Humans of Law

Sally Penni MBE is a practicing barrister at Kenworthys Chambers in Manchester, and is a fantastic final guest of our second series of Humans of Law! Sally is also a Bencher at Gray’s Inn, host of the Talking Law podcast, an author, a non-exec director, and the founder of Women in the Law UK. Sally's work both inside and outside of the courtroom often touches on diversity, and much of her life's work to date has been focused on increasing representation within the legal sector. Sally's wide range of interests and commitment to diversity initiatives makes for engaging discussion with Flex Legal CEO and podcast  host Mary Bonsor. Both are incredibly busy female leaders in the law, and both are driving enormous strides towards a more diverse and representative legal profession. Mary and Sally begin today's episode with a candid discussion about the practicalities of juggling interests outside of the workplace, before moving onto Sally's interest in "giving back" to the profession. This topic flows into Sally's first ever encounter with a black barrister at the age of 21, and how this informed her passion for widening diversity within the law. Mary and Sally move onto discussion of how early non-legal jobs can impact your legal career, and how sharing stories of legal career challenges might make the industry more appealing to a diverse spread of people. Finally, Mary and Sally tackle the big topics of having side hustles, and where the legal industry might go in the next 5 years._____Humans of Law is a podcast produced by Flex Legal, an award-winning digital platform that connects interim lawyers and paralegals to the clients that need their support. Thanks for listening!

Oscar Davies is a practicing barrister at Lamb Chambers, with a broad practice area covering areas such as commercial, employment, property, and much more. Oscar made headlines last year when they became the UK's first barrister to publicly identify as non-binary, and use the gender neutral “Mx” as an honorific at their chambers. Since then, Oscar has become something of an LGBT+ legal icon, and was recently named in the British LGBT Awards as making a Top 10 Outstanding Contribution to LGBT+ Life. Louise has a thought-provoking discussion with Oscar, which covers Oscar's journey to the Bar, the manic reality of life as a practising barrister, why legal TV shows often aren't the best representation of legal work, and the steadily improving diversity within the wider legal sector._____Humans of Law is a podcast produced by Flex Legal, an award-winning digital platform that connects interim lawyers and paralegals to the clients that need their support. Thanks for listening!

Tom Dunlop is CEO of Summize, a cutting-edge lawtech company specialising in automated contract review. Tom is a fascinating and multi-talented individual, and was a semi-professional badminton player before qualifying as a lawyer and founding legal tech companies. The competitive streak and burning need to win that Tom developed in sport have entirely informed his entrepreneurial mindset. Despite his young age, Tom's determination to to reach continuously greater accomplishments is infectious.Tom's life and mindset make for insightful discussion on today's Humans of Law episode. He and Louise Anderson discuss Tom's sporting history, and blend it into the lessons that Tom carried into professional life from his badminton days. They then move onto the lightbulb moment that led to Summize being founded, and how Tom keeps the Summize team aligned with the company's mission. _____Humans of Law is a podcast produced by Flex Legal, an award-winning digital platform that connects interim lawyers and paralegals to the clients that need their support. Thanks for listening!

Dan Kayne is Founder of the O Shaped Lawyer, and General Counsel at Network Rail. Having qualified in private practice with Dechert LLP, Dan eventually made the transition to an in-house role at Network Rail in 2007. Recently, he has attracted significant attention for his work through the O Shaped Lawyer, which he founded in 2019. They are a campaign group, calling for reforms to the training and development of lawyers, in the hopes of creating a more positive and human-centric legal industry.Dan's work aligns closely with the Humans of Law podcast, and makes for arresting discussion with host Louise Anderson. Together, they explore the life event that personally led Dan to push for change in the legal industry. Dan speaks passionately about the changes he wants to see in the industry, and he and Louise offer an optimistic and hopeful look at the legal industry of the future._____Humans of Law is a podcast produced by Flex Legal, an award-winning digital platform that connects interim lawyers and paralegals to the clients that need their support. Thanks for listening!

Kiran Radhakrishnan is the Head of Norton Role Fulbright's Newcastle Hub, and NRF Transform (EMEA). Having qualified with NRF's London Corporate in 2014, Kiran took charge of the Newcastle Hub when it opened in 2016. He later took on additional responsibilities as  NRF Transform's Commercial Director for Europe, Middle East and Asia, where he oversees the Innovation, Legal Design and Legal Technology teams.Kiran's background makes for captivating discussion with Mary Bonsor, as they both share insights and stories about their lives on the cutting edge of legal innovation. Both want to shape the industry, both have recently launched legal trainee schemes, and both understand the opportunities and challenges presented by a reshaped legal industry._____Humans of Law is a podcast produced by Flex Legal, an award-winning digital platform that connects interim lawyers and paralegals to the clients that need their support. Thanks for listening!

