenced both how she practices law and serves as a leader within her law firm. Tune in as Michael and Lara talk about why it's important to shift from the “family” mindset to the “team” mindset within your law firm, how to find your own voice as a trial lawyer, and why Lara’s firm handles worker’s comp cases in Texas while few other law firms do. They also discuss the strategy behind her firm’s repeated success in arbitration, and what Lara looks for in third-party cases.  Don’t miss out! Big Rig Bootcamp takes place on July 12, 2024 in San Antonio, Texas. Register at bigrigbootcamp.com.  Featured GuestName: Lara BrockAbout: Lara is a senior partner at Espinoza & Brock, PLLC in San Antonio, Texas.

The road to success is paved with failure, but if a trial lawyer can learn from those failures, they will ultimately become a more effective advocate.In this episode of Trial Lawyer Nation, host Michael Cowen sits down with trial lawyer Sach Oliver of Oliver Law Firm to discuss how lawyers can continually hone their skills by learning from their own failures, learning from other attorneys, and treating depositions as trial.Sach also discusses his forthcoming book, Depositions are Trial, which will be released June 24, 2024 (Pre-orders May 1, 2024) and includes philosophies, strategies, methods, and techniques for pursuing the truth and zealously advocating for clients.Don’t miss out! Big Rig Bootcamp takes place on July 12, 2024 in San Antonio, Texas. Register at bigrigbootcamp.com.  Featured GuestName: Sach OliverAbout: Sach Oliver is an experienced trial attorney and CEO of Oliver Law Firm in Rogers, Arkansas.Sach was raised in Viola, Arkansas, and attended Arkansas State University in Jonesboro,

Once you start getting big results, then people give you more opportunities to do bigger cases. But as a new lawyer, how do you begin getting big results?In this episode of Trial Lawyer Nation, host Michael Cowen welcomes Odalys Lopez, an up-and-coming lawyer at Cowen Rodriguez Peacock, who shares insights on being a new lawyer. Tune in as Michael and Odalys discuss the firm’s strategies to develop lawyers, including doing “workdays” on cases, attorney development meetings, and 3pm trainings on Fridays. The conversation also covers how to alleviate clients’ nerves before defending depositions, why you should treat the truck driver on the other side of the case with respect (rather than hostility) to serve your case better, and why Michael started the tradition of having a celebratory dinner at trial the night before closing.   Don’t miss out! Big Rig Bootcamp takes place on July 12, 2024 in San Antonio, Texas. Register at bigrigbootcamp.com.  Featured GuestName: Odalys LopezAbout

Build “top mind awareness” for your law firm to get the PI cases you actually want. Then focus on what’s-in-it-for-the-jury to win them. In this episode of Trial Lawyer Nation, host Michael Cowen welcomes Alex Begum, the founding shareholder of Begum Law Group Injury Lawyers. Alex shares his journey towards mastering the business side of law, emphasizing the importance of financial acumen and creating a strong brand presence for law firm success. He also recounts the challenges behind a personal injury case he tried and the strategies he used to win a $2.17M judgment, highlighting the use of "judo law" to turn weaknesses into strengths, and the critical role of visual aids in demonstrating injuries to the jury in a low property damage case.  Additionally, Alex shares how he motivates the jury to do justice, tapping into what really matters to them. Don’t miss out! Big Rig Bootcamp takes place on July 12, 2024 in San Antonio, Texas. Register at bigrigbootcamp.com.  Featured GuestName:

Just focus on your biggest PI cases. Afterall, that’s where you make the most money and the biggest difference, so it should be easy. Right? Wrong. Before you know it, you’ve spent the majority of your time working on cases where you’re just trying to get your expenses back, and not working enough on your big cases. So how do you make sure you actually focus your attention on where it is needed the most?In this episode of Trial Lawyer Nation, Michael Cowen and Malorie Peacock discuss strategies they’ve used to keep their focus on their biggest cases. They share why you need to intentionally identify your top cases to avoid “the whirlwind”, how to create a culture where you can have “accountability meetings” with fellow lawyers in your firm that are useful (and don’t run people off), and how to figure out the places where you can and should delegate. Don’t miss out! Big Rig Bootcamp takes place on July 12, 2024 in San Antonio, Texas. Register at bigrigbootcamp.com.Featured Guest  Name: Malorie J Peac

