Owning a law firm is harder than anyone told you it would be.
Mike Morse, Kate Nachazel, and Alexa Levantis sit down with attorneys and firm owners to talk about what the job actually looks like — the wins, the bad hires, the pivots, and the moments that almost broke them. Mike built a 290-person firm with $360M in settlements. Every guest has their own version of that story.
You'll leave each episode with a newfound purpose and the inspiration to keep going, along with practical lessons you can put in place today.
AI Changed Law Firm SEO. Here’s What Still Works | Corey Vandenberg
Corey Vandenberg has spent more than 15 years helping law firms get found online—and he believes the rules of SEO are being rewritten in real time.
Since 2019, Corey and Clixsy have managed the Mike Morse Law Firm’s SEO strategy. During that time, search has expanded beyond traditional organic results to include map packs, AI overviews and platforms like ChatGPT, Claude and Perplexity.
In this episode, Corey sits down with Mike to explain why the old “blog about everything” model is losing ground, why local maps remain one of the strongest sources of high-intent leads and how law firms can use real case data to build authority in the age of AI.
They also covered:
→ Why informational website traffic is declining across the legal industry
→ How AI decides which lawyers and law firms to recommend
→ Why the most valuable content may already exist inside your cases
→ How national ranking reports can create a misleading picture of performance
→ What law firm owners should ask their SEO agencies
→ Why reviews, Reddit, Yelp, social media and other third-party signals matter
→ How brand building is making a major comeback in legal marketing
→ Why traditional SEO remains the foundation of online visibility
The biggest takeaway: SEO is not disappearing—it is evolving. The firms that build recognizable brands, strengthen their local authority and turn real experience into credible content will be positioned to stay visible wherever clients search.
Corey, thank you for joining Mike and breaking down what law firm owners need to know about the rapidly changing search landscape!
Chapters
00:00 Intro
00:34 Meet Corey Vandenberg of Clixsy
01:31 How AI is rewriting law firm SEO
01:54 Why “content is king” is changing
02:56 How law firms can protect their visibility
03:30 Why the gold is in your cases
04:42 Creating case content without compromising clients
05:22 Why the map pack still matters
06:24 How AI decides which lawyers to recommend
07:48 Questions to ask your SEO agency
09:02 Why national ranking data can be misleading
10:45 Competing with national firms in local markets
12:03 Can AI identify firms that are not truly local?
12:39 The third-party sources shaping AI answers
14:10 Does organic search still generate cases?
16:20 Understanding Google Search Console
17:44 How to evaluate your website’s performance
19:16 The return of brand building
19:58 Why social signals matter more than ever
20:34 Closing
~~~
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1 Oct 2026
How to Build a Small Firm That Punches Above Its Weight | Josh Inkell
Josh Inkell is building a Delaware personal injury firm designed to punch above its weight.
After nearly a decade defending doctors and insurance companies, Josh encountered a case that made him question which side he wanted to represent. Today, The Inkell Firm handles car crashes, nursing home abuse and medical malpractice—using the predictable revenue from auto cases to fund complex, high-cost litigation.
But Josh’s connection to personal injury law is deeply personal. Twenty years ago, his sister Jenny was killed by a drunk driver while riding her bike home from work. Watching his uncle guide the family through the aftermath helped set Josh on a path toward becoming an attorney and fighting for people facing powerful institutions.
In this episode, Josh sits down with Kate to explain how he operates what he calls “three firms in one,” uses AI to review thousands of pages of records and tracks the numbers that allow him to hire, market and scale with confidence.
They also covered:
→ Why different case types require completely different intake systems
→ How AI is transforming medical malpractice case review and legal drafting
→ Why introducing AI should make your team feel supported—not threatened
→ How average case value and time on desk influence hiring and marketing decisions
→ What a difficult business partnership taught Josh about ownership
→ Why optimism and a “figure it out” mindset shape his leadership
→ How the Fireproof community helps small firms compete at a higher level
Josh, thank you for joining Kate, sharing your story and making your first podcast appearance on The Fireproof Podcast!
