Advertise on podcast: Elawvate: The Trial Lawyer Podcast

Why does one of the country's most accomplished trial lawyers wear a black suit to court every day with no cufflinks or frills? Because he wants jurors to know exactly what to expect from him. Tom Kline, who co-founded Kline & Specter with Shanin Specter, has won seven-figure-plus jury verdicts in each of the past five decades. Hosts Ben Gideon and Rahul Ravipudi ask Tom how he found his own courtroom style after learning from his mentor, James E. Beasley, and why he chooses to talk up to jurors rather than down. Tom also reveals why his most heated moments in court are never an accident, and the simple math that has kept his partnership with Shanin strong since 1995. Learn More and Connect ☑️ Tom Kline | LinkedIn | Instagram ☑️ Kline & Specter | LinkedIn | Facebook | Instagram | X | YouTube ☑️ Ben Gideon | LinkedIn | Facebook | Instagram ☑️ Gideon Asen on LinkedIn | Facebook | YouTube | Instagram ☑️ Rahul Ravipudi | LinkedIn | Instagram ☑️ Panish Shea Ravipudi LLP on LinkedIn | Facebook | YouTube | Instagram ☑️ Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify Produced and Powered by LawPods Sponsored by SmartAdvocate, Hype Legal, Expert Institute, and Steno.

Some lawyers spend their careers avoiding the toughest cases. Todd A. Smith and Brian LaCien built their Chicago firm, Smith LaCien LLP, on taking them. Together, they've secured over 100 verdicts and settlements above a million dollars. On this episode, they walk host Rahul Ravipudi through a $51 million emergency-room verdict — the third-highest med-mal award for an adult in Illinois — that turned on a single missing blood test, and a railroad crossing case they navigated around brutal federal preemption. Along the way, Todd shares how he keeps ironclad control on cross-examination, and Brian explains why juries can always sniff out a lawyer who isn't authentic. They also trace how the mentors who shaped them still surface in how they try cases. Learn More and Connect ☑️ Todd A. Smith | LinkedIn ☑️ Brian LaCien | LinkedIn ☑️ Smith LaCien LLP | LinkedIn | Facebook ☑️ Ben Gideon | LinkedIn | Facebook | Instagram ☑️ Gideon Asen on LinkedIn | Facebook | YouTube | Instagram ☑️ Rahul Ravipudi | LinkedIn | Instagram ☑️ Panish Shea Ravipudi LLP on LinkedIn | Facebook | YouTube | Instagram ☑️ Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify Produced and Powered by LawPods Sponsored by SmartAdvocate, Hype Legal, Expert Institute, and Steno.

How do you force a trillion-dollar company to do the right thing? Rahul Ravipudi's answer runs on cold economics: big companies won't behave until it's more expensive not to. That's the pressure trial lawyers are putting on Meta, TikTok, Snap, and YouTube in the litigation over kids' mental health. In this wide-ranging conversation, hosts Ben Gideon and Rahul trade notes on cases that sit far outside most trial lawyers' wheelhouses. Ben shares about his civil rights fight against Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) in Maine, including the killing of a young man who was never the operation's target. Together, they explore how impact litigation forces accountability—and why the hardest cases make you a sharper advocate for every client. Learn More and Connect ☑️ Ben Gideon | LinkedIn | Facebook | Instagram ☑️ Gideon Asen on LinkedIn | Facebook | YouTube | Instagram ☑️ Rahul Ravipudi | LinkedIn | Instagram ☑️ Panish Shea Ravipudi LLP on LinkedIn | Facebook | YouTube | Instagram ☑️ Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify Produced and Powered by LawPods Sponsored by SmartAdvocate, Hype Legal, Expert Institute, and Steno.

What if the most powerful AI in your practice still isn't the thing winning your cases? Sara Cordrey, CEO and co-founder of the legal AI platform Parambil, built with chief medical officer Dr. Ralph Horwitz, argues that technology is leverage—not a substitute for a lawyer's judgment or for the medical record itself. Drawing on her McKinsey work analyzing gaps in patient care, she explains how purpose-built AI helps trial lawyers rip through records, reorder how cases get worked up, and surface insights sooner—while never leaving the primary source behind. Host Ben Gideon digs into build-versus-buy, data security, and where legal AI is heading next. Learn More and Connect ☑️ Sara Cordrey | LinkedIn ☑️ Parambil | LinkedIn | YouTube | Instagram ☑️ Ben Gideon | LinkedIn | Facebook | Instagram ☑️ Gideon Asen on LinkedIn | Facebook | YouTube | Instagram ☑️ Rahul Ravipudi | LinkedIn | Instagram ☑️ Panish Shea Ravipudi LLP on LinkedIn | Facebook | YouTube | Instagram ☑️ Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify Produced and Powered by LawPods, a podcast marketing agency for law firms Sponsored by SmartAdvocate, Hype Legal, Expert Institute, and Steno.

