Claim OwnershipThe Opening Statements Podcast
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Join Laura and Rebecca as they interview and highlight real lawyers and their real cases. Each episode their guests will give insight into what it's really like to practice law and the things you can't learn about law from a textbook.
21 Episodes
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Episode Notes
Our guest this week is Sara Khaki, founding partner at The Atlanta Divorce Law Group. Sara joins us to discuss her journey from social security disability law to her true calling: family law and how she built her firm based on a deep passion for marriage and was named Law Firm 500's Fastest Growing Law Firm in the Country. All this and more on this week’s Opening Statements!
Episode Notes
Our guest this week is James Grant founding partner at Georgia Trial Attorneys. James joins us to discuss how he went from an engineering degree from Georgia Tech to becoming an aggressive litigator fighting the greedy insurance companies...could it be the eleventy billion tuition or the professional coaches he’s aligned himself with over the years? All this and more on this week’s Opening Statements!
Our guest this week is John Gracia, an attorney specializing in Death and Estate Planning. John is a graduate of Devry University and a partner at Schulten, Ward, Turner and Weiss. John joins the show to discuss estate law, how applying to the wrong university can change your life, and a super secret BBQ sauce recipe. All that and much more on today's episode of Opening Statements.
This week our guest is Chris Sperry, a founder of the Sperry Law Firm, and a commercial transactions lawyer. Chris joins the show to discuss how his wife convinced him to become an attorney and then how 8 years later he did! He also joins the show to talk about working with restaraunts, and deals that go south with family. All that and much more on today's episode of The Opening Statements Podcast!
This week our guest is Victoria Olson, an associate attorney at Eraclides Gelman who specializes in worker’s compensation and a graduate of Mercer University. Victoria joins the show this week to discuss what it's like being a young lawyer, how she managed to choose between pursuing acting and law, and of course, the dangers of having a forklift at home. All that and much more on this week's episode of the opening statements podcast!
Episode Notes
This week our guest is Hannibal Heredia, founding partner of Hedgepeth Heredia, who's practiced family law, almost exclusively, since 1994. Hannibal joins the show this week to discuss his journey to founding partner, his passion for music and the things they don't tell you about running your own practice and how to deal with temp toes! All that and much more on this week's episode of the opening statements podcast!
This week our guest is James Robson, a person injury attorney and founder of Glass and Robson, James has been named as a Georgia Super Lawyer Rising Star every year since 2012 and has been named a top 40 under 40 trial lawyer every year since 2014! James joins the show to discuss brain injury cases, why not getting picked for Jury Duty is very personal, and a story about an exploding building. All that and much more on today's episode of The Opening Statements Podcast!
Our guest this week is Laura Benz of Benz Law Group & Benz Environmental Consulting, an Environmental, Natural Resource and Land Use attorney of 19 years, a Rising Star, Super Lawyer 2016 & 2017 and she obtained all five of the new reservoir permits issued in the State of Georgia in the last ten years. She joins the show to discuss her path to being an attorney, what a wigwam is and to play a game of plead the fifth! All that and much more on today's episode of The Opening Statements Podcast!
Our guest this week is Brandon Smith, the founder of Brandon Smith Law, a wrongful death and personal injury attorney. Brandon has been recognized as a Super Lawyer Rising Star from 2020 on, the 2015 Claude Scarborough Pro Bono Attorney of the Year, and South Carolina Young Lawyers Division Star of the Quarter in 2014 and 2015. Brandon joins the show to talk about how the guidance he received early in his career was key, how he got a "Brandon Smith Day", and of course, a game of everyone's favorite, "Plead The Fifth". All that and much more on today's episode of the opening statement's podcast!
This week our guest is Eric Lang, a business Law attorney for over 30 years, Eric is a lawyer that wears many hats, in addition Eric also has served as an attorney-coach for The Galloway School mock trial team, Additionally, During Georgia's controversial and contentious 2020 presidential election and 2021 senatorial runoff election, Eric was a "boiler room attorney" who addressed voter-suppression issues as they arose in real time on election day and early voting. Eric Lang joins the show to discuss what it's like work with the lottery, a firearms case and of course, a round of plead the fifth. All that and much more on today's episode of Opening Statements!