Melissa Kelly and Deborah Baxter founded The Modern Family Law Company with the aim of doing things better. Having both worked as solicitors with local authorities, Melissa and Deborah know how psychologically taxing legal work can be. The Modern Family Law Company flipped that script, and aims for better outcomes for legal practitioners and clients alike.In this episode of Humans of Law, Louise Anderson speaks with Melissa Kelly and Deborah Baxter about their legal backgrounds, the mental health pitfalls of working in the law, and what they're aiming to do differently._____Humans of Law is a podcast produced by Flex Legal, an award-winning digital platform that connects interim lawyers and paralegals to the clients that need their support. Thanks for listening!

In this episode of Humans of Law, Mary is joined by Alice Stephenson, Founder and CEO of Stephenson Law.Alice has forged her own unique path in the legal space. After stepping away from law firm life in frustration, she vowed to found her own firm that does things a little differently - Stephenson Law. Whilst working alongside some amazing clients, she's been a regular and passionate critic of the legal industry's pernicious status quo.  Her candid and often humorous social media posts resulted in a huge online following, and we were delighted to welcome her to the podcast. Mary and Alice have a great conversation about Alice's legal journey, the challenges of founding Stephenson Law, what is wrong with the legal industry, how she has combatted online trolls, and much more. It's a refreshing conversation between two legal women set on shaping the future of the industry._____Humans of Law is a podcast produced by Flex Legal, an award-winning digital platform that connects interim lawyers and paralegals to the clients that need their support. Thanks for listening!

In this extra special episode of Humans of Law, Louise is joined by our first ever panel. It consists of Daniel Onafuwa, Hattie Rawlings, and Rhiana Assi, who are all young aspiring solicitors.The conversation tackles how each of them are trying to find their way into an incredibly competitive legal industry, whilst overcoming the challenges of the last few years.  Each of our guests is taking a different path into law, and they all come from different backgrounds. Amongst other things, the conversation explores how each of them are united in their perseverance to find a life an in industry they love. It's a really inspiring and interesting discussion, and offers a candid look at the current challenges facing tomorrow's lawyers. _____Humans of Law is a podcast produced by Flex Legal, an award-winning digital platform that connects interim lawyers and paralegals to the clients that need their support. Thanks for listening!

In this instalment of Humans of Law, Mary speaks with Catie Sheret, General Counsel at Cambridge University Press. Catie has had an incredible interesting legal journey. After qualifying with Linklaters, she spent almost 20 years working in a number of Senior in-house roles at education publisher Pearson. In 2018, she took a leap of faith and moved to Cambridge University Press. Catie has a staggering amount of experience managing legal teams, which makes for a rich and interesting discussion with Mary. They share tips on getting the best of your legal team, how they're finding the experience of managing people during the age of hybrid working, and how in-house lawyers can demonstrate value to their organisations._____Humans of Law is a podcast produced by Flex Legal, an award-winning digital platform that connects interim lawyers and paralegals to the clients that need their support. Thanks for listening!

In this episode of Humans of Law, Louise is joined by Simranjeet Kaur Mann, Trainee Solicitor at Womble Bond Dickinson, and legal influencer / educator.Simranjeet Kaur Mann is a rising star on the legal scene. She's a hugely popular influencer in her own right, and is attracting thousands of followers to her social media pages and YouTube channel. Her style is honest, personal, and sincerely aimed at explaining her experiences of the realities of the legal industry to her followers.  We were thrilled to have her on the show to discuss her journey so far, why the next generation of legal professionals are a breath of fresh air, and even a super exciting announcement exclusive to Humans of Law!_____Humans of Law is a podcast produced by Flex Legal, an award-winning digital platform that connects interim lawyers and paralegals to the clients that need their support. Thanks for listening!

Humans of Law is back! In our first episode of Series 2, Mary speaks with Sarah Goulbourne, Co-founder of gunnercooke.Sarah and Mary have a brilliant chat about legal entrepreneurship, and what it's like to found a company in the legal space. Sarah celebrates the highs, and shares some of the lows she hasn't put on social media. She also discusses alternative law firm models with Mary, and they explore how and why they're becoming increasingly attractive to legal professionals. _____Humans of Law is a podcast produced by Flex Legal, an award-winning digital platform that connects interim lawyers and paralegals to the clients that need their support. Thanks for listening!

In this special bonus episode of Humans of Law, Mary and Louise round off our first series by reflecting back on the first 8 episodes. Mary and Louise discuss the major themes of the first series, including what they've learnt, what their favourite moments were, and offer a few optimistic looks forward to the premiere of series 2 in a few short weeks.The usually unheard voice of producer James also makes a guest appearance.  _____Humans of Law is a podcast produced by Flex Legal, an award-winning digital platform that connects interim lawyers and paralegals to the clients that need their support. Thanks for listening!

