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Between the Briefs

Steno

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Every week, Between the Briefs dives deep into industry developments, tensions, and decisions with legal innovators who are leading the way.

Go deeper into the topics that matter to your practice with Between the Briefs, brought to you by Steno.

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21 episodes
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Avg 43 min
English

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S2 · E84
Friday · 44 min
What Law School Should Teach in the AI Era ft. Patrick Baker
AI can write fast, generate ideas fast and be fast. But Patrick Baker wants law students and lawyers to remember something more important: they’re the ones that still have to think. In this episode of Between the Briefs by Steno, Adrian Cea and Joe Stephens sit down with Patrick Baker, law professor at University of Tennessee at Martin and Founder of Baker Law Firm, to talk about legal education, critical thinking, AI in the classroom, IRAC as a way of thinking and why lawyers are still needed
S2 · E83
October 2 · 36 min
Go Do Your Civic Duty: A Former Judge's Hottest Take ft. Brian Amero
Judges can do more than rule on the cases in front of them, and Brian Amero spent nearly two decades on the bench proving it. From drug courts to a child support program that spread across Georgia, he looked for ways to make the system more humane and more effective. In this episode of Between the Briefs by Steno, Adrian Cea and Joe Stephens sit down with Brian Amero, a former Chief Superior Court Judge in Georgia and Litigation Counsel at Bennett International Group, to talk about moving from p
S2 · E82
September 25 · 40 min
Innovation Is More Than AI ft. John Koss
AI is everywhere in legal right now, but John Koss wants law firms to think bigger than the tool and genuinely innovate. In this episode of Between the Briefs by Steno, Adrian Cea and Joe Stephens sit down with John Koss, Chief Innovation and AI Officer at Mintz, to talk about what it actually takes to bring AI into a law firm. John explains why innovation is about people, process, and technology, how Mintz measures AI adoption, why repeatable workflows matter more than scattered experimentati
S2 · E81
September 18 · 44 min
How AI Is Helping Lawyers Find Cases They’d Never Find Manually ft. Maxwell Weiss
AI is changing how lawyers investigate cases, and Maxwell Weiss is seeing firsthand what happens when technology can surface potential wrongdoing at a scale lawyers could never manage manually. In this episode of Between the Briefs by Steno, Adrian Cea and Joe Stephens sit down with Maxwell Weiss, a Partner at Don Bivens, PLLC and Litigation Counsel at Darrow AI, to talk about class actions, legal investigations, plaintiff-side litigation and the growing role of AI in finding legal wrongs. Ma
S2 · E80
September 11 · 37 min
The Next Era of Between the Briefs
Between the Briefs has officially crossed 75 episodes and 1,200+ followers, so join hosts Joe Stephens and Adrian Cea as they take a moment to look back before the show steps into its next era. Recorded live at ILTACON 2026, this special episode revisits the biggest themes that have shaped the podcast so far: AI adoption, legal education, storytelling, soft skills, attorney-client privilege, changing billing models, remote firms, private equity and the human judgment that still sits at the cen
S2 · E79
August 28 · 44 min
Why Small Firms Can Move Faster Than Big Law ft. Nicole Brenecki
Bigger firms do not always deliver better outcomes - for clients or the lawyers working at the firms. In this episode of Between the Briefs by Steno, Adrian Cea and Joe Stephens sit down with Nicole Brenecki, Founding Partner at Jodré Brenecki LLP, to talk about building a boutique personal injury practice around speed, efficiency, client care and sharp litigation instincts. Nicole breaks down why her firm files suit on most cases right away, why small teams can often move faster than large f
S2 · E78
August 21 · 45 min
Every Paralegal Needs The One-Step-Ahead Mindset ft. Christina Carter
Paralegals keep law firms moving, but rarely get the credit, visibility or strategic support they deserve. In this episode of Between the Briefs by Steno, Adrian Cea and Joe Stephens sit down with Christina Carter, Senior Manager of Firm-Wide Paralegal Management at Venable, to talk about what it really takes to manage, support and develop high-performing legal support teams. Christina breaks down why paralegal management is essentially people management, how law firms can prevent burnout befo
S2 · E77
August 14 · 47 min
The Email That Ruined a $10M Lawsuit ft. Kat Mateo
What lawyers don’t realize is that most litigation problems start long before anyone files a lawsuit. In this episode of Between the Briefs by Steno, Adrian Cea and Joe Stephens sit down with Kat Mateo, Counsel of Litigation at Olshan Frome Wolosky LLP, to talk about the client decisions that make cases harder. Kat breaks down the fatal decisions clients make before entering court, why attorneys must review deals early and how an emotional email turns into Exhibit A. She also shares her story
S2 · E76
August 7 · 44 min
Where Are the Legal Leaders We Need? ft. Nicole Lester Arrindell
Being a great lawyer has less to do with knowing the law and A LOT more to do with listening, building trust, and managing people and figuring out how to move work forward without becoming the “department of no.” In this episode of Between the Briefs by Steno, Adrian Cea and Joe Stephens sit down with Nicole Lester Arrindell, Head of State Regulatory and Legislative Affairs and Associate General Counsel at Equitable, to talk about servant leadership, public service, career purpose and the real-w
S2 · E75
July 31 · 46 min
Legal Tech Doesn’t Need More “Lamborghinis” ft. Kara Peterson and Richard DiBona
How do we close the justice gap without flooding courts with unreliable AI outputs? In this episode of Between the Briefs, Adrian Cea and Joe Stephens sit down with Kara Peterson and Richard DiBona, co-founders of Descrybe. They discuss why Descrybe pivoted from pro se consumers to supporting legal aid attorneys, how issue-level citation analysis prevents legal hallucinations, and why powerful legal tech shouldn't require BigLaw enterprise pricing.
