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In this Trial Lawyer Nation podcast, Michael Cowen sits down with founding shareholder of the Begum Law Group LLC, Alexander Begum, who has offices in San Antonio, Brownsville, Laredo and McAllen. Alex admits early on in his conversation with Michael that he didn’t originally know he wanted to be a lawyer. He didn’t have any immediate connections to the law field, and friends and family members initially forced him to study for his MBA as a fallback. A blessing in disguise, this actually helped him to bring a business perspective to the field of law.
From early on, Alex found himself valuable by leveraging his business and finance education. He turned down a $75k/yr position at a defense firm, has his sights on something better, only to take 4 years to break the $100k mark. He first started with just about any case he could bring in the door from child custody to divorce to criminal and corporate, but eventually transitioned to personal injury when he got a big “break” from an owner of a managing agency who saw him in the courtroom as a defense lawyer who won a settlement against the plaintiff through a counterclaim. They liked what they saw so much they essentially fired another firm they had been working with and sent all their car wreck defense cases to his office. Listening to him tell the story is reminiscent of something from the movies with a van full of case files, in varying stages of pre-lit and litigation, being dropped at their front doorstep. Jumping right into the cases, it didn’t take long for him to see the limitless potential in the personal injury world. After having been exposed to several practice areas of law and through the process of elimination, Alex landed on plaintiff personal injury. The fact that his father was an immigrant further solidified his decision to fight for the small guy, beat all odds and led him into representing people who had been victimized in some way.
The conversation fast-forwards and switches to a more “tactical” view of trial strategy involving the practice of NOT including medical bills in a trial. The studies that Michael and Alex have both reviewed are striking, but the actual implementation of this in Alex’s practice has proven to be successful with 6 and 7-figure verdicts on cases – some of which have $4k of medical bills! The explanation from Alex on why he thinks this practice works is extremely insightful, to say the least, and shows that litigation without medical bills may become the standard practice by necessity. Michael points out that, ironically, he believes the industry is going to end up with bigger recoveries. They also talk through the effects the different strategies have on juries in awarding damages and how one of the tactics can anchor down the numbers, whereas the other can allow jurors to think about the true impact of what’s been taken from a client and their family.
Alex shares some of his insights on how he balances the administration of running his firm and keeping cases on track with trying cases himself. He shares everything from the software they use to his endless checklists, which Michael is able to draw a parallel to form a brief past in aviation where pilots are known for going through their checklists regardless of how many times they’ve flown the airplane – all in the name of quality control.
Michael asks Alex about the journey of advertising, which they both agree is “painful.” But, Alex goes on to talk about the evolution of advertising in the legal industry and the importance of dominating a niche market with examples like “The Jewish Lawyer,” “The Hammer,” or in his own case, “The Law Giant.” He talks about a significant focus group he conducted that helped him realize the overwhelming weight given toward recalling a branded nickname/persona more than any other factor in an attorney’s practice. In Alex’s view, things like trial experience, verdict history, or even the name of the attorney play very little into the public’s perspective of who to call. Some of the examples he gives of niche type tactics are tried and true when it comes to advertising on everything from billboards down to business cards.
Michael wraps up the podcast by asking on behalf of all the aspiring PI lawyers listening, “How did you get to where you are?” Alex’s reply is priceless and timeless all at once: “It’s funny how the harder I work, the luckier I become.”
Background on Alexander Begum
Alexander Begum is a founding shareholder of the Begum Law Group LLC, with offices in San Antonio, Brownsville, Laredo, and McAllen. Mr. Begum completed his undergraduate studies at Trinity University in San Antonio earning a double major in marketing and finance. Thereafter, he attended Harvard University in Boston where he studied finance and legal writing. Following the completion of his undergraduate studies, Alex acquired a Juris Doctor and a Masters of Business Administration with a concentration in finance from Texas Tech University.
After graduating from law school, Alex did not cease in his quest for learning and improving his skills. In 2010 Mr. Begum was chosen to be among the elite few who are accepted into the Trial Lawyers College. This intense program is intended to push each individual student toward a greater understanding of themselves and others. Every attorney that graduates from the Trial Lawyers College walks away knowing they have improved not only their skills as attorneys but have improved their “personhood” as well. Attending such a program is not an easy task. Alexander Begum made the choice to be away from his home, family and law practice to devote the time to attend and graduate from the Trial Lawyers College. He willingly made this sacrifice for a singular purpose. He wanted to be better able to help his clients and serve his community.
