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Podcasts

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Legal Rebels Podcast

How Casetext utilized the latest GPT technology to create an AI legal assistant

In November, when OpenAI unleashed the newest, most advanced version of its chatbot, ChatGPT, it immediately captured the imagination. As we’ve covered on this podcast, ChatGPT represents a major leap forward for generative artificial intelligence in that it can converse with and respond to users in a natural, almost humanlike way. So far, it’s been a hit.

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Legal Rebels Podcast

How lawyers can unlock the potential of the metaverse

The metaverse is all the rage these days. Users can enter a virtual world where they can interact with people from all parts of the physical world, play games, engage in commerce and do a lot of other things. Think Ready Player One, or for older folks, think The Matrix movies, Total Recall or even Disclosure.

The Modern Law Library

Author and lawyer Scott Turow made generational leap for new legal thriller

Author and lawyer Scott Turow’s latest legal thriller Suspect reintroduces readers to Clarice “Pinky” Granum, the granddaughter of attorney Sandy Stern—a character from the author's novels The Last Trial and his blockbuster debut Presumed Innocent.

Asked and Answered

Employment outcomes were great for 2021 law school graduates; is that a sign of caution?

The overall employment outcomes for 2007 and 2021 law school graduates were both 91.9%, according to data recently released by the National Association for Law Placement. And while that sounds like a good thing, it could be a warning, says Aaron Taylor, executive director of AccessLex’s Center for Legal Education Excellence.

The Modern Law Library

Nina Totenberg’s early life, NPR legacy and friendship with the Notorious RBG

In this special two-part episode of the Modern Law Library, Lee Rawles speaks with Lisa Napoli, author of Susan, Linda, Nina & Cokie: The Extraordinary Story of the Founding Mothers of NPR, and we hear from Nina Totenberg about her new book, Dinners With Ruth: A Memoir on the Power of Friendships.

Legal Rebels Podcast

Legal Chatbots: What can and can’t they do?

The next time you go to a website, find the customer service tab and enter a live chatroom with an assistant tasked with answering your questions and helping you with your issues, the chances are that you’re not actually talking to a human.

The Modern Law Library

9th Circuit judge shines light on Justice William O. Douglas’ environmental campaigns

Asked and Answered

Lawyer who moved from Ukraine to US now has opportunity to help others facing similar situations

Ellen Freeman immigrated from Odesa, Ukraine, to Pittsburgh almost 30 years ago. And although her family always planned to leave—she grew up learning various languages so that she could communicate wherever they settled—moving to the United States as a young single mother was one of the most difficult things that she has ever done.

The Modern Law Library

Sick of meetings that go off the rails? ‘Robert’s Rules of Order’ can help

It's no secret that lawyers are asked to attend or preside over many kinds and types of meetings. From attending a professional association's annual meeting with hundreds of fellow attorneys (as the ABA just had in August) to being asked to chair a nonprofit board or preside at a homeowners association meeting, lawyers are often looked to for guidance.

Legal Rebels Podcast

Why this BigLaw firm adopted a permanent work-from-anywhere policy for its lawyers and staff

Thanks to nearly two-years of COVID-19-related shutdowns and sheltering-in-place orders, working from home has become the new normal. Face-to-face interactions have been replaced by meeting on real-time videoconferencing platforms such as Zoom, FaceTime or Microsoft Teams, while cloud-based collaborative programs have become absolutely vital if any work is to be done.

The Modern Law Library

Summer pop culture picks and what else we lost when Roe was overturned

It's time for the Modern Law Library's summer recommendations episode, in which host Lee Rawles shares her pop culture picks with you, plus a re-airing of one of our older episodes that has become relevant again.

The Modern Law Library

After collaborating with bestselling author, judge discusses new solo book

After several collaborations with bestselling author James Patterson, Judge David Ellis of Illinois, a prolific novelist, decided to go it alone for his latest book, Look Closer.

Asked and Answered

Following her experiences, former law clerk seeks support for the Judiciary Accountability Act

Aliza Shatzman didn’t realize that federal judicial employees are not protected by Title VII of the Civil Rights Act. That is until the judge she worked for in 2020 ended her clerkship early—for reasons that she thinks were due to gender discrimination.

Legal Rebels Podcast

How technology can improve immigration policy and practice

The U.S. immigration system is complex and confusing, and it causes no shortage of stress for those who have to go through it.

The Modern Law Library

The modern US Border Patrol is a national police force with dangerous capabilities, author warns

In Nobody is Protected: How the Border Patrol Became the Most Dangerous Police Force in the United States, geographer Reece Jones argues that Supreme Court precedent, a growing workforce and mission creep have made the U.S. Border Patrol a national police force that operates without appropriate accountability.

The Modern Law Library

Authors of ‘50 Lessons for Happy Lawyers’ share some top tips

Even during times less tumultuous than the one we are in now, lawyers as a profession report high levels of stress. Finding the way to keep motivated and healthy on an individual level while fighting systemic problems is no easy task. It was this challenge that lawyers Nora Riva Bergman and Chelsy A. Castro set out to address in their new book, 50 Lessons for Happy Lawyers.

Asked and Answered

Think you won’t pass the July bar exam? So did many others, but they did, say lawyers

If you are studying for the July bar exam, you’re not going to memorize every flashcard for the Multistate Bar Examination, and that’s OK. You can still pass, says Michael Anspach, who founded the Organization for Student Wellbeing as a student at the Marquette University Law School and passed the Ohio bar on his first attempt in 2018.

Legal Rebels Podcast

Taking on unauthorized practice of law regulations to expand access to justice

Are you struggling with debt? Do you have collectors breathing down your neck, threatening to repossess your property and filing lawsuits against you in court? For many Americans facing this dilemma, their options are fairly limited.

The Modern Law Library

Do you have what it takes to make esports your practice niche?

Are you a lawyer who plays League of Legends late at night? A World of Warcraft warrior who engages in courtroom combat during your daytime gig? And have you ever wished you could break into esports on a professional level—whether you're armed with a game controller or a briefcase?

Asked and Answered

After a not-so-great elementary school experience, teen law school grad wants career in education policy

A good home-school program provided a nurturing environment that was lacking in elementary education, and the experience helped build confidence for law school, says Haley Taylor Schlitz, who left public school at age 10 and at age 19 may be the youngest Black person to complete a JD program.

The Modern Law Library

Work for Canadian residential school survivors informs lawyer’s debut novel

As a lawyer, Michelle Good spent years investigating the trauma that Canada’s residential school system inflicted on Indigenous people. As an author, it took her nine years to write her first novel about the lives of five teenagers who leave a church-run school and coalesce in Eastside Vancouver, British Columbia. For Good, it was imperative that she took her time to get the story right. Her patience paid off.

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