Lead Counsel

In this episode, Tom Tona and Mike Zappone explore the core principles of accountability in business, emphasizing the importance of clear expectations, the role of leadership, and practical tools like EOS to foster a culture of responsibility and growth.

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In this episode, Thomas Tona and Mike Zappone break down how to transform team meetings into high-impact problem-solving sessions using the EOS framework . Learn how to leverage IDS (Identify, Discuss, Solve) to address root causes, establish clear rules of engagement, and foster the vulnerability needed to build a healthy, results-driven team culture .

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In this episode, Mike Zappone and Thomas Tona explore how data-driven decision making transforms law firm management. They discuss scorecards, KPIs, and the importance of aligning business metrics with strategic goals to avoid common pitfalls and foster growth.

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Featured Guest

Mike Zappone
Professional EOS Implementer  & ProfitWorks Certified Coach®

In this episode, Mike Zappone shares insights on building effective organizational structures using EOS principles, focusing on the accountability chart, hiring right people, and creating a culture of discipline and accountability to drive exponential growth.

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Featured Guest

Mike Zappone
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In this episode, Thomas Tona and Mike Zappone explore the critical importance of placing the right person in the right seat within a company. They discuss how alignment with core values, understanding capacity, and strategic decision-making can transform organizational culture and performance.

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In this episode, Mike Zapone and Tom Tona explore how clear communication, vision, and effective leadership are essential for business success. They discuss practical tools and mental models to align teams, delegate results, and build a cohesive organizational culture.

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Tom Tona is joined by Mike Zappone for a practical conversation about why growing law firms stall, what a "ceiling" actually looks like, and how EOS helps leaders build something that runs beyond the founder. Mike brings real-world operator experience, including having built and exited a business to private equity, and Tom shares how those lessons are changing the way his firm communicates, delegates, and scales.

In this episode, they unpack the difference between being a high-performing owner and building a true organization, why simplicity wins over complexity, and how accountability charts, scorecards, and Level 10 meetings create...

In this episode of the Lead Counsel Podcast, host Tom Tona and his guests dedicate the entire conversation to the single most critical asset in any business: its people. They discussed strategic hiring, structured onboarding, continuous training, investing in your people, and how talent management systems will power the firm's long-term success.

Your Host:

Tom Tona
Founder & Managing Attorney, Tonalaw
Website: https://www.tonalaw.com
LinkedIn: Tom Tona
X: @NYPITrialGuy

This podcast is sponsored by TonaLaw.

In this special compilation episode of the Lead Counsel Podcast, host Tom Tona brings together key insights and foundational advice from top legal minds on what it truly takes to start, build, and sustain a successful business.

Starting a business or opening a new law firm comes with severe challenges, from wondering if the phone will ever ring to learning how to avoid devastating financial mistakes. In this mashup episode, Tom Tona and his guests peel back the curtain on why mastering basic business fundamentals must happen long before you think about scaling. They unpack the dangers...

In this episode of the Lead Counsel Podcast, host Tom Tona sits down with Jimmy Lai, co-founder of Lai and Turner Law Firm and author of Quietly Influential. They dive deep into how introverted professionals can leverage LinkedIn to scale their businesses, build authentic networks, drive high-value attorney-to-attorney referrals, and recruit top-tier talent.

Episode Highlights

Maximizing B2B Referrals: Tom reveals how TonaLaw signed 22 new personal injury cases in 90 days strictly through LinkedIn networking.

The Introvert Advantage: Jimmy breaks down how an introverted attorney used LinkedIn as a public diary to generate 80,000 dollars...

In this special compilation episode of the Lead Counsel Podcast, host Tom Tona brings together insights on what it truly takes to scale a business without losing its heart: exceptional customer service. Featuring key discussions with legal industry leaders and business strategists, this episode dives deep into turning standard transactional workflows into world class client journeys.

Discover why standard intake and minimum wage front-desk operations might be quietly costing your firm hundreds of thousands of dollars. Learn how setting up structured onboarding, nurturing post case relationships, and embracing an abundance mindset can convert everyday clients into vocal...

In this special mashup episode of the Lead Counsel Podcast, host Tom Tona brings together powerful insights on two foundational pillars of long-term business success: continuous learning and building genuine connections. Featuring actionable advice from high-performing guests Jennifer Talley, Jennifer Gore, and Ryan McKeen this episode breaks down what it truly takes to transition from a practitioner to an industry leader.

Tom and the guests dismantle the myth of overnight success and highlight why becoming an expert first is non-negotiable for scaling a business. They share how staying curious, seeking out top mentors, and investing in lifelong...