Can lawyers really get cases from their podcasts? Robert Ingalls built a business banking on just that. In this episode of Trial Lawyer Nation, host Michael Cowen welcomes LawPods CEO and Founder (and recovering lawyer) Robert Ingalls to discuss how lawyers are using podcasts to fuel their businesses and personal brands.Podcasts have the ability to create an immediate connection between the hosts and their audiences. Informal conversations on a podcast give lawyers a unique opportunity to convey emotion and build rapport with their listeners, an area where corporate videos and other promotional materials often fall short.Tune in to learn how to use your podcast to establish yourself as an authority, nurture leads, boost the size of your network, and turn your podcast into a content marketing machine.Featured GuestName: Robert Ingalls | LinkedInAbout: Robert is a recovering attorney, speaker, and the Founder and CEO of LawPods, one of the first podcast production agencies for law firms. At LawPods, Robert and

Marketing a law practice is different from other types of businesses, due to things such as unique ethical considerations and the referral aspect.On this episode of Trial Lawyer Nation, Michael Cowen is joined by Gyi Tsakalakis, President and Co-Founder of AttorneySync, a digital legal marketing agency. A former trial lawyer from Southeast Michigan, Gyi is also the co-host of the Lunch Hour Legal Marketing podcast.   Tune in to hear Gyi’s practical tips on how you can more effectively market and promote your law firm, both online and through more traditional channels, including if you’re working with a limited budget. Gyi also covers the importance of building relationships in the local community, how to ask for reviews, and how to gain a competitive edge.  Featured GuestName: Gyi Tsakalakis About: Gyi Tsakalakis is a lawyer, entrepreneur, and co-founder of AttorneySync, as well as the co-host, along with Conrad Saam, of the Lunch Hour Legal Marketing podcast.Company: AttorneySyn

Empathy is an emotion not commonly associated with lawyers. But harnessing it can provide valuable insight.On this episode of Trial Lawyer Nation, Michael Cowen is joined by colleague Robert Disque who focuses his practice on 18-wheeler and commercial vehicle cases. Tune in to hear Michael and Robert discuss Robert’s path to law, the difference between a litigator and a trial lawyer, and how to talk to clients about bad cases. Robert also shares how empathy led him from the defense side to the plaintiff’s side, and how empathy has helped him find common ground with opposing counsel. And how does Robert’s passion for gardening benefit him as a trial lawyer? It’s taught him patience and the willingness to accept mistakes. Featured GuestName: Robert Disque About: Robert has been an associate attorney at Cowen Rodriguez Peacock since early 2018, concentrating on 18-wheeler and commercial vehicle cases involving death and catastrophic injury. He earned his undergraduate degree from Creighton Univers

Lawyers aren’t necessarily great business people, or even good law office managers for that matter. That’s because running a business requires a different type of skill set than the practice of law. However, if you have a firm that is run well, you will have more time to be a good lawyer.On this episode of Trial Lawyer Nation, Michael Cowen is joined by Anthony Vessel, a lawyer from Houston, Texas, and a partner at Marc Whitehead & Associates, to talk about how to manage a law firm.Tune in to hear Michael and Anthony talk about building an empathetic law firm culture, the benefits of an inclusive workforce, the use of behavioral assessments, and book recommendations. Featured GuestName: Anthony Vessel About: Anthony Vessel is a partner at Marc Whitehead & Associates, LLP. He dedicates his practice to plaintiff’s insurance denials and disability law, specializing in long-term disability insurance denials, social security disability, mass torts, and veteran disability. The firm’s central offi

It’s that time of year again. What do we want 2024 (and beyond) to look like and how are we going to make it happen? At Cowen | Rodriguez | Peacock, it all starts with goals.But, as we’ve all learned by now, all goals are not created equal. How do you identify your goals? Are they long-term or short-term and how do they align with your existing circumstances? Are they specific or general? How do you measure your progress?On this episode of Trial Lawyer Nation, Michael Cowen is joined by partner Natalie Arledge to discuss goal-setting for 2024 and share some of their goals, including making more money, drafting pattern jury charges, empowering their team to make decisions, and using more visual aids in depositions, hearings, and at trial.Tune in to join the Trial Lawyer Nation team in setting big, achievable goals for 2024!Featured GuestName: Natalie Arledge  About: Natalie Arledge was born and raised in San Antonio, Texas. She graduated cum laude from Baylor University with a B.A. in Political Science an

