10 Questions: From lesbian moms to Airbnb, Roberta Kaplan makes sure laws keep pace with change

Jan 1, 2016 3:20 AM CST

This lawyer is using her love for ‘Star Wars’ to expand the galaxy of geeks

For some people, Star Wars isn't just a movie, it's also a way of life. Jennifer LaFortune is one of those people. Since 2006, the Gilbert, Arizona, lawyer has been dressing up, or "cosplaying," as a Stormtrooper—Imperial Officer TK 7047, to be exact—to attend sci-fi conventions, march in parades and…

Dec 1, 2015 3:40 AM CST

This lawyer is fighting to extend basic human rights to complex animals

Natalie Prosin doesn't favor guerrilla tactics in the courtroom—more like gorilla tactics. As executive director of the Washington, D.C.-based Nonhuman Rights Project, she manages the day-to-day operations of a mostly volunteer group of lawyers and scientists striving to extend the common-law classification of personhood to cognitively complex nonhuman animals to…

Nov 1, 2015 3:30 AM CST

This Houston lawyer is now representing a death row inmate he reported on as a TV newsman

Earlier this year, Quinncy N. McNeal was surfing the Internet when he discovered that an execution date had been set for Rodney Reed, a Texas death row inmate convicted of the 1996 abduction, rape and murder of 19-year-old Stacey Stites. McNeal was shocked. Before becoming a lawyer, he had worked…

Oct 1, 2015 8:28 AM CDT

10 Questions: Has the ADA measured up?

Sep 1, 2015 3:30 AM CDT

Meet the judge who has become a national sensation as ‘Bongo Lady’

By day, Malenda Harris Meacham is a busy solo family law practitioner and part-time judge in Hernando, Mississippi. By night she's become something of an air bongo sensation. That's right—an air bongo sensation.

Aug 1, 2015 6:45 AM CDT

Meet a lawyer trying to guide the all-cash cannabis industry into the federal banking system

South Carolina litigator Mark Mason knew as much about the marijuana industry as any other middle-aged, law-abiding lawyer. That is, until his son called from Denver asking for help. Now Mason, principal in the five-lawyer Mason Law Firm in Mount Pleasant, is leading the charge to give Colorado's all-cash cannabis…

Jul 1, 2015 6:05 AM CDT

Distance-swimming lawyer raises money for charity while setting records

Courtney Moates Paulk doesn't just swim with sharks in the courtroom—she's in the water with them, too. An open-water marathon swimmer, Paulk earned the sport's Triple Crown in 2013 by traversing the English Channel, the Catalina Channel and the perimeter of Manhattan Island. Last year, she became one of only…

Jun 1, 2015 6:30 AM CDT

This D.C. lawyer coordinated a massive pro bono effort on behalf of Holocaust victims

On Nov. 5, 1942, a young Jewish man named Leo Bretholz was herded into a French state-owned railway car bound for Auschwitz. Between 1942 and 1944, the Société Nationale des Chemins de fer Français transported approximately 76,000 Jews and "undesirables" to Nazi death camps. Fewer than 3 percent survived. Bretholz…

Apr 1, 2015 6:04 AM CDT

Why lead guitarist of Blind Melon left music for labor and employment law

As the guitarist for alternative rock band Blind Melon, Rogers Stevens spent years headlining venues and festivals around the world, recording albums and living his childhood dream.

Mar 1, 2015 6:19 AM CST

Have a $100 million estate to liquidate? Then you might want to talk to this lawyer

Alexander Forger has had one of those careers that make you wonder: How in the world did he do that?

Jan 1, 2015 6:10 AM CST

Want to be the next Miss America? Then you might want to hire this lawyer

Bill Alverson has been practicing law in the small town of Andalusia, Alabama, for nearly a quarter of a century. Together with his son, William Alverson, they run a law practice that handles everything from personal injury matters to divorces and wills.

Dec 1, 2014 5:40 AM CST