How do top-tier law firms scale their business while maintaining high-touch, empathetic customer service? In this special mashup episode of the Legal Counsel Podcast, host Tom Tona sat down with industry experts Keith Roman and Adam Rosson to break down strategies that turn clients into lifelong advocates and drive steady attorney referrals.

Discover how leveraging operational tech stacks like LeadDocket, CasePeer, and Hona can automate your legal processes without sacrificing personal touch. Learn why direct communication—including simple strategies like picking up the phone and setting proactive client expectations—remains the single biggest differentiator in personal injury and...

In this high-impact, curated mashup episode of the Lead Counsel Podcast, host Tom Tona brings together key insights from top legal minds and high-performing entrepreneurs to explore the personal traits, mental toughness, and strategic shifts required to achieve sustained business growth.

Scaling a successful business or law firm requires far more than tactical strategy—it demands continuous personal development, effective stress management, and a commitment to genuine human connection. In this episode, Tom and his expert guests break down the hidden reality of "overnight success," the power of early investigation and active listening, and how to push th...

How do you transition from a struggling, overworked attorney to a thriving CEO who doesn't work weekends or nights? It all starts with self-improvement, mastering your craft, and learning the power of active listening. In this special mashup episode of the Lead Counsel Podcast, host Tom Tona reflects on key lessons of self-improvement, sharing valuable insights on what it truly takes to win in both the business of law and the game of life.

Tom sits down with Bill Umansky to unpack the discipline of active listening. They explore how setting aside your ego and putting in...

Unlock the exact mental blueprints required to elevate your personal development and scale your business ventures. In this special mashup episode of the Lead Counsel Podcast, host Tom Tona brings together elite legal minds and top business consultants to break down the core characteristics of true self-improvement. Discover the power of a growth-oriented mindset, the freeing nature of kind candor, and how focusing on your core identity can supercharge your decision-making.

Whether you are looking to dominate a niche market using the Blue Ocean strategy, leverage compounding daily habits, or build an unstoppable support network, this episode...

How do top tier legal professionals and high achieving founders scale their businesses without completely burning out? In this dynamic episode of the Lead Council Podcast, host Tom Tona dives deep into a masterclass of transformative book recommendations designed to optimize your legal mindset, elevate your client experience, and strategically maximize your profitability.

The conversation kicks off with a profound look at the lessons within Robin Sharma's classic fable, The Monk Who Sold His Ferrari. Tom shares his personal breakthroughs regarding mental clarity, the powerhouse concept of Kaizen (continuous small incremental improvement), and the ten rituals of...

Welcome back to the Lead Counsel Podcast. In this episode, host Tom Tona sits down with Uma Damodaran, the Head of Content and Strategy at StoryLeads, to dissect the content engine that drives high value lawyer referrals and law firm growth. Most lawyers approach LinkedIn by humble bragging or posting dry verdict alerts, but true market leadership requires turning your regular case updates into memorable stories.

Uma breaks down the highly systematized, technical approach StoryLeads uses to extract an attorney's authentic tone of voice and capture compelling case narratives without getting bogged down in dense legal jargon...

Welcome to another powerful episode of the Lead Counsel Podcast, hosted by Tom Tona, a New York personal injury lawyer dedicated to breaking down the intersection of elite law practice and business strategy. In this episode, Tom sits down with his personal EOS Certified Implementer and ProfitWorks coach, Mike Zappone. Together, they deliver a masterclass on how law firm founders and entrepreneurial lawyers can scale their businesses, increase profitability, and build highly functional leadership teams.

Tom and Mike pull back the curtain on their initial EOS quarterly session, describing the intense pressure test that forced the firm...

In this special mashup episode of the Lead Counsel Podcast, host Tom Tona brings together key conversations focusing on the monumental impact of building a law firm around authentic core values and culture. If you have ever felt that recruiting is a constant uphill battle or that scaling your practice risks losing the heart of your business, this episode provides the exact roadmap you need to transform your operations.

Tom breaks down the strategic implementation of a People First culture, explaining how prioritizing the personal lives and families of your team members directly translates to massive productivity...

A central theme of this episode is the critical role that continuous reading plays in personal development and corporate success. The featured speakers heavily emphasize and recommend the following books as essential tools for mastering leadership, driving business development, and optimizing your organizational systems:

The Credibility Code by Cara Hale Alter – Recommended by Sue Ann Van Dermyden for mastering the physical and vocal cues of confidence.

The Closer's Survival Guide by Grant Cardone – Highlighted by Marco Brown as a transformative text for closing sales and driving business revenue.

The Guide to Selling Your Flor...