Jury trials can be notoriously unpredictable, even when the facts are in your favor. To be successful at trial, attorneys need to do more than just rehearse their opening and closing statements. They also need to know how to influence the jury.On this episode of Trial Lawyer Nation, Michael Cowen is joined by nationally recognized trial consultant and the author of several trial guides, Eric Oliver. Applying over 40 years of experience and his background in marketing and persuasion, Eric shares strategies and techniques that trial lawyers can use, such as storytelling, reverse sequencing, and the use of nonverbal communication, to engage and persuade the jury. Eric and Michael also discuss things such as confirmation bias and what lawyers need to be aware of so as not to alienate the jury. Tune in to gain valuable insight and tips on how to present your case more like a story to persuade the jury. Featured GuestName: Eric OliverAbout: Eric Oliver is a seasoned trial consultant with over 40 years of

Lawyers constantly receive training in the form of CLE. However, training staff members in the day-to-day running of a law office is no less important to a successful practice. Nobody comes into a law firm knowing everything. Ongoing reminders and documented procedures are needed for employees to learn new things, retain information, and correct mistakes. On this episode of Trial Lawyer Nation, host Michael Cowen speaks with his fellow partner and trial attorney Malorie Peacock about how, why, and when to train employees at every level of the firm, from clerks and receptionists to paralegals and litigators.  Tune in to hear Michael and Malorie discuss their approach to training at Cowen Rodriguez Peacock and lessons they’ve learned through years of training “trial and error”. Every office trains differently, but as they point out, there are some starting points and areas of emphasis that can help every firm implement a training program that is mission-focused and effective.  Featured

Trying cases is an evolving process. And if you’ve been doing the same thing for 25 years, you’ve probably been doing something wrong for the past 24 years. From shorter jury attention spans, to Zooming in experts, to condensing information, and incorporating more visuals, courtroom trial techniques and jury expectations have changed significantly following COVID. On this episode of Trial Lawyer Nation, host Michael Cowen speaks with Ed Ciarimboli, a trial lawyer out of Pennsylvania who’s tried close to 100 cases since the beginning of his career. Tune in to hear Ed share how his approach to trials has changed in the post-COVID world and get his tips on how to adapt your trial strategies to “move the needle toward victory.” And how can you overcome the fear of losing cases? Get comfortable with yourself and realize that there are things that you can control and things you can not. Featured GuestName:  Ed Ciarimboli Ed Ciarimboli is a founding partner in the Eastern Pennsylvania law fi

Trial is not a law school exam.  Just because you can technically put in evidence of certain elements of damages, doesn’t mean it's in the client’s best interest to do so. It’s up to you–after having the conversation with your client, of course–to make strategic choices on damages. Afterall, the goal is to maximize chances of getting the best possible verdict for your client.On this episode of Trial Lawyer Nation, Michael Cowen and Malorie Peacock continue their discussion on how they overcame the odds to win $17.5M in damages for their client in a case against a forklift manufacturer. In this part two of the series, Michael and Malorie share insight on how they told the client’s damages story.  Tune in to learn why they presented the client as a strong superhero, how they found a different story for each of the damages witnesses to tell, why you should use the KING flipchart, and the persuasiveness of the “want ad” technique when asking for compensation. To learn more about how Michael and Mal

Trial lawyers can’t be afraid of failure. It is often by refusing default thinking and defying expectations that a trial lawyer gets the first big win that sets the tone for their career. On this episode of Trial Lawyer Nation, Michael Cowen speaks with Maxey Scherr–a Texas trial lawyer, board certified in truck accident law–who recently started her own law firm and found immediate success with a $10.65M verdict against Swift Transportation. Listen to Maxey explain how learning and preparation have been integral to some of her biggest wins, why it's important for a trial lawyer to have a reputation for trying cases–and how in the end, getting a good result stems from seeing the case through the jury’s eyes and placing your trust in them. Featured GuestName: Maxey ScherrAbout: Maxey Scherr is the founder of the Scherr Law Firm in El Paso, Texas. She has practiced for more than 14 years and has over 40 jury trials resulting in multi-figure verdicts, including a $10.65 million truck accident verdi

