Content provided by David Lat. All podcast content including episodes, graphics, and podcast descriptions are uploaded and provided directly by David Lat or their podcast platform partner. If you believe someone is using your copyrighted work without your permission, you can follow the process outlined here https://player.fm/legal.
Player FM - Podcast App Go offline with the Player FM app!
How do you know when it’s time to make your next big career move? With International Women’s Day around the corner, we are excited to feature Avni Patel Thompson, Founder and CEO of Milo. Avni is building technology that directly supports the often overlooked emotional and logistical labor that falls on parents—especially women. Milo is an AI assistant designed to help families manage that invisible load more efficiently. In this episode, Avni shares her journey from studying chemistry to holding leadership roles at global brands like Adidas and Starbucks, to launching her own ventures. She discusses how she approaches career transitions, the importance of unpleasant experiences, and why she’s focused on making everyday life easier for parents. [01:26] Avni's University Days and Early Career [04:36] Non-Linear Career Paths [05:16] Pursuing Steep Learning Curves [11:51] Entrepreneurship and Safety Nets [15:22] Lived Experiences and Milo [19:55] Avni’s In Her Ellement Moment [20:03] Reflections Links: Avni Patel Thompson on LinkedIn Suchi Srinivasan on LinkedIn Kamila Rakhimova on LinkedIn Ipsos report on the future of parenting About In Her Ellement: In Her Ellement highlights the women and allies leading the charge in digital, business, and technology innovation. Through engaging conversations, the podcast explores their journeys—celebrating successes and acknowledging the balance between work and family. Most importantly, it asks: when was the moment you realized you hadn’t just arrived—you were truly in your element? About The Hosts: Suchi Srinivasan is an expert in AI and digital transformation. Originally from India, her career includes roles at trailblazing organizations like Bell Labs and Microsoft. In 2011, she co-founded the Cleanweb Hackathon, a global initiative driving IT-powered climate solutions with over 10,000 members across 25+ countries. She also advises Women in Cloud, aiming to create $1B in economic opportunities for women entrepreneurs by 2030. Kamila Rakhimova is a fintech leader whose journey took her from Tajikistan to the U.S., where she built a career on her own terms. Leveraging her English proficiency and international relations expertise, she discovered the power of microfinance and moved to the U.S., eventually leading Amazon's Alexa Fund to support underrepresented founders. Subscribe to In Her Ellement on your podcast app of choice to hear meaningful conversations with women in digital, business, and technology.…
Content provided by David Lat. All podcast content including episodes, graphics, and podcast descriptions are uploaded and provided directly by David Lat or their podcast platform partner. If you believe someone is using your copyrighted work without your permission, you can follow the process outlined here https://player.fm/legal.
News, views, and colorful commentary about law and the legal profession.
Content provided by David Lat. All podcast content including episodes, graphics, and podcast descriptions are uploaded and provided directly by David Lat or their podcast platform partner. If you believe someone is using your copyrighted work without your permission, you can follow the process outlined here https://player.fm/legal.
News, views, and colorful commentary about law and the legal profession.
