Trial Lawyers University

Most lawyers know how to make money — but not how to keep it. Sterling Louviere, financial strategist and founder of Financial Architects, has spent about 30 years developing and applying advanced, legal tax mitigation strategies used by the “super affluent,” and he now uses these strategies to help high-earning trial lawyers reduce their tax liabilities. Sterling joins host Dan Ambrose to reveal strategies most accountants have never heard of, including why the tax system is largely voluntary, how a lawyer earning $3 million a year can cut their tax bill by at least $750,000, and why the SEP plan your accountant recommended may be...

A peaceful protester was left to bleed out in Seattle after paramedics fled the scene. Evan Oshan asked for $100 million and won $30.5 million against the city — without ever identifying the shooter. In this episode, Evan joins guest co-host Mohamad Ahmad at the TLU Beach House to break down the Antonio Mays Jr. case, including roughly $24 million in non-economic damages. He also shares how he got expelled from Hastings Law School, had the governor intervene to reinstate him, and built the solo practice that took on Seattle. Listen in to hear what it takes to defeat governmental immunity and the th...

“Walking into Ozaukee County and telling the jury that it was worth $40 million was completely unheard of. I mean, people thought I was crazy.” In this conversation with host Dan Ambrose, Al Foeckler sets the stage for his wrongful death case on behalf of the family of a woman who was buried alive when a retaining wall collapsed on her. In addition to the conservative nature of the jurisdiction, Al also faced Wisconsin’s rules on damages in wrongful death cases: They are capped at $350,000 for adults and $500,000 for children, so value comes through showing pain and suffering. The case t...

"Insurance bad faith cases provide an opportunity for those attorneys to get seven- or potentially eight- or even nine-figure results on cases that would otherwise be perceived as low-limit cases," says George Sidiropolis, a West Virginia trial lawyer who focuses his practice on these unique cases. In this episode recorded from TLU's recent bootcamp in Hermosa Beach, George joins host Dan Ambrose to share insights about how he holds insurance companies accountable. A must-listen episode for anyone interested in unlocking the potential of these cases.

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☑️ George Sidiropolis | LinkedIn

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Joe Fried has a theory about why verdict values stay low in conservative states. “If there are cases where somebody's asking for $30, $50 million, and they're not getting it, I may need to listen to that. But if nobody is asking for that – if they're asking for $5 million in a wrongful death case – then of course they're not getting $30.” The celebrated trucking litigator returns to TLU to share lessons from two recent cases: a $2.3–$2.4 million verdict and a near-$100 million settlement. Tune in to this conversation with host Dan Ambrose for a masterclass in finding hidden trucking coverage, mediating at the start...

After Sach Oliver got the defense verdict, he also got the worried calls. “Oh! Oh! Oh!” His response? “I’d go do it again.” The case is under appeal, but in this conversation with host Dan Ambrose, Sach offers a deep dive into the psychology of loss as well as the way to move forward. He and Dan also preview TLU Beach, coming up from June 3 to 6 in Huntington Beach. In addition to presenting two workshops, Sach will provide 500 pounds of beef for a “Wild West” dinner on Friday night.

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☑️ Sach Oliv...

Two big-data studies predicted a verdict between $13 and $16 million. John Demas trusted his instincts and walked out of a Sacramento courtroom with $32 million. The case: An on-duty city detective swerved onto the freeway shoulder and killed two brothers, leaving two children without a father. John joins host Dan Ambrose to break down how he turned down a $15 million pre-close offer, spent 95% of voir dire on an "outside the box" damages framework, and opened with a Fleetwood Mac montage that had half the jury in tears.

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☑️ John Demas | LinkedIn

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Eric Castelblanco was helping a client navigate the immigration system when she told him about her neighbor’s slip-and-fall in their apartment building. Would he help her? Of course he would. Not only did he secure a $250,000 settlement for that client, he later took a case for 92 residents who lived in squalor at the same building. The $2.14 million settlement compelled him to switch from immigration law to habitability law. In this conversation with host Dan Ambrose, Eric reflects on how he built one of California's leading habitability practices from scratch and how he keeps the firm driven to prepare ev...

