Interview: David Lat on private equity, AI & other legal trends

David Lat has watched the legal profession for 30 years: as a law student, a federal clerk and a prosecutor, then as the founder of Above the Law and now as the writer behind Original Jurisdiction, one of the most widely read newsletters on law and the legal profession. In this conversation, he explains how the profession has changed since he began covering it in the early 2000s. Timestamps: 0:00 Intro 2:07 30 years of change in the legal profession 4:19 Private equity’s backdoor into law firms 6:35 How David uses AI 9:52 Is the fear of AI overblown? 11:29 Ranking the circuit courts 15:25 Interviewing with Justice Scalia 18:39 Crypto as a law school hypothetical 21:29 Regulation by enforcement and due process 21:59 Speech and debate 25:09 The most underrated legal skill Thank you to the sponsors of this episode: Cahill Gordon & Reindel, the Hyperliquid Policy Center, the Solana Policy Institute and the Decentralization Research Center. To get in touch with the Cahill team about how any issues discussed in this episode apply to your situation, email [email protected]. Disclaimer: This podcast is for informational and educational purposes only and does not constitute legal or investment advice. Views expressed by guests are their own and do not necessarily reflect those of their employers. Listening to this podcast does not create an attorney-client relationship.