This week our guest is Ted Eader, a graduate of the University of Georgia School of Law, a partner at CONWAY EADER, Ted is a Intellectual Property Lawyer who has filed dozens of patent and trademark applications and achieved dozens of US Patent and Trademark Office registrations. He joins the show to talk copyright law, knights and how a big business can bully you! All that and much more on today's episode of The Opening Statements Podcast!
This week our guest is Randy Kessler. A founding member of Kessler & Solomiany, LLC. With his 35 plus years of experience in Domestic Relations and Family Law Randy joins the show discuss what made him become an attorney (instead of the starting QB for the Saints), what it's like working with high profile clientele, why he wrote his book and to get grilled in a game of plead the fifth! All that and much more on this episode of The Opening Statements Podcast!
This week our guest is Clayton Cain, a super lawyers Rising Stars for 2020. A member of an advisory board with the Gwinnett County Chamber of Commerce and a board member for the Board of Georgia Gwinnett College’s Paralegal Certification Program. Clayton joins the show discuss his path from star athlete to star attorney, how he negotiated the biggest contract in professional bull-riding history and how he became an accomplice to a recent theft. All that and much more on this episode of The Opening Statements Podcast!
This week our guest is Joe English, an attorney specializing in Employment law, a partner at Taylor English, a Best Lawyer In America from 2015-2022, and a Georgia Super Lawyer from 2014-2022. He joins the show to talk the challenges of 2022 employment, "quiet quitting" and to sling a few "Step Brothers" quotes. All that and much more on The Opening Statements Podcast!
This week our guest is Linley Jones, the first woman lawyer in the United States to be board certified in legal malpractice by the American Board of Professional Liability Attorneys, the former president of the Georgia Trial Lawyers Association, named a georgia super lawyer many times over by Atlanta Magazine, and one of the Top 50 Female Lawyers in Georgia! She joins the show to discuss what it's like in the legal malpractice field, how she carved a path for herself and a story about a very unfortunate computer harddrive. All that and much more on this episode of The Opening Statements Podcast
This week our guest is Dustin Davies, A partner at Hasty, Pope Davies, a Super Lawyers’ Rising Star by Super Lawyers Magazine every year since 2014 and a Top 40 Under 40 trial lawyer in Georgia. Join the show as they discuss the way Dustin investigates cases, what it's like working with a pair of brother's and a case of his involving everyone's favorite food chain from down under. Dustin also gets put in the hot seat as we play a game of "Plead The Fifth" with him! All that and much more on this episode of The Opening Statements Podcast
This week our guest is Paul Simon, family law attorney, a partner at Hedgepeth Herredia, a member of the Family Law Section of the Atlanta Bar Association and the Family Law Section and Young Lawyers Division of the State Bar of Georgia. Join the show as they discuss ethics in law, Paul's path to partner, and what you can do to a horse when you lead water. Paul also gets put in the hot seat as we play a game of "Plead The Fifth" with him! All that and much more on this episode of The Opening Statements Podcast.
This week our guest is Joshua Stein, a serious personal injury and wrongful death attorney for 18 years. He’s been named one of America’s Top 100 Personal Injury Attorneys as a Top Trial Lawyer, a Georgia Super Lawyer and the host of Sports and Torts! Join the show as they discuss cool sculpting, how to manage relationships in law and he gets put in the hot seat as we play a game of "Plead The Fifth" with him! All that and much more on this episode of The Opening Statements Podcast.
This week our guest is Jim Paisley, top 100 National Trial Lawyer, has tried over 100 jury trials, one of Georgia’s Super Lawyers, a graduate from Florida State University the author of "The Injury Case Playbook". Jim stops by to talk his background, a life changing dog bite case, a booty call gone wrong and he gets put in the hot seat as we play a game of "Plead The Fifth" with him! All that and much more on this episode of The Opening Statements Podcast.
This week our guest is a graduate of St. Thomas University, 9 year family lawyer, a founder and partner at Bair, Wilson, Sharma, Wesley Wilson! Wesley Wilson joins the show to talk the surprising number of adultery cases he's seen, how to start a firm in a VERY short amount of time and he gets put in the hot seat as we play a game of "Plead The Fifth". All that and much more on this episode of The Opening Statements Podcast!
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