At age 37, Chris Hammons made it all the way to the jury level of the hit reality show “Survivor.” The jury voted him off. But more recently, two juries in a courtroom – not on an island – have voted for him in federal civil rights cases: In this conversation with host Dan Ambrose, Chris breaks down how he secured verdicts of $126 million and $2 million. Tune in as he explains why he takes on Section 1983 cases and why they’re so hard to win. “They aren't car wrecks. There isn't any negligence. You've got to prove this deliberate indifference in all these consti...

Vancouver-based trial lawyer Robyn Wishart also studied neurology – a discipline that she leverages in the courtroom to get more from witnesses. “I think neuroscience and being able to control our emotions and our brain can lead us on a way, on a path that can move our clients into forgetting that they're in a courtroom and being able to deliver the story,” she explains to host Dan Ambrose. Tune in to learn why she uses a questioning technique called “clean language” to get at what a witness really means behind what they’re saying. She will teach that technique at TLU Beach...

Trial consultant Phillip Miller takes a deep dive into the two papers he’s written about depositions: one presents the scientific underpinnings of effective persuasion while the other focuses on experiential learning, which means getting on your feet and “actually doing the thing.” “It's great to take notes and have an idea, ‘Okay, here's the context for the behavior I need to model and adapt.’ But until you actually get up and do it, you're never going to be able to integrate it into your style,” he explains to host Dan Ambrose. Tune in for his insights about depositions and how his re...

Susie Injijian was running out of resources and out of time. She had put a few hundred thousand dollars into the premises liability case, got some litigation funding, and invested most of her retirement savings to bring it to trial. Tune in as she and host Dan Ambrose break down the complex case that dragged on from 2018, with two trials, until July 3, 2023, when it all paid off with a jury verdict of $25.5 million. “It was career-changing for me. I mean, my dreams came true because of it, and that's no exaggeration,” she says.

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“From day one, I was taught the right way — because there's a right way and a wrong way." That conviction has defined Brandon Yosha's six-year career, which began with a $20.3 million verdict in his very first trial. Brandon joins host Dan Ambrose in West Hollywood to share the Nick Rowley mentorship that shaped his trial philosophy, the legacy of his father — Indiana trial legend Buddy Yosha — and the opening statement framework he'll be teaching at TLU Beach.

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☑️ Brandon Yosha | LinkedIn

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Three weeks before trial, George Moschopoulos got the call. A sexual harassment case venued in San Bernardino: no physical contact, no expert witnesses, no treaters to testify — and a plaintiff who had already been sexually harassed at three prior employers. The defendant's offer was $125,000. George joins host Dan Ambrose to break down how he reframed the bad facts into immovable case frames, sequenced witnesses to tell a compelling story, and fought to get a damning surreptitious recording admitted as substantive evidence. The jury returned a $2 million verdict. Tune in for George's approach to framing, voir dire, witness sequencing, and hi...

His dad taught him persistence. Soccer taught him strategy. Ted B. Wacker combines both skills in the courtroom. That’s how he wins what he calls the “civil war” of litigation. In this conversation with host Dan Ambrose, Ted traces a career defined by bold bets: from clerking on the Exxon Valdez oil spill case, to knocking out expert cardiologists in the bellwether case about Merck’s Vioxx pain medication, to leading a “monster” wrongful death litigation against Uber. He and his brother and law partner will teach the Uber litigation at TLU Beach.

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At four years old, Ryan Medler had cancer — and the doctor who nearly missed it changed his family's legal history. His mother quit her defense firm and launched the plaintiff practice that Ryan now calls home, Medler Law. He joins host Dan Ambrose to share highlights of his path, which includes 11 trials to date. Tune in as he reflects on his first trial that earned him thousands less than he’d asked for, his innovative decision to bring a habitability claim into a slip-and-fall case, and the chainsaw case that he brought under a section of the California labor code...

Orlando De Castroverde was done referring his best cases to other lawyers. A billboard lawyer and co-owner of a Las Vegas personal injury firm, Orlando had the cases — he just needed the conviction to try them. After stepping away from trials to build the business, he committed in 2018 to becoming a real trial lawyer, including through training on the TLU platform with founder host Dan Ambrose What followed: the last pre-COVID verdict in Vegas, the city's first post-COVID trial, and a $1.72 million verdict against an offer of $125,000. In this episode, he shares how he uses a flip chart to bo...