Scaling a successful law firm requires a transition from working as a legal technician to operating as a strategic business leader. In this episode of the Lead Council Podcast, host Tom Tona is joined by Patrick Wilson, an elite law firm business coach with Atticus, alongside industry innovators to break down the exact frameworks needed to build a modern, scalable practice.

The conversation focuses heavily on impactful book recommendations that have shaped the trajectories of top performing firms. From distinguishing timeless business principles from temporary methods to implementing structured operational systems, this episode serves as a masterclass...

In this special mashup episode of the Lead Counsel Podcast, host Tom Tona brings together key insights from previous conversations centered around law firm growth, business coaching, and the transformative power of mastermind groups. Scaled law firms do not happen by accident. They require a shift from the technician mindset to that of a true business owner. Throughout this episode, Tom and industry experts delve into the foundational tools necessary to successfully build and scale a modern legal practice without losing its heart.

A primary focus of this discussion is the importance of surrounding yourself with larger...

In this episode of the Lead Counsel Podcast, host Tom Tona sits down with cybersecurity attorney Kellam Parks to discuss one of the biggest threats facing modern law firms. Cybersecurity breaches, ransomware attacks, phishing scams, AI misuse, and ethical compliance failures are creating massive financial and reputational risks for lawyers of every size firm.

Kellam shares real world examples of law firm cyber attacks including a major personal injury firm that paid a five hundred thousand dollar ransom after a server breach and another firm that spent more than fifty thousand dollars in remediation costs after a...

In this episode of Lead Counsel Podcast, Tom Tona sits down with Jacob Molina, founder of StoryLeads, to break down how lawyers are using LinkedIn to build authority, drive referrals, grow law firms, and create real business relationships that convert into high value cases.

Jacob has interviewed more than 400 lawyers and helped generate more than 8,000 LinkedIn posts for attorneys across personal injury, employment law, criminal defense, commercial litigation, and business law. Together, Tom and Jacob unpack why most lawyers are approaching LinkedIn the wrong way, how personal branding actually impacts client acquisition, and why authentic storytelling outperforms...

In this episode of the Lead Counsel Podcast, host Tom Tona sits down with returning guest Jenn Gore, founder of Evergreen Business Coaching and former owner of Atlanta Personal Injury Group, to unpack one of the most relevant transitions happening in the legal industry today.

Jenn shares her full journey from building a fast-growing personal injury law firm to merging with Sweet James, navigating the complexities of law firm acquisition and integration, and ultimately making the bold decision to fully exit and scale a national consulting business for law firm owners.

This conversation is a...

This episode of the Lead Counsel Podcast is another mashup episode from previous conversations that dives deep into the real impact of coaching and masterminds on building, scaling, and sustaining a successful law firm.

Host Tom Tona breaks down how investing in coaching, peer groups, and high level masterminds became one of the most significant needle movers in his career and for many of the seven, eight, and nine figure attorneys featured on this show. From early uncertainty and rapid growth challenges to building clarity, accountability, and long term vision, this episode explores how the right guidance...

This mashup episode of the Lead Counsel Podcast brings together powerful insights from three previous conversations focused on coaching, masterminds, and law firm growth. If you are a law firm owner looking to scale beyond one million in revenue, build a high performing team, and step into the role of true business leader, this episode delivers practical strategies and real world perspective from attorneys who have done it.

This episode explores how coaching, accountability, and mastermind communities accelerate growth, eliminate costly trial and error, and create scalable referral driven law firm businesses.

Whether you are...

This episode of the Lead Counsel Podcast is a curated mashup of previous episodes focused entirely on law firm marketing strategies that drive real results. If you are a law firm owner looking to increase high value cases, build a scalable referral network, and stop wasting money on ineffective marketing, this episode delivers a practical blueprint grounded in real experience.

Host Tom Tona brings together insights from top legal minds and marketing experts including John Fisher and Ron Latz to break down what is actually working right now in legal marketing. This episode goes beyond theory and...

This episode of the Lead Counsel Podcast is a powerful marketing mashup featuring insights from three high level conversations on what actually drives law firm growth. Host Tom Tona brings together proven strategies from top legal minds to break down the real drivers of client acquisition, client retention and referral-based growth in modern law firms.

If you are a law firm owner attorney or legal entrepreneur looking to scale your practice this episode delivers a clear roadmap for building a sustainable and profitable marketing engine without wasting time or money on tactics that do not work.

Seth Deutsch, founder of Samson Partners Group and author of The Owner's Manual, joins the show to unpack how private equity really evaluates founder-led businesses — and why legal services may be one of the most consequential frontiers for private capital. We break down Seth's 7 Levers of Exit Value Realization, from vision and succession to revenue quality, financials, tech, and M&A, and explore what law-firm leaders should understand now as outside investment structures evolve. Drawing on decades of operating and deal experience, Seth explains how owners can reduce risk, increase transferability, and build a business that commands better value and...

