Referral system > referral luck

Knowing what risks you're exposed to is as much a part of firm management as it is lawyering in general. This week, we highlight some hidden hazards.

First, the talent market is shifting under your feet, and the associate movement numbers show exactly how fast. We then look at why transcription software is quietly one of the biggest confidentiality risks in your tech stack, and take a look at why your referral process is broken. Plus, we’ve got a couple of podcast recs that prove danger may be lurking where you least expect it. 

Coming soon, what do you think would happen if you gave each of your staff members $600 to spend on client gifts? A PI firm in NOLA is finding out. 

But first, can you guess which federal judge has a picture of President Trump screaming “Fight, fight, fight” on his phone’s lock screen?

Is your new hire a walking, talking piece of AI?
This question sparked a robust discussion on Reddit, with users struggling to find a way to address this far-too-common problem. 

Authentically upset.
Attorney Dillon White, who you may know as @thedadchats, took his problems with his homebuilder public. Their dispute is now playing out in court, online, and in the press. 

America’s true pastime: litigation.
The fact that Curt Flood isn’t in the Baseball Hall of Fame is a crime, but the Federal Judicial Center’s got an in-depth article on how his lawsuit against the MLB changed the game. Baseball’s next legal play: figuring out how to handle the boom in sports betting.

What’s your walk-up song?
Over on Instagram, some of the lawyers in State Attorney Suzy Lopez’s office shared their hype songs. We’re wondering why none of these Floridians picked Jimmy Buffett or Tom Petty tracks?

Road Trip: Law in the great outdoors.
Yosemite, Yellowstone, and the Grand Canyon are each home to a federal courthouse. 

Standard case management software keeps you organized, but manual workflows still drain your billable hours. By integrating AI and machine learning into your practice, you can transform daily operations. You will automate routine tasks, extract instant insights from complex discovery and anticipate case needs before they escalate.

Not sure which platform fits your firm? This free expert guide from Software Advice reviews 6 top-rated AI-enabled legal platforms in 2026, including MyCase, Filevine and Smokeball, to help you make an informed decision.

Inside the Guide:

Ready to upgrade your law firm? Download the guide to find the right tool for your needs.

NALP and the NALP Foundation’s joint study on Law School Alumni Employment and Satisfaction (covering the Class of 2022) is out, and it includes some head-scratching results. 

Roughly two-thirds of the law alumni surveyed (63%) have already held two or more positions in their three years out of law school. At the same time, only 11% report actively seeking a new job right now, which is well below the historical range of 17% to 24%.

Why this mMatters: These associates have either found a job that suits them, or recruiters, lateral offers and internal reshuffling are doing the work that a formal search used to do. 

See also: NALP Executive Director Nikia Gray says, “Early-career lawyers are changing jobs at unprecedented rates, making the ability to practice in different jurisdictions an increasingly important component of long-term career success. As the legal profession continues to examine accreditation and licensure, these findings underscore the importance of maintaining a national accreditation system that supports reciprocity and enables lawyers to pursue opportunities wherever their careers take them.” (NALP Foundation)

As AI transcription becomes ubiquitous, attorneys must figure out which tools to use in their own practice or recommend to clients. In this blog, Jennifer Ellis gives a couple of product recommendations that vary based on the task at hand (Microsoft Teams with Copilot for client meetings, Whisper for solo dictation) 

She also outlines how she tests and evaluates different transcription tools because, “When it comes to attorney/client confidentiality, we cannot simply trust the vendors’ promises.” She cautions that the brand names aren’t what offer protection; it is the terms of your specific subscription plan, the settings you toggle on/off and the willingness of each person in the room to be recorded and have that recording transcribed by AI. 

Why this matters: If your practice has been using a transcription tool without asking where the audio file actually goes, this is the piece you need to read to lock down your data and protect your clients. Ellis offers step-by-step instructions, not just a warning to “be careful.” (Jennifer Ellis, JD, LLC)

If you are wondering why three of our national parks need federal courthouses, the hosts of Park Predators or Crime Off the Grid can answer that question. 

Park Predators, hosted by investigative journalist Delia D'Ambra, treats parks as crime scenes with better scenery. D'Ambra digs through archives and even hikes remote terrain to reconstruct cases ranging from headline-grabbing disappearances to cold cases most people have never heard of.

Crime Off the Grid covers some of the same territory, but from an insider’s POV. Hosts Tara Ross and Nancy Martinz spent decades as law enforcement rangers, and their guest list—rangers, investigators, prosecutors, victim specialists — reads like a witness roster. Between case discussions and their recurring “Ranger Tales” segment, the show doubles as an oral history of how justice actually gets done in places without a local police department to call.

Why this matters: As D’Ambra says, “sometimes the most beautiful places hide the darkest secrets.” (Park Predators / Crime Off the Grid)

Referrals aren't a byproduct of good work. They're the product of a system you can build, and this article from Karin Conroy of Conroy Creative Counsel provides the blueprint. The starting move: pick one of your four referral audiences (former clients, current clients, current referral partners, future referral partners) then further narrow your focus down based on who has given you quality referrals in the past and how much time/attention/budget you can devote to this. 

At the end of the article, you can click to listen to a podcast episode where Conroy does a deep dive on referrals with Delisi Friday, the founder of First Call Friday. Friday’s whole business is focused on increasing referrals for her clients.

Why this matters: The first two lines of this article say it all: “Ask almost any firm owner where their best clients come from and you will hear the same answer: referrals. Ask them what they do to generate those referrals, and the room goes quiet.” (Conroy Creative Counsel)

Thanks for reading today's edition! You can reach the newsletter team at [email protected]. We enjoy hearing from you.

Interested in advertising? Email us at [email protected]

Was this email forwarded to you? Sign up here to get this newsletter every week.

Raise the Bar is written and curated by Emily Kelchen, edited by Bianca Prieto.