Tim McKey is not a lawyer, but he’s been inside over 300 plaintiff firms, and he sees where lapses in operations mean lost dollars. A CPA by training, Tim and a colleague formed Vista Consulting to help law firms “de-bottleneck.” In this conversation with host Dan Ambrose, Tim describes the journey that led to Vista and how it achieves its mission of helping law firms. Tune in as he reveals the operational mistakes – including intake methods – that could be quietly draining your firm's revenue.

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☑️ Tim McKey | LinkedIn

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What happens when a DoorDash veteran with no legal background spots a logistics problem inside plaintiff law firms? He delivers “white-glove pre-litigation in a box.” Viraj Bindra spent eight years at the food delivery company before co-founding Finch, a tech-based platform that provides tools for growing firms so they can say “yes” to every case that’s worth taking. He visits with host Dan Ambrose to pull back the curtain on successes and lessons learned while building the firm. And he has the distinction of being the first guest on Dan’s new TLU's “Founders Podcast” — a series on tech and AI compan...

A thousand-pound gate falls on a woman. The last thing she remembers is being on the property and going down stairs. She suffers a TBI. The defense's theory: She’s a liar. So is her husband. So are the fire personnel who responded. And the bystanders. Sagi Shaked takes host Dan Ambrose through the play-by-play of how he exposed the defense’s “conspiracy theory.” The jury saw through it and awarded a $4.5 million verdict. He also breaks down a case where a client stuffed a component TBI after his vehicle was T-boned. Sagi turned a $200,000 offer into an $800,000 verdict. And Sagi...

Little island. Big cases. Bigger verdicts. Russ Pate is a solo plaintiff lawyer in St. Croix whose career has included a combined $113 million verdict in two consolidated tobacco cases and $6.3 million verdict in a premises liability trial. He also worked with the Virgin Islands’ attorney general to pursue civil claims against the Jeffrey Epstein estate using the Virgin Islands' unique tax credit program. Taking a break from the TLU ski bootcamp in Big Sky, Montana, Russ sits down with host Dan Ambrose to reflect on his journey from that first roach-infested, $500-a-month office in St. Croix.

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They offered $100,000. She demanded $450,000. They wouldn't budge — so she went to trial. The jury came back with $10 million. To this day, it remains the highest pain-and-suffering verdict in Luzerne County history. Meet Melissa Scartelli, the author of that verdict and many others. A 35-year trial veteran and founder of Scartelli Olszewski, Melissa has built her practice around medical malpractice, earning rare punitive damage verdicts against physicians and going to verdict in cases where she could not name a specific dollar amount to the jury. Host Dan Ambrose draws out stories behind Melissa's wins, including the way she anchors damages an...

Przemek Lubecki embodies the American dream. He and his family emigrated from Poland, living in Germany before gaining asylum in the United States in 1989 and settling in St. Louis. After trying over 100 cases during seven and a half years at a Chicago defense firm, Przemek transitioned to the plaintiffs’ side. TLU 2021 proved transformational, exposing him to plaintiff lawyers operating at the highest level. The following year, with help from the TLU network, Przemek secured his first eight-figure verdict of $12.5 million. Przemek discusses trial preparation, skill development, and mentorship with host Dan Ambrose.

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A former prosecutor who now runs his own firm, Andrew Pickett visits host Dan Ambrose to reveal his strategies for success in the courtroom and in business. From his origin story as a college swimmer to his 42 jury trials as a prosecutor to his recent $9 million wrongful death verdict, Andrew shares lessons learned. Tune in for his insights about how hiring a psychodramatist transformed his witness preparation and why being an entrepreneur mirrors personal development.

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☑️ Andrew Pickett | LinkedIn

☑️ Andrew Pickett Law, PLLC | LinkedIn

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Jeremy Babener helps plaintiffs and trial lawyers keep more of their settlements and verdicts through tax-saving agreements. In this conversation with host Dan Ambrose, Jeremy reflects on how he landed in this specialized field during law school – his evidence course was canceled, so he switched to a tax policy class. Before graduating from law school, he was already advising on $20-30 million settlements. He earned his tax LL.M. at NYU, served in the US Treasury's Office of Tax Policy, started his own law firm, and eventually founded Structured Legal, which helps lawyers and plaintiffs make the most of th...

