Today we welcome back our first two-time guest, the one and only Susan Hackett, for another enjoyable discussion about life, law, and business. For those of you who don’t know her, Susan is the CEO of Legal Executive Leadership, LLC, and was vice president and general counsel of the Association of Corporate Counsel (ACC) for more than 20 years. While at the ACC, she presided over the creation of the Value Challenge, designed to recognize the in-house teams and outside counsel who are driving value in legal spending. Today Susan is part of a number of entrepreneurial pursuits focused on the improvement of the legal profession.

Listen in to today’s conversation to learn about:
• Susan’s take on the evolving role of the general counsel in in-house legal departments.
• Her recent work on programming for In-House Focus.
• The ramifications of a different mindset by the GC—and what that means for service providers.

Susan Hackett Returns

We welcome all of you back and hope you had a wonderful holiday season. To start the new year, we’re joined by Ruby Powers, co-vice chair of the 2026 ABA TECHSHOW. Ruby is an immigration law attorney with nearly 20 years of experience, a speaker, and author of Power Up Your Practice. Through Powers Strategy Group LLC, Ruby provides strategic consulting services and hosts the podcast Power Up Your Practice.

In our conversation, Ruby gives us a detailed preview of the ABA TECHSHOW and the range of topics the conference will cover in March. We also dive into the mindset shifts lawyers need in order to embrace legal technology and innovation. Additionally, Ruby shares her career journey and the insights she has gained along the way.

Read the full transcript of today's episode here: https://www.seyfarth.com/dir_docs/podcast_transcripts/Pioneers_RubyPowers.pdf

Ruby Powers

Today we’re catching up with Daniel Lewis, CEO of LegalOn Technologies. LegalOn is transforming the way legal professionals review and negotiate contracts through advanced contract AI, helping thousands of lawyers work faster and with greater accuracy. Since Daniel last joined us, LegalOn has had some major accomplishments: its first acquisition, the close of Series E funding, the launch of its matter management solution, and an announced collaboration with OpenAI.

In our conversation, Daniel shares insights on these recent accomplishments and dives into the challenges of AI adoption in legal tech as the technology continues to evolve. We also explore the implications of generative AI for junior lawyers and what it means for career development in the legal profession.

Read the full transcript of today's episode here: https://www.seyfarth.com/dir_docs/podcast_transcripts/Pioneers_DanielLewisReturns.pdf

Daniel Lewis Returns

This week on Pioneers and Pathfinders, we're joined by Taylor Bell, founding partner of Arizona ABS Law PLLC. Taylor works at the forefront of one of the most closely watched experiments in legal innovation, Arizona's alternative business structure (ABS) framework. As a fractional general counsel and employment law attorney, Taylor advises law firms, legal tech companies, and investors on every stage of the ABS life cycle, from formation and certification to compliance, governance, and risk management. His work sits at the intersection of regulation, operations, and growth, helping organizations navigate complexity while building sustainable businesses.

In our conversation, Taylor shares what he's seeing on the ground as Arizona lawyers and consumers respond to ABS models, the qualities he looks for when assembling an ABS team, and how he balances the realities of entrepreneurship with family life. It's a practical, candid look at how regulatory change meets real-world legal work.

Read the full transcript of today's episode here: https://www.seyfarth.com/dir_docs/podcast_transcripts/Pioneers_TaylorBell.pdf

Taylor Bell

On today's episode of Pioneers and Pathfinders, we're delighted to welcome Carrie Fletcher, a leadership development expert, lawyer, and longtime force for change in the legal profession. With more than 30 years of experience, Carrie’s work spans leadership workshops, executive coaching, consultancy, and thought leadership. As the global head of faculty at O Shaped, she works with law firms and legal departments to reimagine legal leadership through a client-centric, business-focused lens. At Cambridge University’s Møller Institute, Carrie helps global professional services leaders strengthen their leadership and strategy skills to achieve greater impact. She delivers master's level, team-based leadership programs at London Business School and collaborates with faculty there on leadership research and case studies. Carrie also serves as an affiliate instructor with Harvard Law School’s Executive Education program, working with partners and emerging leaders around the world.

