Send us a text Want to see the exact communication system that scaled our law firm, Sterling Lawyers, to 25+ attorneys and $15+ million in revenue? In this exclusive behind-the-scenes J Sterling Hughes Insider episode, I take you inside an actual daily huddle—the 15-20 minute discipline that transformed their firm's growth and culture. Drawing from their real morning meeting, we unlock the framework that delivers: Accurate performance updates across yesterday, 5-day, and 28-day metrics that keep...
Jun 26, 2025•25 min•Ep. 144
Send us a text From struggling solo to breakthrough month—Tom Hartin just hit $24,000 in revenue with 4 new clients after 9 months of building his Long Island practice. In this episode, we witness the dramatic turnaround that every startup attorney dreams about. We dive into his explosive May success: Why his lead-to-consult conversion rate hit nearly 100% and what that reveals about his market positioning The strategic office move that gives him space to hire while maintaining his dominant Mass...
Jun 20, 2025•43 min•Ep. 143
Send us a text Want to know the secret tool that transformed Sterling Lawyers from chaos to a coordinated 25+ attorney firm doing $15+ million in revenue? In this interview, I interviewed our CFO, Todd Clauer, who revealed our game-changing daily management huddle—a 30-minute meeting that revolutionized how they operate. Drawing from 30+ years across manufacturing and professional services, Todd breaks down their proven system: The four-part daily agenda that keeps every division aligned How our...
Jun 12, 2025•24 min•Ep. 142
Send us a text Tired of the feast or famine cycle that plagues most family law practices? In this video, I reveal why consistent marketing is the only way to break free from the devastating ups and downs that keep attorneys trapped in survival mode. We tackle: The three psychological traps that kill marketing momentum when you get busy Why redefining marketing as simply "getting attention" changes everything about how you approach growth The compounding benefits of daily marketing habits—from cl...
Jun 05, 2025•9 min•Ep. 141
Send us a text Wondering if mastermind programs are worth the investment? In this episode, I sit down with Richard James, founder of Your Practice Mastered, who helped transform our practice after I discovered his work during my niece's graduation ceremony. This discussion reveals: My biggest 10-year mistake was avoiding industry-specific masterminds (despite being in other groups for 20+ years) The "third mind" concept that separates successful masterminds from networking groups Richard's unexp...
May 29, 2025•27 min•Ep. 140
Send us a text What happens when a promising family law practice hits a plateau after nine months of steady growth? In this interview, Tom Hartin opens up about the sobering reality of building a practice on Long Island—where April brought just 5 leads, 2 consults, and 1 hire despite $6,800 in monthly expenses. We dive deep into his current challenges: How his strategic Massapequa location reached #1 in map rankings within two months, but growth has stagnated The difficult reality of expanding t...
May 22, 2025•21 min•Ep. 139
Send us a text How does a small-town family lawyer build a $3 million practice after 19 years of struggle and heartache? In this candid Masters of Family Law interview, Jonathan Breeden shares the raw truth behind his rollercoaster journey from struggling solo practitioner to thriving multi-attorney firm in North Carolina. We explore his strategic evolution: How choosing an underserved suburb with fewer competing attorneys proved crucial to his initial survival The devastating website vendor fai...
May 16, 2025•1 hr 20 min•Ep. 138
Send us a text Struggling to scale your family law practice? In this interview, I sit down with Deidra Haynes, who transformed her Indianapolis firm from $129,000 to $2.1 million in just three years—with projections of $3.7 million in 2025. We tackled her incredible growth about: How a single Facebook ad and a $1 investment changed everything when she had no clients The counterintuitive "Mentor Mindset" that led her to study elite PI attorneys despite practicing family law Her strategic evolutio...
May 09, 2025•1 hr 17 min•Ep. 137
Send us a text Stuck on what to name your law firm? In this video, I share eight practical tips for choosing a name that enhances your marketing without becoming an unnecessary obsession. Drawing from both my successes and painful mistakes building Sterling Lawyers, I reveal: Why choosing a name that personally inspires you matters more than you might think The importance of making your name "portable" — easy to remember and share How to avoid the costly trademark mistakes I made when expanding ...
May 01, 2025•9 min•Ep. 136
Send us a text We're back with Tom Hartin for month seven of his family law startup journey on Long Island. March brought his second-highest revenue month at $10,242 — crossing that significant $10K threshold, though his bottom line is temporarily down due to increased marketing investment. In this episode, Tom shares: His detailed roadmap: $16K monthly revenue in 3 months, $30K in 6 months Why he's exploring a PI attorney's networking group despite his already packed schedule How he's handling ...
Apr 25, 2025•31 min•Ep. 135
Send us a text Drowning in tasks that keep you from growing your family law practice? In this episode, I share why mastering delegation was essential to growing Sterling Lawyers to 25+ attorneys and $15M in revenue. Drawing from personal experience, I reveal: The 8 reasons we often resist delegating (and which ones are costing you the most) My five-part delegation framework that transformed our firm's growth trajectory Practical starting points, even if you don't have staff or resources Listen i...
Apr 18, 2025•17 min•Ep. 134
Send us a text Thinking about opening a satellite office? Learn from our $100,000 mistake. In this third conversation with Tony Karls, we reveal our most painful and expensive lessons from expanding Sterling Lawyers to 26+ locations. Drawing from our experience, we covered: Why we spent over $100,000 on a satellite office that should have cost under $20,000 The ideal satellite office setup: 600 square feet with just two rooms (not the elaborate setup we initially built) How our door lock system ...