Jury consultant Robert Hirschhorn built his career on a promise to his late wife and mentor, Cathy Bennett: make her tools accessible to lawyers who couldn't otherwise afford them. That promise became VerdictHub, an AI tool that runs venue-specific surveys using the equivalent of 500 "digital jurors," with results delivered in three days for $3,000. Robert joins Ben Gideon and Rahul Ravipudi to break down when a two-minute voir dire can outperform an hour-long one, why he's reversed course on jury questionnaires, and how scaled questions can flag problem jurors fast. Ben compares VerdictHub against his own live-juror data test. Tune in for where AI helps jury selection — and where it still can't replace instinct. Learn More and Connect ☑️ Robert Hirschhorn | LinkedIn ☑️ Cathy E. Bennett & Associates Inc | Instagram | Facebook | YouTube | X ☑️ VerdictHub | LinkedIn | Facebook ☑️ Ben Gideon | LinkedIn | Facebook | Instagram ☑️ Gideon Asen on LinkedIn | Facebook | YouTube | Instagram ☑️ Rahul Ravipudi | LinkedIn | Instagram ☑️ Panish Shea Ravipudi LLP on LinkedIn | Facebook | YouTube | Instagram ☑️ Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify Produced and Powered by LawPods, a podcast marketing agency for law firms Sponsored by SmartAdvocate, Hype Legal, Expert Institute, and Steno

Every trial training promises the answer. Sharif Gray spent four years attending them all — and discovered the real lesson is that there is no one answer, only the toolkit you build for yourself. A Virginia Military Institute valedictorian and UVA Law graduate, Sharif joined forces with partner Gray Broughton to build a seven-lawyer firm — five former JAG officers, six former prosecutors. He shares how he won a $20 million verdict on a case with no catastrophic physical injury, battled a hostile judge for meaningful voir dire, and weaponized the defense's overreach to his client's advantage. Hosts Ben Gideon and Rahul Ravipudi explore how hunger, mentorship, and the willingness to lose cases separates good lawyers from great ones. Learn More and Connect ☑️ Sharif Gray | LinkedIn | Instagram | Podcast ☑️ Gray Broughton Injury Law | LinkedIn | Facebook ☑️ Ben Gideon | LinkedIn | Facebook | Instagram ☑️ Gideon Asen on LinkedIn | Facebook | YouTube | Instagram ☑️ Rahul Ravipudi | LinkedIn | Instagram ☑️ Panish Shea Ravipudi LLP on LinkedIn | Facebook | YouTube | Instagram ☑️ Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify Produced and Powered by LawPods Sponsored by SmartAdvocate, Hype Legal, Expert Institute, and Steno.

Trial strategist and consultant Jessica Brylo built her career by shadowing jury selection pioneer David Ball throughout law school and watching videos of a rare 1996 study in which cameras were placed inside actual jury deliberation rooms. “Give us all the advice and philosophy that you can,” co-host Rahul Ravipudi asks to launch the episode alongside co-host Ben Gideon. “That's a big open question,” she says – but she’s up to the task. Tune in as she shares insights about prehabbing jurors against corporate bias, selecting jurors who will give the “right verdict for the right reason,” and navigating Big Data, knowing that data isn’t always predictive. Learn More and Connect ☑️ Jessica Brylo | LinkedIn ☑️ Trial Dynamics on YouTube ☑️ Ben Gideon | LinkedIn | Facebook | Instagram ☑️ Gideon Asen on LinkedIn | Facebook | YouTube | Instagram ☑️ Rahul Ravipudi | LinkedIn | Instagram ☑️ Panish Shea Ravipudi LLP on LinkedIn | Facebook | YouTube | Instagram ☑️ Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify Produced and Powered by LawPods Sponsored by SmartAdvocate, Hype Legal, Expert Institute, and Steno.

