The podcast for lawyers and business professionals working in, with, and around Big Law
Hear from lawyers and other professionals who have experience navigating work and life in the challenging world of large law firms.
The Podcast
Expert insights and advice to help you achieve your goals in your legal career
Working in and with big law firms is full of challenges — everything from becoming a partner to succeeding as a partner or pivoting to another role, making your case for compensation and recognition as a professional at any level, managing and steering the business of the firm, and engaging these firms as outside counsel.
On this podcast, I share what I’ve learned in a long career as a Big Law partner, and also talk to others — lawyers, business developers, project managers, legal pricing experts, clients, and other professionals — about what they find exciting, engaging, frustrating, challenging and motivating in working with these firms.
You may be:
Already working in Big Law and are looking to advance your career or transition out;
Wondering what it takes to move into a Big Law from government or corporate legal departments;
Trying to improve your relationships with outside counsel at large law firms; or
Otherwise want to understand more about how to engage in the large, complex business environment of major global law firms
For all of these and many other situations, the podcast offers candid and honest advice that will help you take the next best step toward your professional goals in the world of Big Law.
#102: The Most Dangerous Time in BigLaw - What Mid-Senior Associates Should Be Thinking About
Learn how to make the shifts you need to as a mid-senior associates so you stay on track to progress your career in BigLaw.
#101: The Seven Billable Hours Pitfalls That Hold BigLaw Associates Back
Making your billable hours isn’t as easy as just entering and closing your time - there are some key traps you need to avoid.
#100: What 100 Episodes Reveal About BigLaw: Career Realities, Recurring Challenges, and Industry Shifts
Celebrating the 100th episode by switching roles as I’m interviewed about why I started this podcast, and how I continue to hear from those in the BigLaw community as to why it’s needed for practical guidance and conversation on how to navigate the daily challenges of this unique environment.
#99: When Partnership Doesn’t Mean Control: How BigLaw’s Structure Can Limit Your Autonomy and What You Can Do About It
Figuring out how as a partner you can balance the firm’s requirements and structures for how work is managed with the need you have to direct your own matters is a vital step to take in BigLaw.
#98: Inside Your BigLaw Firm’s Different Measures of Profitability - And How They Affect You
Knowing how your firm and practice group measure profitability beyond just the published numbers you see outside the firm is absolutely critical to learning how you and your practice are really evaluated.
#97: The Biggest Mistakes BigLaw Attorneys Make in Business Development
Business development can be challenging, but there are a few key ways you can shift your approach to better generate business more consistently.
#96: When Your BigLaw Firm Stops Valuing You: Signs Partners Often Miss
It happens, to very capable and strong partners, so you need to be aware of when it may be happening to you, and what you can and should be doing about it.
#95: The BigLaw Blind Spot: What Many Partners Don’t Understand About PEP
You know it’s important, but do you really understand how it affects you?
#94: How to Respond When Your Mentor Partner Pulls Back from You in BigLaw
Learn how to respond and act strategically when your relationship with your mentor or sponsor partner begins to change and you no longer feel the support you need.
#93: Making Partner in BigLaw in the AI Era
Get smarter about what you need to do to make sure AI fluency is part of what you offer as a candidate for partner - and to show how this adds value to your firm.
#92: What to Do When the Work Dries Up - Responding to Enforcement & Regulatory Downturns in BigLaw
How can you respond when your practice area starts to slow because government priorities have changed?
#91: Why Collaboration Matters in BigLaw
Learning how to collaborate more effectively both within your firm and on behalf of your clients is one of the most critical skills you need to develop.
#90: How to Handle Ambiguity in BigLaw Assignments
Mastering the unclear and uncertain direction often given to you in your BigLaw firm is a critical skill.
#89: How BigLaw Measures Profitability and What It Means for Your Career
Learn how you can better understand how your firm tracks profitability so you can take control of the numbers that impact your comp, bonus, and long-term prospects.
#88: How Strategic Planning Can Help BigLaw Attorneys Succeed In Their Firms - With Sheri Palomaki
Sheri Palomaki joins the podcast to share how strategic planning can help lawyers better develop, design, and execute on their goals for long-term success and sustainability.
#87: How BigLaw Lawyers Can Succeed At Business Development Without Firm Support
Don’t let limited firm business development and marketing resources or the wrong ways of working to access and leverage those teams limit your ability to grow your practice and profile.
#86: What Your BigLaw Firm Really Means When It Says You’re Not Ready for Partnership
Make sure you really understand what you’re hearing when you get pushback about the timing for your partnership path
#85: Why BigLaw Partners Still Need Learning & Development—Leigh Riley on How Foley & Lardner Built a Program That Delivers
Learn from Partner Leigh Riley how Foley & Lardner’s innovative and unique training and development program helps meet the need for continuing learning and growth for partners at all stages of their careers.
#84: Finding Ways to Raise Your Visibility in BigLaw When You Lack External Opportunities
Find ways to drive your profile and brand externally - beyond traditional opportunities that are less available to you.
#83: Business Development in BigLaw: Structural Barriers No One Talks About
Even when you’re doing everything right and working hard to develop business, there are still some factors that are hard to control.
Guests on Big Law Life
Interested in being a guest on Big Law Life?
Contact Laura at laura@lauraterrell.com to share what you would like to add to the conversation about life in big law firms.