There’s data going all the way back to the 1970s showing that people have lost a leg while operating a forklift. Not only do these leg crush injuries keep occurring, but it's the most common injury with a stand-up forklift.  It’s a big problem. However, the industry has been able to avoid having to change anything because they've been able to get the standard written to support their design decisions. On this episode of Trial Lawyer Nation, Michael Cowen and Malorie Peacock discuss how they overcame the odds to win $17.5M in damages for their client in a case against a forklift manufacturer.  All this occurred in a case where the defendant said they’d never even pay $100k. Tune in to this part one, of a two-part series, as Michael and Malorie discuss how they established liability in the case. What was one of the key winning trial strategies? Not getting sucked into disproving every argument the defense made. Don’t miss out! Michael's book, Big Rig Justice: A Comprehensive Guide to Ma

Losing is what helps us develop as trial lawyers. If you quit too early after losing a case, you will never know the success you could have had.On this episode of Trial Lawyer Nation, Michael Cowen speaks with renowned trial lawyer and highly influential author, Rick Friedman. Rick has won multiple nine-figure verdicts, including a verdict against Monsanto for $72 million. What is the secret to Rick’s success? Getting out of his own way.Tune in to learn more about how to frame “moral truth” for the jury and how “uncomfortable facts” can become good facts by controlling the narrative.Featured GuestName: Rick FriedmanAbout:   Rick Friedman is a partner at Friedman | Rubin who built his reputation representing regular people and small businesses injured by large corporations and government entities. He has won large verdicts in difficult cases in the fields of personal injury, defamation, insurance bad faith, and business torts. His books are considered essential reading among trial lawyers and include: Rul

As a trucking trial lawyer, if you are compassionate, people can walk all over you and you won’t get good results, you need to be both fierce and compassionate. On this episode of Trial Lawyer Nation, Michael Cowen and Michael Leizerman discuss the ins and outs of wrongful death litigation. Leizerman draws on his experience as a truck accident lawyer and shares the strategies he used to win a recent $18 million verdict.He emphasizes the need to have open communication with the victim’s family and draw on their love for the victim. He also stresses that while the client comes first, it is also important to create a compassionate atmosphere by treating the defendant with fairness and compassion. However this compassion needs to be accompanied with fierceness.Tune in for an in-depth discussion on litigating wrongful death cases, and learn how to draw out the story from the victim’s family, cross-examine defendants, and use a combination of compassion and fierceness to build a strong case.Featured GuestName:

Being an exceptional trial lawyer requires mastering a lot of skills they don’t teach in school. The same can be said for being an exceptional parent. But, sticking the landing on both? That must be a pipedream, right?On this episode of Trial Lawyer Nation, Michael Cowen and his new Partner, Natalie Arledge, discuss whether it’s possible to be a successful trial lawyer without being a shitty parent. Through the lens of a mom of two, Natalie discusses the challenges of developing as a trial lawyer, her journey from associate to partner, and the unique lessons she learned along the way.Featured GuestName: Natalie ArledgeAbout: Natalie is a Partner at Cowen | Rodriguez | Peacock and a mom of two. Natalie was born and raised in San Antonio and attended Baylor University for college and law school. When not in the office, Natalie enjoys spending time with her family and their two dogs.Connect: LinkedInConnect with Trial Lawyer Nation☑️ Follow us on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram & LinkedIn.☑️ Subscribe to Trial

Lawyers know their cases backwards and forwards. However, jurors may need help honing in on the most important elements of a case. Visual trial strategy helps create a series of clear, tailored exhibits to present to a jury at trial.On this episode of Trial Lawyer Nation, Michael Cowen talks to visual trial strategist, Amy Hall. Amy discusses her tried-and-true three-exhibit formula–the anchor, the link, and the payoff–which she uses to distill everything in a complex case into these three themes. Additionally, Amy explains that because jurors learn better by combining both visual and auditory means, she always recommends using physical exhibits while presenting your case instead of fumbling over technology.Tune in to learn how to employ visual trial strategy to guide juries through trials.Featured GuestName: Amy HallAbout:  Amy Hall’s background in cognitive science, journalism, the gambling industry, advertising, and graphic design, has given her a unique and highly relevant skill set for litigation st