This mashup episode brings together the most important marketing insights from the last three episodes of the Lead Counsel Podcast, breaking down what is actually working right now for law firm growth in a rapidly changing legal landscape.

Host Tom Tona pulls together conversations with top marketing minds including Jason Hennessey, Brian Glass and Allen Boulos to give law firm owners a complete blueprint for modern legal marketing that drives real cases real revenue and long term referrals.

If you are a personal injury lawyer or law firm owner trying to grow your practice this...

In this episode of the Lead Counsel Podcast host Tom Tona sits down with Ron Latz founder of LegalFenix and fractional chief marketing officer to discuss the realities of modern legal marketing and what law firm owners must understand if they want to scale their firms without wasting hundreds of thousands of dollars on ineffective marketing.

Ron shares more than fifteen years of experience working in legal marketing including his early work with Thomson Reuters FindLaw and how the legal marketing landscape has evolved from simple website SEO strategies into a complex ecosystem driven by brand authority...

This episode of the Lead Counsel Podcast is a special mash up of three previous conversations focused on one of the most important topics for law firm owners and operators scaling the business of law. Host Tom Tona brings together insights from multiple high level discussions with successful law firm leaders who have built fast growing firms by focusing on strategy systems hiring marketing and client experience.

Across these conversations you will hear how modern law firms grow from small teams into multi office operations while maintaining strong margins strong client relationships and operational discipline. The episode...

What does it actually take to scale a law firm to eight figures and beyond without breaking your culture, your team, or yourself

In this special mashup episode of The Lead Counsel Podcast, Tom Tona sits down with three proven law firm leaders who have built, rebuilt, and scaled high performing firms. This episode distills powerful insights from Seth Price, Christopher Nicolaysen, and Michelle Dellino on leadership, marketing, operations, intake systems, data driven growth, and building a scalable law firm with strong culture and profitability.

If you are a law firm owner, managing partner, or...

In this high energy episode of the Lead Counsel Podcast, Tom Tona sits down with Lee Rudin, founder of Rudin Law in New Orleans, to break down one of the most disruptive personal injury branding strategies in the country.

Lee launched his firm in June 2023 and quickly built traction with a bold message that cuts through the noise in an overcrowded personal injury market: Stop Being Polite and Get Rude.

But this episode goes far beyond clever marketing. Tom and Lee unpack what it really takes to build and scale a modern plaintiff law firm...

In this powerful redo episode of the Lead Counsel Podcast, host Tom Tona sits down with Rilee Harrison, personal injury attorney at Cain Injury Lawyers in Oklahoma, to unpack the mindset, systems, and branding strategies that are helping him generate over 250 personal injury cases organically and build a scalable, client first law practice.

Rilee shares how failing the bar exam the first time became the defining moment of his career. Instead of quitting, he built discipline, structure, and a relentless work ethic that now drives his success in trial work, business development, and firm growth. This episode...

This episode of the Lead Counsel Podcast builds directly on the previous full length conversation with Patrick Wilson of Atticus, offering additional insights, reflections, and high impact takeaways for law firm owners who want to scale without losing control of their lives or their values.

Host Tom Tona continues the conversation with longtime friend and trusted law firm business coach Patrick Wilson, one of the longest standing coaches at Atticus. Together, they dive deeper into the real difference between coaching and consulting, why accountability is the missing ingredient for most law firms, and how personal injury lawyers...

In this high-impact episode of the Lead Counsel Podcast, host Tom Tona sits down with Oklahoma City personal injury lawyer Rilee Harrison—also known as "Barred and Bearded" on social media—to unpack the real formula behind modern legal marketing. From growing a loyal online following to generating over 250 cases organically without a single dollar spent on ads, Rilee shares a playbook for young lawyers, firm owners, and rainmakers alike.

Together, Tom and Rilee explore how authenticity, values, and consistency are the cornerstones of lasting success in today's competitive legal landscape. You'll hear why Rilee believes you can...

In this powerhouse episode of the Lead Counsel Podcast, host Tom Tona, founder and managing attorney of TonaLaw, sits down with nationally recognized settlement planning expert Michelle Fuller, founder of the Michigan Law Center.

Michelle unpacks the critical yet often overlooked dangers that law firms face at the end of litigation—when settlement funds are distributed. Known for her expertise in special needs settlement planning, qualified settlement funds (QSFs), and public benefits protection, Michelle reveals how a poorly handled distribution can lead to liability landmines, client dissatisfaction, and even the unraveling of successful verdicts.

This co...