We live in an interesting time for Biglaw—in the ironic sense that “interesting” is used in the famous saying, “may you live in interesting times” (whose origin is disputed ). Today is a time of unique challenges and opportunities for the world of large law firms. What does it feel like to sit in the chair of a Biglaw leader right now? To find out, I welcomed a guest I’ve been wanting to have on the podcast for a while: Yvette Ostolaza, chair of the management committee at Sidley Austin. I was hoping to ask Yvette about, shall we say, current events. But at the outset of our interview, she explained that she couldn’t comment on recent news developments involving the firm. (She didn’t name specific subjects, but an obvious one would be the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission sending letters to 20 law firms —including Sidley—to obtain information about their DEI-related employment practices.) Nevertheless, we still covered a lot of ground. We discussed her journey to the top job at Sidley, the nation’s #6 firm in terms of revenue; her vision for the future of the firm; and how she juggles running a Biglaw firm, litigating on behalf of her clients, and parenting three children. Thanks so much to Yvette for joining me. Show Notes: Yvette Ostolaza bio , Sidley Austin LLP Leader, Luminary, Role Model: Yvette Ostolaza Breaks Ceilings And Brings The Rain , by Liane Jackson for Forbes Prefer reading to listening? For paid subscribers, a transcript of the entire episode appears below. Sponsored by: NexFirm helps Biglaw attorneys become founding partners. To learn more about how NexFirm can help you launch your firm, call 212-292-1000 or email careerdevelopment at nexfirm dot com. Yvette Ostolaza (courtesy photo via Sidley Austin) Read more…
Welcome to Original Jurisdiction , the latest legal publication by me, David Lat . You can learn more about Original Jurisdiction by reading its About page , and you can email me at davidlat@substack.com. This is a reader-supported publication; you can subscribe by clicking here . If you follow the legal profession and industry, you need to know about legal technology. New innovations have transformed, and continue to transform, the practice of law. And with the arrival of generative AI, the impact of technology upon the world of law will only grow—exponentially. To better understand the implications of emerging legal tech, I interviewed Joe Borstein, one of the most knowledgeable people I know on this subject. Joe is the CEO and co-founder of LexFusion, a top accelerator of tech companies in the legal space—which was recently acquired by Baretz+Brunelle (BAA-retz and BREW-nell) aka B+B, a leading growth advisory firm to elite businesses in the legal sector. Is legal tech finally having its moment—and if so, why? How will AI affect the legal industry, including but not limited to employment opportunities? Which AI-driven products and companies are ones to watch in the years ahead? Listen to my conversation with Joe to learn all of this—and much more. Show Notes: Joseph Borstein bio , LexFusion Communications and Marketing Firm Baretz+Brunelle Acquires Go-to-Market Company LexFusion , by Bob Ambrogi for LawSites Prefer reading to listening? For paid subscribers, a transcript of the entire episode appears below. Sponsored by: NexFirm helps Biglaw attorneys become founding partners. To learn more about how NexFirm can help you launch your firm, call 212-292-1000 or email careerdevelopment at nexfirm dot com. Joe Borstein (courtesy photo) Read more…
Welcome to Original Jurisdiction , the latest legal publication by me, David Lat . You can learn more about Original Jurisdiction by reading its About page , and you can email me at davidlat@substack.com. This is a reader-supported publication; you can subscribe by clicking here . Because of my obsession with the judiciary, I have read, witnessed, and conducted countless interviews of judges over the years. And I’ll be honest: as interview subjects, judges are a mixed bag. Some can’t explain complex legal concepts in understandable ways. Others are too guarded, afraid of saying anything that might give rise to controversy—or recusal requests. Fortunately, the judges I’ve interviewed for the Original Jurisdiction podcast have been great—and if you’ll indulge me briefly as I toot my own horn, part of this is because I’ve picked the right judges. I invite judges whom I know, based on my own interactions with them, to be thoughtful, thought-provoking, honest, and even fun. My latest guest, Judge Vince Chhabria of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California, continued this tradition. While not addressing any pending cases or specific legal issues that might come before him, he spoke candidly and insightfully about a number of important subjects that are in the news today—including judicial activism, judge shopping, constitutional crisis, and the state of our democracy. Thanks to Judge Chhabria for a lively and informative conversation. And thanks to him and his fellow federal judges for the important work that they do, day in and day out—which, as the past few weeks have reminded us, is essential to our democracy. Show Notes: Vince Chhabria faculty bio , Harvard Law School The Problem With Multidistrict Litigation (featuring Judge Chhabria), Advisory Opinions Prefer reading to listening? For paid subscribers, a transcript of the entire episode appears below. Sponsored by: NexFirm helps Biglaw attorneys become founding partners. To learn more about how NexFirm can help you launch your firm, call 212-292-1000 or email careerdevelopment at nexfirm dot com. Judge Vince Chhabria (official portrait) Read more…
Welcome to Player FM!
Player FM is scanning the web for high-quality podcasts for you to enjoy right now. It's the best podcast app and works on Android, iPhone, and the web. Signup to sync subscriptions across devices.