In episode 8 of Humans of Law, Mary rounds off Series 1 by talking to Elizabeth Rimmer, CEO of LawCare.Elizabeth has a fascinating perspective on law. Having previously worked as a Clinical Negligence Solicitor, she deeply understands the pressures placed on those within the legal industry. Now, as CEO of LawCare, she is working to have those pressures recognised by the industry. Elizabeth's work with LawCare is truly groundbreaking, and offers impartial free support to legal professionals alongside advocating change and recognition in legal workplace cultures. LawCare are a registered charity that provide information and support to anyone in the legal industry experiencing mental health and wellbeing problems. They work to raise awareness, promote understanding, and to improve the culture and practice of law._____Humans of Law is a podcast produced by Flex Legal, an award-winning digital platform that connects interim lawyers and paralegals to the clients that need their support. Thanks for listening!

Episode 7 of Humans of Law sees Louise talk with the inspirational Holly Moore, Solicitor Apprentice at ITV and founder of thatlawblog.Holly is carving out a name for herself as an unstoppable trailblazer in the legal world. Not only was she the UK's first ever Solicitor Apprentice, but she will be amongst the first cohort of SQE-qualified Solicitors in the country. Louise has a great conversation with her about bravery, how Holly has built up her bravery in the workplace, and the importance of taking big risks and putting it all on the line._____Humans of Law is a podcast produced by Flex Legal, an award-winning digital platform that connects interim lawyers and paralegals to the clients that need their support. Thanks for listening!

Our sixth episode of Humans of Law sees Mary talk with Barry Matthews, Founder of the Social Mobility Business Partnership. As Founder of SMBP, Barry has arguably done more than anyone else to open doors to the legal industry for people from low-income backgrounds. His personal journey through life and into the legal industry has given him a perspective that few other senior legal professionals have. In this episode, Mary and Barry discuss that journey, and explore why opening doors to outsiders is an important step for the wider legal industry to take. _____Humans of Law is a podcast produced by Flex Legal, an award-winning digital platform that connects interim lawyers and paralegals to the clients that need their support. Thanks for listening!

The fifth episode of Humans of Law sees Louise talk with the incomparable Helen Lowe, Head of Legal Operations at easyJet.Helen has an incredibly unique perspective on lawyers and the legal world, which makes for some great discussion. Helen talks about why she finds lawyers so interesting, what the legal industry gets wrong, and her completely fascinating "stranded on a mountain" exercise for lawyers and legal counsel. _____Humans of Law is a podcast produced by Flex Legal, an award-winning digital platform that connects interim lawyers and paralegals to the clients that need their support. Thanks for listening!

Our fourth episode of Humans of Law features Mary talking with the delightful Maeve Storey, Head of Crowdjustice.Crowdjustice is an incredibly interesting organisation that is completely redefining access to justice around the globe. Crowdjustice is an online platform, directly tailored to crowdfunding small legal cases that would otherwise never see the light of day. The conversation with Maeve touched on a whole range of interesting topics around access to justice, crowdfunding, and how it feels to watch those big funding drives go from start to finish._____Humans of Law is a podcast produced by Flex Legal, an award-winning digital platform that connects interim lawyers and paralegals to the clients that need their support. Thanks for listening!

The third episode of Humans of Law sees Louise talk with Keily Blair, Head of Cyber, Privacy & Data Innovation London at Orrick.This episode touches onto some really interesting areas, such as how Keily negotiates with cyber-criminals, how it feels to be at the cutting-edge intersection of law and technology, and why it's so important to read cookie notices on websites._____Humans of Law is a podcast produced by Flex Legal, an award-winning digital platform that connects interim lawyers and paralegals to the clients that need their support. Thanks for listening!

The second episode of the Humans of Law podcast sees Mary talk with Chrissie Wolfe - Founder of the notorious Law and Broader. The conversation delves into some philosophical territory - is law a force for good? The chat also touches on the benefits of legal mentoring, and why 12 Angry Men is Chrissie's favourite legal film._____Humans of Law is a podcast produced by Flex Legal, an award-winning digital platform that connects interim lawyers and paralegals to the clients that need their support. Thanks for listening!

In our first episode of the Humans of Law podcast, Louise talks with Alex Smith - Global RAVN Product Lead at iManage.The conversation touches on a whole range of areas, including Alex's unconventional journey into the legal world, his mission to digitise the often analogue legal industry, and his thoughts on legally themed films._____Humans of Law is a podcast produced by Flex Legal, an award-winning digital platform that connects interim lawyers and paralegals to the clients that need their support. Thanks for listening!