Host Ben Gideon invites co-counsel Meryl Poulin to break down their $6.5 million med-mal verdict on behalf of a client who was paralyzed after a 20-hour delay in surgical care for cauda equina syndrome. With host Rahul Ravipudi moderating the conversation, Ben and Meryl explain why cauda equina syndrome cases are notoriously difficult to win and why they put their client, who has developmental disabilities, on the stand despite these challenges. They wanted the jury to fall in love with him. They did. Learn More and Connect ☑️ Meryl Poulin | LinkedIn ☑️ Ben Gideon | LinkedIn | Facebook | Instagram ☑️ Gideon Asen on LinkedIn | Facebook | YouTube | Instagram ☑️ Rahul Ravipudi | LinkedIn | Instagram ☑️ Panish Shea Ravipudi LLP on LinkedIn | Facebook | YouTube | Instagram ☑️ Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify Produced and Powered by LawPods Sponsored by SmartAdvocate, Hype Legal, Expert Institute, and Steno.

Washington, D.C.-based Gupta Wessler holds the highest win rate among the top five most active firms practicing before the 6-3 conservative U.S. Supreme Court firms. And they’re large, corporate firms “representing corporations that have done bad stuff,” says founder Deepak Gupta. “How do we do that? We do it by appealing – sometimes it's methodologically – to conservative commitments.” In this conversation with hosts Ben Gideon and Rahul Ravipudi, Deepak unpacks how his firm wins and how trial lawyers can protect damages that may go on appeal. Tune in for his description of taking on Uber when it wanted to cap contingency fees in Nevada. Learn More and Connect ☑️ Deepak Gupta | LinkedIn ☑️ Gupta Wessler on LinkedIn | Instagram | Facebook | X ☑️ Ben Gideon | LinkedIn | Facebook | Instagram ☑️ Gideon Asen on LinkedIn | Facebook | YouTube | Instagram ☑️ Rahul Ravipudi | LinkedIn | Instagram ☑️ Panish Shea Ravipudi LLP on LinkedIn | Facebook | YouTube | Instagram ☑️ Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify Produced and Powered by LawPods Sponsored by SmartAdvocate, Hype Legal, Expert Institute, Filevine, and Steno.

"Bad is stronger than good" is a widely cited principle in social psychology – and one that trial consultant Bo Fraser has built his jury strategy around. “You're not going to win them with, ‘We're the good guy and here's why’ story,” Bo explains to host Ben Gideon. Bo considered a career in marketing before earning a PhD in social psychology and joining his mother at the consultancy firm she founded, Trial Psychology Institute. Tune in as he delves into “bad vs. good” and other psychological themes that plaintiffs’ lawyers can leverage to pick the best jurors. Results speak for themselves: He and Ben recently worked together on a case that won the highest injury verdict in Maine history. “Getting that news about that record-setting verdict, that was a highlight of my 2025 for sure,” Bo says. Learn More and Connect ☑️ Bo Fraser | LinkedIn ☑️ Trial Psychology Institute ☑️ Ben Gideon | LinkedIn | Facebook | Instagram ☑️ Gideon Asen on LinkedIn | Facebook | YouTube | Instagram ☑️ Rahul Ravipudi | LinkedIn | Instagram ☑️ Panish Shea Ravipudi LLP on LinkedIn | Facebook | YouTube | Instagram ☑️ Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify Produced and Powered by LawPods Sponsored by SmartAdvocate, Hype Legal, Expert Institute, Filevine, and Steno.

Live from Portland, Maine, it’s Ben Gideon and Jeff Wright, the team from Gideon Asen taping a special edition of “Elawvate: Build and Grow Your Law Firm.” Ben and Jeff walk through 10 proven strategies for building a financially successful law firm, covering everything from dominating a niche and making data-driven decisions to scaling without losing your culture and building systems designed for the law firm of the future. They also take audience questions. If you’ve had a question about being a law firm entrepreneur, tune in; someone else may have wondered the same thing – and Ben and Jeff may have answered it on the air. Learn More and Connect ☑️ Ben Gideon | LinkedIn | Facebook | Instagram ☑️ Jeff Wright ☑️ Gideon Asen on LinkedIn | Facebook | YouTube | Instagram ☑️ Rahul Ravipudi | LinkedIn | Instagram ☑️ Panish Shea Ravipudi LLP on LinkedIn | Facebook | YouTube | Instagram ☑️ Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify Produced and Powered by LawPods Sponsored by SmartAdvocate, Hype Legal, Expert Institute, Filevine, and Steno.

