Lawyers spend a lot of time thinking about case strategy, but far less time thinking strategically about how we develop people, invest in our practices and show up in the profession. This issue of Raise the Bar takes a look at things you should focus on now to shape your firm’s long-term success: coaching your team, tracking where your firm’s money goes and how you can turn required CLE into effective marketing.
But first, would you ever pay to be on a jury? Lots of people are.
Vibes-based representation
Most of the time, it’s the client asserting they have a relationship with an attorney they’ve never spoken to. But Bruce Fein flipped the script when he tried to become part of Nicolás Maduro’s legal team.
On-screen v. shared screens
Over on Instagram, @thatcorporatelawyer nails the differences between being a tv lawyer and a real lawyer.
Taking bets on this one
Read this announcement from OpenAI on ChatGPT Health. How long until they release ChatGPT Law?
Picture this: a painting, a con man and Bruce Springsteen’s manager
See why the Department of Justice is calling this art broker a “recidivist fraudster”.
What we’re watching
King In The Wilderness (2018) is a collection of found footage and interviews that takes you through the final years of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s life. Some of the most interesting bits come from attorney Clarence Jones, who recorded a stand-alone interview with Life Stories that is also worth your time.
Coach as you go
Training employees to do a specific set of tasks is one thing. Coaching them to think about what needs to be done and how to do it is another. This article from well-known leadership coach Ruchira Chaudhary outlines six ways senior employees help develop their organization’s next generation of leaders during the regular course of business. It includes simple but impactful things like making a habit of asking reflective questions and assigning low-level employees who are sitting in on a meeting a specific task.
Why this matters: Getting employees to that next level is critical, but it is not a skill that comes naturally to most people. Identifying some low-effort ways to elevate others’ judgment, autonomy and decision-making capacity can develop your team without adding to your already heavy workload. (Harvard Business Review)
Is there a legal tech corollary to Moore's Law?
The 2026 Report on the State of the US Legal Market from Thomson Reuters and Georgetown Law’s Center on Ethics and the Legal Profession is out, and it’s worth a skim. The overarching theme is that uncertainty increased legal demand and law firm profits in 2025, but threatens those same things in the future.
The report’s authors suggest firms are spending too much on tech and talent based on where they suspect the industry is headed. They assert that the 9.7% bump in tech spending, driven largely by AI adoption, is the steepest year-over-year increase ever.
Where all that money is going can be answered in part by the latest GenAI Legal Tech Map from Legaltech Hub. It offers the best available snapshot of AI products catering to the legal industry. The number of offerings doubled in 2025, and has increased by a 100 or so since Raise the Bar linked to it back in August.
Even more interesting than AI’s explosive growth overall is the variety of products being offered, and which categories of products are growing the fastest. When the map debuted, it was loaded with tools promising to assist with contracts and litigation management. Now, the fastest growing categories are compliance tools, collaboration platforms, AI governance tools, transaction management solutions and operations solutions.
Why this matters: We all know firms are scrambling to keep up with changes in legal tech. But actually quantifying the investments being made is eye-opening. So is seeing what “problems” legal tech companies are tackling. (Thomson Reuters / Legaltech Hub)
Here's Johnny Jared!
The news is heavy, so balancing it with something light makes sense. That’s where Legal Late Night comes in. Hosted by Jared Correia, the founder and CEO of Red Cave Law Firm Consulting, it’s a practice management podcast disguised as an “old school television variety show.”
Each episode begins with a monologue covering trending topics, then moves on to a deep dive discussion with a special guest or two. The wrap-up, or “Counter Program,” is a decidedly unserious affair where Correia and the guests figure out how to ask to ride a capybara in Brazilian Portuguese or sing a show tune.
Why this matters: By blending pop culture with serious subjects like AI adoption, alternative advertising channels and law firm management, Correia covers a lot of ground in a short amount of time. The fun segments sandwiched between more serious topics make everything more memorable. (Legal Late Night)
- Evaluating ICE’s use of force
- Jeanine Pirro is going after Powell
- Character.AI and Google settle lawsuits over teen suicides
- Did the US commit perfidy in Venezuela boat strikes?
- The pelvic mesh surgery scam
Being an effective CLE presenter
Teaching a CLE course can be a great way to raise your profile in the industry. It positions you as a potential referral source and is another way to help search engines connect your name to a specific practice area.
Finding opportunities to speak is not difficult if you are in a state that mandates its attorneys complete a certain amount of CLE each year, but making the most of your time on the mic is. (Who among us has not sat in a conference room, eyes glazing over, as a boring presenter droned on and on?) So, here’s a round-up of tips for creating more engaging CLE content:
The Florida Bar actually ran a CLE training on how to do better CLE. It’s now available as a YouTube video.
Above the Law published a whole series of articles on this topic written by Sejal Patel, a rainmaking consultant.
Why this matters: Making the most of CLE requirements means becoming the person on the panel instead of the one in the audience. It’s good marketing, and a lot of states give extra CLE credit for prep and presentation time. (The Florida Bar / The Tennessee Bar Association / Above the Law)
You're all caught up!
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Raise the Bar is written and curated by Emily Kelchen and edited by Bianca Prieto.
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