LawHub Presents I Am The Law Podcast
151 Episodes
Small Firm, Big Mountain: Ski Injury Law in Colorado
Evan Banker didn't plan to become a ski lawyer, but a chance opportunity led him to a niche practice handling collisions on the slopes. He explains how skiing accidents become legal cases, from right-of-way rules and Colorado's Skier Safety Act to evidence like witness accounts, video footage, GPS tracking data, and damage patterns on the skis themselves. Evan discusses why injured skiers hesitate to pursue claims and how personal injury lawyers navigate the profession's stigma. He also talks about leveling the playing field against deep pockets with his firms contingency fee model. The conversation also offers a behind-the-scenes look at small firm life and succession planning. Evan is a graduate of the University of Denver College of Law.
This episode is hosted by Kyle McEntee.
Mentioned in this episode:
Learn more about Juno and private student loans
Learn more about Juno and private student loans
Loyola Law School
Episodes
IRS Tax Lawyer: From Tax Strategist to the Government (replay)
23 minutes 21 secondsDeepan Patel explains his role at the IRS. While the IRS has many types of lawyers, he focuses on business taxpayer guidance, which ensures certainty for businesses making major decisions. He describes how he got into tax, where his career might go, and trade-offs between government and private practice. Deepan is a graduate of Florida State University College of Law.
Space Law: The Work Behind an Emerging Practice
24 minutes 41 secondsMichelle Hanlon spent 25 years as a cross-border M&A lawyer before earning an LLM in space law and reinventing her practice around an environment that nobody quite controls but many want to. Space law is barely developed, but much of the daily work looks like any other industry: contracts, regulatory compliance, and drafting provisions that account for risks nobody else is thinking about yet. Michelle holds a permanent observer seat at the UN committee where international space law is written, and in this episode she breaks down the craft of persuading legislators and diplomats, why industries often write the standards Congress later codifies, and how deep subject-matter fluency reshapes even conventional legal work. Michelle Hanlon is a graduate of Georgetown University Law Center.
Concierge Outside Counsel: Compliance, Contracts, and Keeping Clients Deal-Ready
32 minutes 22 secondsYuliya Flynn is a partner at a small business law firm where she acts as concierge legal counsel for small and mid-size companies — handling the kind and breadth of work an in-house lawyer would, but for multiple clients at once. In this episode, she walks through what that role looks like day to day, from drafting employment agreements and reviewing leases to fielding emergency calls about severance. Yuliya explains how she audits new clients for compliance gaps, why she treats compliance as preventative medicine, and how those gaps can tank a purchase when it's time to sell. She also digs into the complexity of structuring employee compensation and retention plans, where equity participation sounds simple but quickly intersects with succession planning and corporate governance. Yuliya Flynn is a graduate of Kostanay State University in Kazakhstan and also earned her Master of Laws from American University with a specialization in International Business and Trade Law.
Small Firm, Big Mountain: Ski Injury Law in Colorado
33 minutes 20 secondsEvan Banker didn't plan to become a ski lawyer, but a chance opportunity led him to a niche practice handling collisions on the slopes. He explains how skiing accidents become legal cases, from right-of-way rules and Colorado's Skier Safety Act to evidence like witness accounts, video footage, GPS tracking data, and damage patterns on the skis themselves. Evan discusses why injured skiers hesitate to pursue claims and how personal injury lawyers navigate the profession's stigma. He also talks about leveling the playing field against deep pockets with his firms contingency fee model. The conversation also offers a behind-the-scenes look at small firm life and succession planning. Evan is a graduate of the University of Denver College of Law.
Poisoned Goods: Suing to Clean Up Consumer Products
30 minutes 4 secondsVineet Dubey is an environmental litigator in California who sues companies selling consumer products tainted with toxic chemicals. His primary legal vehicle is California's Proposition 65, a ballot-initiative statute requiring companies to either warn consumers about chemical exposure or remove offending products from shelves. In this episode, Vineet explains how cases come to him through environmental testing groups, how toxicologists help establish whether a violation exists, and why he pushes companies to reformulate products rather than simply slap on a warning label. He also walks through his case against Gerber over lead in baby food, the realities of contingency work against corporate giants, and what it takes to learn hard science as a political science major. Vineet Dubey is a graduate of UCLA Law.
Outside In-House Counsel: Small Business Lawyer (replay)
21 minutes 2 secondsPhilip Selio, a solo practitioner, helps small businesses and entrepreneurs with their corporate law needs. He discusses managing all aspects of a solo shop -- and how it helps him better serve his clients who face similar challenges. Philip discusses client relationships, research processes, and social media as a tool to further build his client roster. He also shares how he thinks about his firm's potential growth. Philip is a 2019 graduate of California Western School of Law.
Public Defender to Private Practice: Criminal Defense From Scratch
37 minutes 47 secondsDevin Morse is a criminal defense attorney in Alaska, specializing in the state's most serious charges. In this episode, Devin explains the distinction between factual and legal guilt, her intensive intake process, and why she deliberately delays hearing a client's version of events. She also discusses what it means to review a "phone dump" — an entire digital life — and how that shapes the attorney-client relationship. After a decade as a public defender, Devin and two colleagues spent a year plotting the launch of their own firm. She walks through the realities of billing, compensation conversations, and what it feels like to know a family sold their home to fund the defense. Devin Morse is a graduate of Northeastern University School of Law.