State Bar of Texas Podcast

A jury summons in your mailbox often instills a feeling of dread, but is jury duty really as bad as people assume? Instead of trying to find a way out of this often-negatively cast public service, let’s flip the script and consider: How can you make the most of jury duty? As promised, Rocky Dhir returns with Judge Les Hatch and Cade Browning to take a closer look at the jury experience from the perspective of both jurors and the legal professionals who rely on them. They remind us about the right and privilege it is to serve jury duty as a citizen of this country and point out jurors’ essential role in our justice system.

Statistics show that 90-98% of both civil and criminal cases across the nation are resolved before trial. With seemingly fewer cases reaching a jury, how do we, as legal professionals, preserve a deep appreciation for the jury’s role in our systems of justice? Rocky Dhir welcomes Judge Les Hatch and litigator Cade Browning to discuss our Constitutional right to trial by jury and its enduring importance in our society.

They discuss the virtues of jury trials and their function in our judicial system, then share best practices for jury selection and trial preparation.

After passing the bar, attorneys take an oath to uphold not only the United States Constitution, but their state constitutions as well. But how well do lawyers understand the rights and protections found in their own state constitutions, and how often do they put them to work in their legal practice?

Rocky Dhir welcomes Judge Jeffrey Sutton to explore the often-overlooked role of state constitutions in American law. Judge Sutton shares practical examples of how state constitutional provisions can shape legal arguments and outcomes, and explains why attorneys should look beyond federal law when advocating for clients. By giving greater consideration to state constitutional authority, lawyers can help create a more balanced and nuanced understanding of individual rights at both state and federal levels.

To run a thriving legal business, you need your prospective clients to easily find and connect with your law firm. Rocky Dhir welcomes marketing professionals Amanda Sexton and Zack McKamie to discuss effective marketing strategies for law firms. They discuss SEO tactics and what lawyers need to know about developing an advertising approach that makes sense for their individual law firm. Later, they also dig into the ethics of lawyer marketing, AI considerations, social media usages, and much more.

AI is on track to surpass the intelligence of humans, promising significant impacts worldwide—and certainly within the legal profession. What do lawyers need to consider as this technology continues to evolve? Damien Riehl addressed legal professionals at the 2026 State Bar of Texas Annual Meeting about the progression of artificial intelligence and the need for wisdom, morals, and discernment in the deployment of AI tools. AI promises both hopeful and worrying outcomes, and all legal professionals must engage with this topic as they seek to use it well, serve legal needs with excellence, and advance access to justice.