A jury once told Todd Schafer that they had decided the case in his favor before he stood up for opening statement. Why? Todd pulls back the curtain on his success with picking juries in this conversation with hosts Ben Gideon and Rahul Ravipudi. A second-generation trial lawyer and partner at Schafer & Schafer in Indiana, Todd reflects on that case – at the time, he was a young lawyer who “right away recognized voir dire is important.” Since then, he’s developed a systematic approach to talking about money and a strategy for overcoming Indiana’s verdict form that doesn’t allow for damages to be broken down. As for persuading that jury before he stood up? Tune in to learn how it unfolded. Learn More and Connect ☑️ Todd Schafer | LinkedIn ☑️ Schafer & Schafer on Instagram | Facebook ☑️ Ben Gideon | LinkedIn | Facebook | Instagram ☑️ Gideon Asen on LinkedIn | Facebook | YouTube | Instagram ☑️ Rahul Ravipudi | LinkedIn | Instagram ☑️ Panish Shea Ravipudi LLP on LinkedIn | Facebook | YouTube | Instagram ☑️ Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify Produced and Powered by LawPods Sponsored by SmartAdvocate, Hype Legal, Expert Institute, Filevine, and Steno.

Shanin Specter’s $25 million verdict against Boeing last November is just one example of his approach to tort: It’s not just about compensation and deterrence. It’s also about sharing important public information. The son of former Pennsylvania senator Arlen Specter, Shanin weighs the different avenues for effecting change – whether it’s in public service, like his father, or in the private sector – in this conversation with host Ben Gideon. Tune in for Shanin’s thoughts about the role of lawyers today (find opportunities to litigate against the Trump administration) and his advice to law students (you don’t have to get swallowed up by BigLaw). Learn More and Connect ☑️ Shanin Specter | LinkedIn ☑️ Kline & Specter on LinkedIn | Instagram | Facebook | X | YouTube ☑️ Ben Gideon | LinkedIn | Facebook | Instagram ☑️ Gideon Asen on LinkedIn | Facebook | YouTube | Instagram ☑️ Rahul Ravipudi | LinkedIn | Instagram ☑️ Panish Shea Ravipudi LLP on LinkedIn | Facebook | YouTube | Instagram ☑️ Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify Produced and Powered by LawPods Sponsored by SmartAdvocate, Hype Legal, Expert Institute, Filevine, and Steno.

A former JAG officer and federal prosecutor, Margaret Donovan is now an associate at Koskoff, Koskoff and Bieder and proud to promote her firm’s work suing the administration – including in this conversation with hosts Rahul Ravipudi and Taylor Asen. Leaning on her JAG experience, she dismantles the administration’s shaky legal argument for its strikes on alleged drug boats and explains why the administration will have a difficult time defending its attempt to censure Sen. Mark Kelly. Tune in as she breaks down why she believes we’re in a “national emergency” – and what lawyers can do about it. “Anybody who knows how to bring a case needs to be putting those skills to work.” Learn More and Connect☑️ Margaret Donovan ☑️ Koskoff, Koskoff and Bieder on LinkedIn | Instagram ☑️ Taylor Asen | LinkedIn ☑️ Gideon Asen on LinkedIn | Facebook | YouTube | Instagram ☑️ Rahul Ravipudi | LinkedIn | Instagram ☑️ Panish Shea Ravipudi LLP on LinkedIn | Facebook | YouTube | Instagram ☑️ Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify Produced and Powered by LawPods Sponsored by SmartAdvocate, Hype Legal, Expert Institute, Filevine, and Steno.

From running a radio station in undergraduate school to running an “IP litigation ambulance” as a young lawyer to running a platform that fights the Trump administration’s attacks on law firms, Neel Chatterjee has had a remarkable journey. In this wide-ranging conversation with host Rahul Ravipudi, Neel shares insights about developing his nationally recognized IP practice, litigating in Big Law, and leveraging his background in social media to create “Law Firm Partners United” on LinkedIn. Learn More and Connect☑️ Neel Chatterjee | LinkedIn ☑️ King & Spalding on LInkedIn | Instagram | X ☑️ Rahul Ravipudi | LinkedIn | Instagram ☑️ Panish Shea Ravipudi LLP on LinkedIn | Facebook | YouTube | Instagram ☑️ Ben Gideon | LinkedIn | Facebook | Instagram ☑️ Gideon Asen on LinkedIn | Facebook | YouTube | Instagram ☑️ Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify Produced and Powered by LawPods Sponsored by SmartAdvocate, Hype Legal, Expert Institute, Filevine, and Steno.