For more information on Alex Begum, visit https://www.texaslegalgroup.com/Attorneys/Alexander-Begum.shtml
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122 – Malorie Peacock – Growing Your Practice (and Yourself) in 2023
A new year is an excellent opportunity to reflect on your progress and set or reassess goals. That’s the easy part. The challenge comes when your motivation wanes as the year wears on. How does a trial lawyer, with too many tasks to juggle already, set (and stick to) a lofty set of personal and professional goals?
Michael Cowen and Malorie Peacock share their personal and professional goals for 2023, the challenges of sticking to intentions, and what they’re excited about for Cowen Rodriguez Peacock in the new year.
They also remind listeners that achieving goals is a continuous journey. Stumbling isn’t a reason to give up on your goals. Struggling is normal, it’s those that keep pushing and stay ready for the fight that find success.
Join Michael and Malorie for more tips and inspiration for setting achievable goals in 2023, finding balance between your personal and professional lives, and pushing through even when it gets hard.
Featured Guest
Name: Malorie J. Peacock
About: Malorie J. Peacock is a Partner at Cowen Rodriguez Peacock. She was born and raised in San Antonio, Texas and received her J.D. from the University of Houston Law Center. During her time with Cowen Rodriguez Peacock, Malorie has worked on numerous commercial vehicle, trucking, and wrongful death cases. Malorie brings close attention to detail, commitment to finding safety issues and areas of neglect, continued utilization of technology and cutting-edge visuals in cases, along with a sincere passion to help those who have been hurt, to each and every case.
Company: Cowen Rodriguez Peacock
Connect: LinkedIn
Episode Highlights
[01:47] Looking forward to a new year: Michael and Malorie reflect on 2022 and share their enthusiasm for 2023.
[03:50] Setting and achieving personal goals: Michael discusses his personal goals for 2023 and why he believes everyone should set personal goals. He also reflects on the challenges he’s faced in sticking to his intentions.
[08:35] Career-related goals for 2023: Sharing his trial goals, Michael is ready to “get in there and pick some juries and start fighting and hopefully get some verdicts.” Additionally, he plans to continue helping lawyers develop their trial skills, invest more in his New Mexico firm, Begum & Cowen, and focus on the marketing efforts at Cowen Rodriguez Peacock.
[11:17] Finding balance: Last year, Malorie focused on balancing her roles as a new mom and a trial lawyer. This year, “my bigger focus is going to be on making sure that I’m keeping better control of my calendars, that I don’t have back to back weeks when I’m out of town and away from my kid.”
[13:49] Achieving freedom in your busy schedule: Malorie and Michael talk about why it’s essential to develop your people and relinquish some control in order to gain freedom in your schedule.
[20:07] On developing trial skills: From a supportive firm to trial and error, Malorie shares her strategies for developing trial skills over the past 10 years. Michael also contributes his thoughts on finding success through your own style and strategy.
[24:42] Imperfection isn’t the end of the world: lawyers tend to catastrophize situations and worry that they’ll lose a case if they don’t execute the plan flawlessly. Michael reminds listeners that jurors decide cases on major principles or themes — not on minor mistakes.
[26:22] Always be prepared for the fight: “Even the people that have beaten me in trial, they end up paying me more the next time because it was not a fun ride for them. They know that they just got lucky that day or just the facts were on their side that day.”
Connect with Trial Lawyer Nation
☑️ Follow us on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram & LinkedIn.
☑️ Subscribe to Trial Lawyer Nation on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, and YouTube.
In this popular and award-winning podcast for trial lawyers, noteworthy author, sought-after speaker, and renowned trial lawyer, Michael Cowen explores critical topics distinctive to the legal profession with some of the biggest names in the industry – specifically focused on developing extremely efficient law practices, securing a competitive edge in the industry, and wildly excelling in the courtroom.
Produced and Sponsored by LawPods.