Broadcasting from Cabo San Lucas, host Dan Ambrose gathers five participants in the recent TLU bootcamp to reflect on their experience and role-play techniques. The guests include Johnnie Bond from D.C., Matt Nakajima from Cincinnati, Mohamad Ahmad from Los Angeles, Alejandro Gonzalez from Miami, and Jared Smith from Kentucky. Tune in for their insights about discipline, self-coaching techniques, and the benefits of TLU bootcamps.

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☑️ Matt Nakajima | LinkedIn

☑️ Mohamad Ahmad | LinkedIn

☑️ Johnnie Bond | LinkedIn

☑️ Jared Smith | LinkedIn

☑️ Alejandro Gonzalez | LinkedIn

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Over the past year, Kimball Jones has taken six cases to trial, securing more than $700 million in verdicts and settlements. In this conversation with host Dan Ambrose, Kimball breaks down the cases that led to a $550 million verdict, $114 million verdict, and $31 million verdict. Kimball explains that a huge part of his success is knowing what cases to take to trial and understanding how to frame cases to get maximum value. Nick Rowley opens the episode by discussing his million-dollar battle against Uber’s ballot measure that would kill the contingency fee system. Dan closes the episode by demonstrating his wi...

Picture learning trial methodology while fishing in the afternoon, shooting archery, and riding horses across 1,750 acres of Missouri ranch land. Celebrated trial lawyer Sach Oliver tells host Dan Ambrose how this "magical place" will host his intensive “Depositions Our Trial” workshops starting in November 2027. Before that, at TLU Beach in June 2026, Sach will share lessons about managing money that he learned from his grandparents. Tune in as he unveils his vision for the revolutionary legal education destination and his insights about how money works.

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☑️ Sach Oliver | LinkedIn

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Clashes with the judge. Nineteen expert depositions. Ten hours of court hearings leading to trial. Outcome: $51.3 million for a construction worker who was electrocuted on a job site. Mohamad Ahmad discusses the remarkable journey of the Maggio case and his career in this conversation with host Dan Ambrose. After getting no job offers after his UCLA Law summer clerkship and starting his own firm, Mohamad endured a decade-long drought between seven-figure verdicts and spent about $1 million of his own money on Maggio. Tune in for his insights about assembling a trial team, mastering cross-examination, and videotaping yourself – an uncomfortable bu...

Alex Ivanov’s journey to Angel Reyes & Associates in Texas started when he fled his native Belarus after refusing KGB recruitment, arriving in America at age 21 with $380. Just three years into trying cases, he secured his first seven-figure verdict on a non-surgical pain management case where the defense offered only $90K on a $250K policy. How? Leveraging strategies developed by host Dan Ambrose for his TLU platform to prepare the witness and transport the jury back to the crash scene, The jury awarded $1.075 million. Since 2022, Alex has tried about 15 jury trials and recently earned recognition as a Texas Rising St...

Two North Carolina attorneys who served their country and are now serving their clients discuss what they gained from the Trial Lawyer University’s Joe Fried Trucking Bootcamp. Will Meekins, with two years of experience handling catastrophic injury cases in western North Carolina, and Ryan McCollum with three civil trials under his belt in Raleigh, both graduated from West Point. They met years later at a North Carolina Plaintiffs' Lawyers Convention. In this wide-ranging discussion with host Dan Ambrose, they share insights from their military service, transition to trial law, and intensive training at the bootcamp. Tune in for th...

In 1984, Eric Oliver was teaching persuasion skills to marketeers in computer firms. When he transitioned to trial consulting that year, he found a new audience. In two years, “lawyers took all my time…because nobody had ever taught persuasion, influence, and communication to attorneys at that time. They still don't.” In this wide-ranging discussion with host Dan Ambrose, Eric reveals how he accidentally discovered his calling. Now, he teaches lawyers how to manage juror perceptions, combat post-truth decision-making, and overcome impaired attention in modern courtrooms. Tune in for his insights about anchoring techniques, mirroring for rapport, and opening statements that c...