In our conversation, Carrie reflects on how leadership development in law firms has evolved, what she's learned from working across global markets, how O Shaped equips lawyers for modern leadership roles, and the skills lawyers need not just to succeed, but to thrive in today's profession.

Read the full transcript of today's episode here: https://www.seyfarth.com/dir_docs/podcast_transcripts/Pioneers_CarrieFletcher.pdf

Carrie Fletcher

Today we're pleased to welcome back Dan Linna, director of law and technology initiatives and senior lecturer at Northwestern Pritzker School of Law and the McCormick School of Engineering. Dan was one of our very first guests back in 2021, and it was a real pleasure to reconnect and continue the conversation. Dan's teaching and research focus on innovation and technology in law, including computational law, artificial intelligence, data analytics, legal operations, leadership, and innovation frameworks. He is also an affiliated faculty member at Stanford's CodeX, the Center for Legal Informatics, and continues to serve as lead organizer of the Chicago Legal Innovation & Technology Meetup.

In this return visit, Dan joins us for a wide-ranging discussion about rethinking the end-to-end process of legal work, the impact of generative AI on legal education and practice, his work with the ABA legal analytics committee, and why sustained investment in the judiciary is essential to the future of the legal system.

Read the full transcript of today's episode here: https://www.seyfarth.com/dir_docs/podcast_transcripts/Pioneers_DanLinnaReturns.pdf

Dan Linna Returns

This week, we’re shining a spotlight on meaningful innovation in the access to justice space by revisiting our conversation with Kristen Sonday, co-founder and CEO of Paladin. Kristen and her team are transforming the way pro bono work happens—making it easier for law firms, legal departments, and nonprofits to connect lawyers with opportunities while cutting down on the administrative friction that so often gets in the way. For anyone interested in justice tech, Paladin remains a standout example of innovation driven by real impact. We hope you enjoy this replay.

We're diving into the world of access to justice with Kristen Sonday, a true trailblazer in making pro bono legal work more efficient and effective. Kristen is the co-founder and CEO of Paladin, an organization dedicated to increasing pro bono engagement while reducing administrative burdens. Through partnerships with law firms, corporate legal teams, bar associations, the US government, and over 300 legal service organizations, Paladin is helping to bridge the justice gap by streamlining how legal professionals connect with those in need. Before launching Paladin, Kristen worked on international criminal matters for the US Department of Justice in Mexico and Central America, and was part of the founding team of a New York City-based tech startup. She also shares her insights in her Thomson Reuters Institute column NextGen Justice Tech, where she explores the role of technology in expanding access to justice. Beyond her work in legal tech, Kristen is a founding partner of LongJump, a Chicago-based venture capital fund focused on supporting the next generation of founders.

In our conversation, Kristen takes us through how Paladin is creating a blueprint for justice technology, her journey into access to justice work, the mission of LongJump, and the key lessons she has learned from her entrepreneurial journey.

Read the full transcript of today's episode here: https://www.seyfarth.com/dir_docs/podcast_transcripts/Best-of-Pioneers-Kristen-Sonday.pdf

Best of Pioneers and Pathfinders: Kristen Sonday

Today we’re joined by Sateesh Nori. Sateesh is the chief legal futurist at LawDroid and a senior research fellow at NYU School of Law. His work sits at the crossroads of justice, technology, and public service. Before moving into legal innovation, he spent years serving New Yorkers as a housing rights attorney and later as a managing attorney at both The Legal Aid Society and Legal Services of New York City. Now, at LawDroid, Sateesh is focused on making sure legal technology isn't just cutting edge, but also credible, ethical, and grounded in real-world needs, especially the urgent need to expand access to justice. Last year, he partnered with Housing Court Answers and the legal tech company Josef to launch Roxanne the Repair Bot, an AI-powered assistant designed to help New York tenants understand and assert their rights when dealing with unsafe or substandard housing conditions. He is also the author of Sheltered: Twenty Years in Housing Court, which is a powerful look at the systemic challenges facing tenants, as well as the lawyers who work to serve them.

In this episode, Sateesh shares how LawDroid’s tools are helping tenants navigate complex legal processes, why trust is so essential in the future of AI and law, how law schools can better prepare lawyers for a tech-enabled profession, and what he is exploring through his research fellowship at NYU.