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113 – Malorie Peacock – Michael and Malorie’s Latest Trial
On a good day, a personal injury trial can feel like an uphill battle. Now, add a small inhospitable venue, a less-than-sympathetic client, and a slew of video witnesses into the mix. That’s exactly where Michael and Malorie found themselves recently trying a commercial vehicle case. In this episode of the Trial Lawyer Nation, they’re here to reflect on the trial and discuss the unique challenges they faced, the strategies they employed, and actionable lessons you can take into your next trial.
To set the stage, the case involved an oilfield worker rear-ended on the highway. He suffered significant structural injuries, returned to work for a year, and ultimately had a hip replacement and additional therapies.
While liability was never in doubt, damages is where Michael and Malorie faced an uphill battle. The first challenge was that the client’s medical records said he had degenerative disc disease from childhood. How do you establish that his injuries are attributable to the motor vehicle wreck?
To complicate matters, the client returned to work, performing the same responsibilities as before the accident, only seeking treatment sporadically. To keep things interesting, the judge allowed the admission of evidence of the client’s cocaine use around the time of his treatment. These are just a few of the issues that threatened to derail our damages claims.
Join us on this episode to hear the details of the case, including our future-focused approach, witnesses and experts we called and why, the unique way we presented the medical and non-economic damages witnesses, and much more on this new episode of Trial Lawyer Nation featuring Malorie Peacock.
Featured Guest
Name: Malorie Peacock
About: Malorie J. Peacock is a Partner at Cowen Rodriguez Peacock. She was born and raised in San Antonio, Texas, and received her J.D. from the University of Houston Law Center. During her time with Cowen Rodriguez Peacock, Malorie has worked on numerous commercial vehicle, trucking, and wrongful death cases. Malorie brings close attention to detail, commitment to finding safety issues and areas of neglect, continued utilization of technology, and cutting-edge visuals in cases, along with a sincere passion for helping those who have been hurt in every case.
Company: Cowen Rodriguez Peacock
Connect: LinkedIn
Key Points
Top takeaways from this episode
- You don’t need to prove your whole case with one witness. A witness to establish damages does not have to know everything about the client’s life or know them before and after the crash and be able to compare. Instead, it has to be someone involved. The key is to string together tidbits of information into a coherent story.
- Before using video depositions during a trial, you need to know the critical predicate questions in your jurisdiction to lay the foundation to use that either as a demonstrative or to get it admitted into evidence because it makes a giant difference. You also want to make sure your videos are reasonably short and engaging. None of the videos in this case exceeded 25 minutes.
- Your client may not be likable, but you must protect and fight for them. Some clients are tough to love, but if you take their case, you want to protect them as best you can from the jury selection process and throughout the trial by looking out for obvious sentiments that could go against your client.
Episode Highlights
[01:45] The case many lawyers didn’t want to touch (Including us): Malorie Peacock provides the background for the commercial vehicle accident case.
[02:33] The challenges with the case: Michael lays out the challenges and how it looked like an impossible case to win.
[04:41] Surmounting roadblocks: Despite the many challenges, Malorie knew that the fighting chance was in identifying and telling the most important stories.
[07:24] Witnesses make a great difference: Michael commends the choice and organization of witnesses called and how their testimonies help tie the evidence together and paint the full picture.
[15:50] The smart way to use video depositions: Malorie and Michael discuss how they used video depositions, carefully editing the testimony to go straight to the point, and keeping it brief.
[22:43] Use your expert witnesses as brushes to paint the true picture: Ultimately, you’re telling a story during trial. Sometimes you need other expert witnesses to help convey the story.
[28:10] Keep notes: How the team transformed live notes into exhibits.
[31:33] Why Malorie initially didn’t want to take the case: Malorie shares why the team almost did not take the case and the importance of letting the merits of the case lead decisions.
[36:41] With an unsympathetic client, jury selection is crucial: Why the team chose to bring in jury consultants, Michael’s admission that this voir dire was different from anything he has done before, and his favorite question, “Have you ever loved somebody that you didn’t like?”
[44:20] Trials can change people: Malorie recounts her personal experience with the client and his efforts during the process to reconnect with his family and be a better person.
[52:21] Settle when the number is right: At what point does it make sense to settle during trial? Michael and Malorie share their experience.
Connect with Trial Lawyer Nation
☑️ Follow us on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram & LinkedIn.