It was a longshot case. After all, the jury knew that John Martin’s client, suing for employment discrimination, already had retirement benefits. But this fight was about whether she was entitled to a different category of benefits. Confident they’d win, the defense rejected an offer to mediate. A jury awarded $1.75 million. “I just got the email this morning that they just mailed the checks,” John tells host Dan Ambrose in this wide-ranging discussion about his career. With 35-40 civil jury trials under his belt since graduating from Suffolk University Law School in 2009, John reflects on his journey from deb...

“Every employment case is a story about betrayal,” says George Moschopoulos, who recently convinced jurors that the Los Angeles Unified School District failed to work in good faith to find his disabled client another role in the organization. Host Dan Ambrose unpacks the case, from the six-figure pretrial offer to the juror who compelled the team to pivot their strategy to the $3 million verdict. Tune in for George’s insights about presenting clients as resilient survivors and mastering trial skills through deliberate practice.

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☑️ George Moschopoulos | LinkedIn

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Looking back on this month’s TLU Beach, Joe Fried says attendees and even vendors declared it the best program yet. The renowned trucking attorney from Fried Goldberg joins host Dan Ambrose to reflect on the event’s success and preview their five-day Trucking Bootcamp in August. That event will combine Joe's 20-plus years of trucking expertise with Dan's performance skills training, guiding trial lawyers through intensive hands-on practice.

The Trucking Bootcamp will be held Aug. 12-16 in Huntington Beach, CA. Learn more here.

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☑️ Joe Fried | LinkedIn

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Working on the Golden State Killer Task Force, which prosecuted a notorious California serial killer, was a career highlight for Bobby Taghavi. But, after serving in a prosecutor’s office, “the next step is to be a manager until you run for a judge” – and Bobby was “way too young to run for judge.” He made the leap into personal injury law. Now managing partner at Sweet James Accident Attorneys, Bobby has secured three consecutive multi-million dollar verdicts. With host Dan Ambrose, he recaps his victories and previews his session at TLU Beach (June 4-7), where he’ll teach trial lawyers...

Born without his right leg, Conal Doyle is an accomplished athlete who refuses to let challenges get in his way. “And I've carried that through my legal career, taking really tough cases to trial.” With host Dan Ambrose, Conal shares his journey from defense attorney to a leading plaintiff’s attorney in California. The founder of Doyle Law, Conal handles only 5 to 10 high-value amputation and TBI cases at a time, and his results include a record-setting $26.8 million medical malpractice verdict and a recent $100 million shareholders' rights victory. At TLU Beach (June 4-7), he’ll teach a TBI masterclass, covering everythi...

To effectively talk with a jury about non-economic damages, you need a star witness – usually not your client – who can communicate how an injury affected your client. In this conversation with host Dan Ambrose,  Ashkahn Mohamadi discusses how he leveraged his technique in recent trials to secure multi-million-dollar verdicts. He’ll teach the formula at TLU Beach (June 4-7).

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☑️ Ashkahn Mohamadi | LinkedIn

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About 25 years ago – years after stints as a professional pilot, steel worker, and certified public accountant – Randy Calvert discovered focus groups. “I just saw the value, and then, the more you do it, the more value you see in it,” he explains to host Dan Ambrose. Tune in to learn how Randy’s methodical approach—such as using statistically representative participants rather than recruits from Craigslist—has transformed his practice. At TLU Beach (June 4-7), he will guide attorneys in designing, implementing, and analyzing focus group results that unlock maximum case value.

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After suffering two trial losses, Tim Felice wondered if he wanted to put himself out there again. But as he read about a new case, and spoke with the client, “I just started getting fired up more and more and more.” In this case break-down with host Dan Ambrose, Tim discusses how he represented a musician who was catastrophically injured by a drunk truck driver. The verdict—$77.3 million in compensatory and $15 million in punitive damages—resulted from masterful legal maneuvering that allowed jurors to hear evidence about the client's psychological trauma from being falsely accused of killing her passenger. Tim will...