Chapters
00:00 Intro
00:36 Meet Josh Inkell
01:08 Fighting for the small guy in Delaware
02:25 Running three practice areas under one roof
04:49 Building different intake systems for different cases
05:32 Using AI to evaluate complex cases faster
06:51 How AI changed document review and legal drafting
08:31 Identifying viable medical malpractice cases
09:27 The loss that inspired Josh to practice law
11:19 Why he left insurance defense
12:32 Taking a year to travel before law school
16:22 Joining Fireproof Coaching and Masterminds
18:08 Firm ownership and challenging broken systems
19:18 Will AI replace legal jobs?
21:56 Introducing AI without threatening your team
23:00 Building an AI agent to open insurance claims
25:19 Kate’s Burning Questions
27:42 Using data to overcome imposter syndrome
30:07 Marketing math and knowing when to spend more
31:28 Choosing optimism through tragedy
35:42 Building a “figure it out” culture
39:28 The difficult end of a business partnership
43:16 Rethinking attorney compensation
44:09 AI, legal drafting and human review
47:42 Is AI making us less capable?
50:13 The risky decisions that changed Josh’s life
51:11 The numbers every law firm owner should know
54:42 Dollars per day and moving cases efficiently
56:26 Finding the right caseload for your firm
57:52 What lawyers should—and should not—be doing
01:00:13 Why the Fireproof community stands apart
01:02:02 Closing
Connect with Josh Inkell!
https://www.linkedin.com/company/inkellfirm/ (https://www.linkedin.com/company/inkellfirm/)
https://www.linkedin.com/in/joshinkell/ (https://www.linkedin.com/in/joshinkell/)~~~
This episode is powered by Fireproof Performance
Ready to fireproof your firm?
https://www.fireproofperformance.com/ (https://www.fireproofperformance.com/)
24 Sept 2026
AI Can’t Fix a Broken Process | Jesse Callahan
Jesse Callahan took an unconventional path from practicing attorney to law firm operator.
After starting as a law clerk and gaining experience in pre-litigation, Jesse discovered that she was more energized by the business behind the practice. Today, as Chief of Staff, she connects teams, improves operations and helps turn leadership strategy into action.
In this episode, Jesse joins Kate at the Fireproof Legal Production Summit in Chicago to explain why firms need strong processes before adding AI. She also shares why trust matters more than a title, where technology can create meaningful efficiency and why people will remain essential to the client experience.
They also covered:
→ What a Chief of Staff actually does inside a law firm
→ How servant leadership builds credibility and team buy-in
→ Why firms should strengthen their foundation before adopting AI
→ How to decide whether a problem requires technology or another employee
→ The data Jesse uses to monitor intake, settlements and cash flow
→ Why traditional work-life balance can set leaders up for failure
→ How radical candor makes difficult conversations more productive
Jesse, thank you for joining Kate in Chicago and sharing an honest look at leadership, operations and the human side of building a better law firm!
Chapters
00:00 Intro
00:27 Meet Jesse Callahan
00:50 What a Chief of Staff does
02:07 From practicing attorney to law firm operator
03:16 Why trust matters more than credentials
04:27 Building relationships and leadership credibility
06:19 Servant leadership and asking better questions
07:02 Redesigning the claims-handling process
07:42 Building the foundation before adding AI
08:47 Hiring in the age of AI
10:08 Why technology still needs people
12:16 The importance of human review
13:26 Using AI to improve the client journey
15:20 The emotional weight of client service
18:06 The law firm metrics Jesse tracks
18:53 Settlements, disbursements and the final client experience
20:37 Kate’s Burning Questions
21:08 Leadership lessons from Multipliers and Radical Candor
21:49 The myths of work-life balance and “almost being there”
28:47 Navigating guilt as a working parent
34:10 Building habits around presence and priorities
39:23 Clear expectations and difficult conversations
44:14 Making hard decisions about the wrong people
47:12 Transparency inside the Fireproof community
48:44 Weekly accountability and coaching
51:10 Closing thoughts
~~~
This episode is powered by Fireproof Performance.
Ready to fireproof your firm?
https://www.fireproofperformance.com/ (https://www.fireproofperformance.com/)
Connect with us!
https://www.youtube.com/@FireproofPerformance (https://www.youtube.com/@FireproofPerformance)
https://www.linkedin.com/company/fireproof-performance/ (https://www.linkedin.com/company/fireproof-performance/)
https://www.facebook.com/fireproofperformance (https://www.facebook.com/fireproofperformance)
https://www.instagram.com/fireproofperformance/ (https://www.instagram.com/fireproofperformance/)
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