Read the full transcript of today's episode here: https://www.seyfarth.com/dir_docs/podcast_transcripts/Pioneers_Sateesh-Nori.pdf

Sateesh Nori

This week on Pioneers and Pathfinders, we’re pleased to welcome back Basha Rubin, CEO and co-founder of Priori. It's been about four years since Basha last joined us, and in that time, Priori has gone through a remarkable transformation. What began as a marketplace connecting clients with flexible legal talent and boutique firms has evolved into a robust platform with innovative RFP and panel management tools that help organizations better manage, evaluate, and leverage their outside counsel relationships.

In our conversation, Basha reflects on more than a decade of building and leading a legal tech company. She shares insights on scaling a business, evolving a product in a fast-changing market, and navigating the growing complexity of legal data. We also talk about how Priori is preparing for the next wave of technology shaping the legal industry, and she gives us a look into her work with the Yale Law School fund board. It was great catching up with Basha, and we hope you enjoy listening to the conversation.

Read the full transcript of today's episode here:
https://www.seyfarth.com/dir_docs/podcast_transcripts/Pioneers_Basha-Rubin-Returns.pdf

Basha Rubin Returns

Today we're delighted to welcome back Marlene Gebauer—self-described “Legal Innovation Heroine,” co-host of The Geek In Review, and one of the most thoughtful voices in the legal innovation community. Since she last joined us in 2022, Marlene has stepped into a new role. She is now a practice support attorney at K&L Gates, while continuing to lead SparkMind Advisors as CEO. It's a combination that perfectly reflects the increasingly hybrid nature of legal innovation work.

In our conversation, Marlene shares her perspective on the blending of roles across knowledge management, practice support, and innovation—and how AI is reshaping not just the delivery of legal services, but how that work is valued. We also explore why, even in an era of accelerating technology, human connection remains the essential differentiator. As always, Marlene brings both candor and clarity along with practical advice for legal organizations navigating technological transformation.

Read the full transcript here: https://www.seyfarth.com/dir_docs/podcast_transcripts/Pioneers-Marlene-Gebauer-Returns.pdf

Marlene Gebauer Returns

This week, we’re joined by Dr. Eva Bruch. Based in Spain, Dr. Bruch is a lawyer, strategic consultant, and partner at LOIS—a consultancy focused on legal operations and the digital transformation of corporate legal departments and law firms. For more than two decades, Dr. Buch has been working at the intersection of strategy, technology, and the legal profession. At LOIS, she helps organizations adopt technology and AI in ways that are practical and tailored to their specific needs, rather than relying on one-size-fits all solutions. She is also a faculty advisor at the Digital Legal Exchange, a global nonprofit that brings together general counsel, legal professionals, and business leaders to learn and collaborate on digital transformation. Additionally, she serves on the Mutuality Foundation's Youth Council, a think tank focused on entrepreneurship and talent development within the legal profession.

In our conversation, Dr. Bruch shares the moment she decided to leave traditional legal practice and focus on digital transformation, what legal professionals should be thinking about as they integrate AI into their work, and the critical role senior leadership plays in driving meaningful change. She also offers thoughtful perspectives on how AI should be regulated within the legal profession. 

Read the full transcript of today's episode here: https://www.seyfarth.com/dir_docs/podcast_transcripts/Pioneers_Dr.-Eva-Bruch.pdf

Dr. Eva Bruch

Pioneers and Pathfinders is a podcast about the people driving change in the legal industry. Interviews will focus on how their unique journeys inform their thinking about the profession, the business of law, the solutions they create, and where the industry is going next. The podcast will feature guests with multiple backgrounds and perspectives drawn from a number of areas including talent, technology, diversity and inclusion, social justice, education, training, and the business of law. The host of Pioneers and Pathfinders is J. Stephen Poor, chair emeritus of Seyfarth Shaw. During his 15 year tenure as chair and managing partner, the firm pioneered the application of Lean Six Sigma in legal service delivery. Today, he co-leads Seyfarth Labs, the firm’s technology research and development team and continues to serve as an advisor to firm leadership and as executive sponsor of strategic initiatives focused on innovation and growth. Steve brings his own experience as a legal industry pioneer to these conversations, resulting in insights that are both fascinating and instructive.

Susan Hackett Returns

Pioneers and Pathfinders

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