S2 · E74
July 24 · 49 min
Is Not Using AI a Malpractice Risk? ft. Shannon Boettjer
Has AI adoption in law already reached the point of questioning: how do we use it without creating tomorrow’s litigation risk? In this episode of Between the Briefs by Steno, Adrian Cea and Joe Stephens sit down with Shannon Boettjer, partner at Jaspan Schlesinger Narendran LLP, to unpack what responsible AI governance actually looks like for lawyers and law firms. Shannon breaks down why AI is no longer just one tool but an entire kitchen of systems, why hallucinations should be treated like co
S2 · E73
July 16 · 50 min
Will AI Lower Legal Costs? Tim Fox Explains the Twist
AI’s got everyone thinking legal work will become cheaper, eventually. But is that belief grounded in reality? Tim Fox is not so sure. In this episode of Between the Briefs by Steno, Adrian Cea and Joe Stephens sit down with Tim, Chief Data and AI Officer at Ogletree Deakins, to unpack what AI adoption actually looks like inside a major law firm. Tim breaks down why legal AI adoption is notoriously difficult, the hidden maintenance costs of building tools in-house and why the real value lies in
S2 · E72
July 10 · 39 min
Everyone Wants AI to Think Like a Lawyer. That's the Problem. ft. Colin Levy
Legal AI has no shortage of promises. Now, the real challenge is figuring out which ones are worth adopting. In this episode of Between the Briefs by Steno, Adrian Cea and Joe Stephens sit down with Colin Levy, General Counsel at Malbek, legal tech author, and educator, to discuss how lawyers can adopt AI thoughtfully without sacrificing professional judgment. Colin explains why AI should be viewed as a collaborator rather than a competitor, how firms can evaluate technology through practical us
S2 · E71
July 3 · 41 min
Your AI Strategy Isn’t the Problem - Your Readiness Is ft. Elaine Barsoom
Legal AI is having its gold rush moment. But what if you went against the grain and took it slow in order to succeed? In this episode of Between the Briefs, hosts Adrian Cea and Joe Stephens sit down with Elaine Barsoom, AI and innovation leader and Venture Partner at Silicon Foundry, to talk about why AI transformation fails when companies rush into tools before understanding the work. This conversation unpacks why leadership buy-in is only half the equation, why employee fear gets disguised as
S2 · E70
June 25 · 39 min
The Man Who Helped Make eDiscovery Make Sense ft. George Socha
Once upon a time, George Socha was told to lose the computer because “real attorneys do not type.” Safe to say, he did not listen. In this episode of Between the Briefs, hosts Adrian Cea and Joe Stephens sit down with George Socha, Senior Vice President of Brand Awareness at Reveal and co-founder of the Electronic Discovery Reference Model (EDRM), to talk about the early chaos of eDiscovery, the framework that helped organize it and why GenAI has brought the legal industry right back to that thr
S2 · E69
June 18 · 45 min
Why Is Legal Still Riding Horses in the Age of GenAI ft. Umair Muhajir
Legal loves innovation…said no one ever. Which is why so many law firms still have one foot firmly planted in 1998. In this episode of Between the Briefs, hosts Adrian Cea and Joe Stephens sit down with Umair Muhajir, Vice President and Global Head of Managed Review at DISCO, to unpack how GenAI is changing discovery, document review, associate training, law firm adoption and the future economics of legal work. Together, they explore the big question: if AI can do review faster, cheaper and with
S2 · E68
June 11 · 39 min
Why Paralegals Are Quietly Becoming More Valuable Than Associates ft. Michelle Pendleton
Paralegals have long been boxed into the role of “document reviewers” but their true value goes far beyond that. And with AI in the mix, their place in law firms is being rewritten entirely. In this episode of Between the Briefs, hosts Adrian Cea and Joe Stephens welcome Michelle Pendleton, Certified Paralegal and eDiscovery specialist at Allen Matkins and President of the San Diego Paralegal Association, to explore how paralegals are evolving alongside legal technology, managing complex case wo
S2 · E67
June 4 · 43 min
Questioning Everything We Think We Know About AI in Law ft. Daniel Schwarcz
The impact of AI on law has been studied through the narrow lens of productivity and profitability. But the reality is much broader than that. In this episode of Between the Briefs by Steno, Adrian Cea and Joe Stephens welcome back Daniel Schwarcz, Professor at the University of Minnesota Law School to discuss groundbreaking empirical research on how AI impacts lawyer performance, legal reasoning and long-term professional development. He takes us behind the scenes of rigorous randomized control
S2 · E66
May 28 · 39 min
Is the Legal System Every Lawyer’s Biggest Enemy? ft. Legal Futurist Sateesh Nori
For all intents and purposes, lawyers can be the superheroes society needs them to be but the legal system simply doesn’t allow it. With a broken system, flawed legal aid and crumbling structures, justice gets the short end of the stick - but can AI be part of the solution? In this episode of Between the Briefs, hosts Adrian Cea and Joe Stephens welcome Sateesh Nori, Chief Legal Futurist at LawDroid and Senior Research Fellow at NYU School of Law, to explore how artificial intelligence can democ
S2 · E65
May 21 · 45 min
AI Transformation Without Change Management is Useless ft. Mike Russell
If you can’t convince your team that AI is the better choice for work today, you might as well pause all efforts now. Because the only thing more important than AI transformation for legal teams today is being able to communicate the change and manage it. In this episode of Between the Briefs by Steno, hosts Adrian Cea and Joe Stephens sit down with Mike Russell, Head of Global Legal Operations at Expedia Group, to explore how legal operations has evolved from a back-office function into a strat

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