☑️ Subscribe to Trial Lawyer Nation on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or YouTube.
In this popular and award-winning podcast for trial lawyers, noteworthy author, sought-after speaker, and renowned trial lawyer, Michael Cowen explores critical topics distinctive to the legal profession with some of the biggest names in the industry – specifically focused on developing extremely efficient law practices, securing a competitive edge in the industry, and wildly excelling in the courtroom.
Produced and Sponsored by LawPods.
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131 – John Romano – The Art of Trial Preparation
There are great episodes and there are John Romano episodes. This is not one you want to miss.
On this episode of Trial Lawyer Nation, Michael sits down with legendary trial lawyer John Romano as he shares wisdom acquired over five decades of law practice. John reveals valuable insights into the mindset of a winning trial attorney, practical preparation tips, the importance of jury research, and even shares his pre-trial preparation checklist. Through personal anecdotes, John also addresses the fear frequently felt by young lawyers and offers practical advice for persevering.
There’s still time to sign up for Cowen’s Big Rig Boot Camp CLE Trucking Seminar. We’ll be covering the Nine-Step Method for Maximizing Value in Trucking Cases, Proving Corporate Negligence, Claims Against Other Parties, and more! Register now at BigRigBootCamp.com
Featured Guest
Name: John Romano
About: John Romano is a founding partner of Romano Law Group, a personal injury law firm located in West Palm Beach, Florida. John has successfully represented clients in a wide range of personal injury cases, including auto accidents, wrongful death, medical malpractice, and has successfully litigated to a verdict nearly every type of civil and criminal case. He is a civil trial advocate board-certified by the Florida Bar and the National Board of Trial Advocacy, as well as the American Board of Professional Liability Attorneys.
Company: Romano Law Group
Connect: LinkedIn
Episode Highlights
[03:52] A marine’s leap into the legal world: John, a former marine, recounts his journey of finding his true calling as a trial lawyer.
[09:11] The vital role of mentors, seminars, and practical skills: John attributes his professional growth to the valuable lessons absorbed from seasoned lawyers and extensive workshops. He also delves into learning about the innovative use of jury research via mock trials and focus groups which honed his trial abilities.
[12:12] Debunking the myth that ‘it’s so tough to get trials’: Romano argues that trials are there, but that sometimes plaintiff lawyers look for ways to get out of trying a case. But he underscores that the client’s welfare should remain the overriding factor in all decisions.
[15:33] Fostering hope in the face of legal challenges: John goes into the mental aspects of lawyering, particularly the interplay between fear and hope during trials. He advocates for embracing fear, transforming it into courage and action in the interest of clients.
[23:30] Secrets in tackling a spectrum of cases and strategies: Romano shares insights from a variety of civil and criminal cases.
[29:08] The power of early preparation and preservation of evidence: John emphasizes the importance of proactive case preparation. He details the process, from the preservation of evidence to theme development, treating depositions as significant events, and the utility of written discovery. He also endorses early engagement with a trial consultant.
[33:18] Unpacking the pre-trial preparation checklist: John shares his pre-trial preparation checklist includes communication with defense counsel and going over deadlines, among other things.
[39:14] Leveraging facts, jury research, and persuasion: Romano shares his key strategies for successful case handling, underscoring the role of good facts, jury research, compelling opening statements, and effective persuasion techniques.
[44:29] Communicating effectively for impactful legal arguments: John explores the art of persuasion, emphasizing its role as a tool to help others understand and connect with one’s ideas rather than to force acceptance.
[47:34] The profound influence of mentors in the legal profession: Concluding with a poignant reflection on mentorship, Romano asserts its profound importance. Mentors, he says, offer more than just knowledge; they provide guidance, protection, and personal fulfillment, and can come from any walk of life.
Connect with Trial Lawyer Nation
☑️ Follow us on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram & LinkedIn.
☑️ Subscribe to Trial Lawyer Nation on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, and YouTube.
In this popular and award-winning podcast for trial lawyers, noteworthy author, sought-after speaker, and renowned trial lawyer, Michael Cowen explores critical topics distinctive to the legal profession with some of the biggest names in the industry – specifically focused on developing extremely efficient law practices, securing a competitive edge in the industry, and wildly excelling in the courtroom.
Produced and Sponsored by LawPods.