Apr 10, 2025•17 min•Ep. 133
Send us a text Are you planning to open multiple law firm locations? Your website structure could make or break your success. In the second part of my conversation with my partner Tony Karls, we explore the critical technical aspects of setting up your website for multi-location growth. Drawing from our journey building Sterling Lawyers, Tony reveals: The fundamental difference between single-location and multi-location website structures Why we experienced frustrating "traffic flipping" between...
Apr 03, 2025•19 min•Ep. 132
Send us a text How do you decide where to open a new family law office? In this episode, I sit down with Tony, my partner who led our growth from a single location to 4 regional offices and 20+ satellite locations. Drawing from data-driven analysis, Tony reveals: The specific metrics we use to select territories — including marriage rates, income levels, and population size Why understanding "normative drive time" dramatically impacts success (and why we failed in downtown Chicago) The surprisin...
Mar 27, 2025•19 min•Ep. 131
Send us a text Want to innovate your family law practice but don't know where to start? In this episode, I share how our firm has grown to $15M in revenue through small, practical innovations that compound over time. Drawing from both our successes and failures, I reveal: The most successful innovations are the small, systematic improvements anyone can implement The surprising areas where innovation helped us achieve a 63 NPS score (higher than Disney and Apple) Our biggest innovation failures A...
Mar 17, 2025•24 min•Ep. 130
Send us a text We're back with Tom Hartin for month six of his family law startup journey on Long Island, NY. February brought steady progress with 9 leads, 6 consults, and an impressive 5 hires, along with nearly $8,000 in revenue. In this update, Tom shares: His new second office — now open but still waiting on furniture and Google Maps approval The unexpected walk-in client who signed in 10 minutes (while Tom was in sweatpants!) His detailed 3-month, 6-month, and multi-year growth roadmap The...
Mar 13, 2025•33 min•Ep. 129
Send us a text Struggling to grow your family law practice? Drawing from my journey building Sterling Lawyers, I share the framework I wish I'd had when starting out. In this episode, I reveal: The five key principles that guide smart resource allocation in a growing firm My biggest mistakes and hard-earned lessons along the way How one principle helped us not just survive COVID but grow 18% during the pandemic Why focusing on competition instead of building your own capabilities can cost you ye...
Mar 10, 2025•18 min•Ep. 128
Send us a text How does a top lawyer get 87 client reviews in a single year? In this episode, I sit down with Nina Kelly, one of our partners from our Illinois team, who shares her secrets to gathering authentic 87 reviews while managing 40-55 cases, raising two children, and collecting nearly $800,000 last year. Nina reveals: Why client experience trumps case outcomes — "I don't lose often, but when I do..." clients still leave reviews Her simple communication system that makes clients feel val...
Mar 06, 2025•18 min•Ep. 127
Send us a text Want to grow your family law practice? Stop obsessing over what other firms are doing. In this episode, I reveal how to grow your revenue by focusing inward instead of watching competitors. I share: Why constantly monitoring competitors leads to competitive convergence - where everyone looks the same and profit margins shrink How building internal capabilities (like our fixed fee model) created real growth The abundance mindset helps us target the 65% of family law litigants who d...
Mar 03, 2025•13 min•Ep. 126
Send us a text Growing a family law team is hard - especially when lawyers have no clear path forward. In this episode, I sit down with Robin Esch, our HR leader, to explore how we've solved one of the most vexing problems in scaling a law firm: developing attorneys from associates to partners. Robin shares: The innovative competency matrix that removes subjectivity from promotions How this tool creates clarity for lawyers at every stage of their careers The collaborative assessment process betw...
Feb 27, 2025•29 min•Ep. 125
Send us a text Want to grow your family law practice? I've learned that saying 'yes' to every opportunity isn't always the answer. Drawing from Sterling Lawyers' journey from 1 to 25+ attorneys, I share why focusing purely on family law transformed our firm. In this episode, I break down: Our painful pivot - cutting half our staff and clients to focus only on family law The unexpected rewards of saying 'no' to everything else (even estate planning) Five powerful reasons to narrow your focus—bett...
Feb 24, 2025•21 min•Ep. 124
Send us a text Just wrapped up month five of Tom Hartin’s journey building his family law practice in Long Island, NY. January started slow until late in the month when things suddenly picked up — booking four consults over three days. In this update, Tom shares: How he's doubling down - opening a second office and switching marketing partners Why he's making major changes despite steady (but slower than expected) growth His shift to Rocket Clicks for marketing and what they immediately advised ...
Feb 20, 2025•26 min•Ep. 123
Send us a text Following up on our lawyer compensation discussion, I sat down with two key perspectives from our 2024 comp change — Katie VanDeusen (Managing Partner) who led the rollout, and Nina Kelly (Partner) who experienced it firsthand. Drawing from their different vantage points, we explore: How Katie and our leadership team rebuilt trust through careful, intentional communication The critical importance of 1:1 meetings before group announcements Why making team members feel "safe and hea...
Feb 17, 2025•25 min•Ep. 122
Send us a text As we've grown Sterling Lawyers to 25+ attorneys and $15M in revenue, one of the toughest challenges has been getting lawyer compensation right. In this episode, I sit down with my partner, Jeff Kerlin, to walk through our 2024 journey of transforming our compensation model. We share: Why our original percentage-of-collections model that worked for years started breaking down The painful lessons we learned from rushing changes in 2022 How Jeff Kerlin led a 14-month process to rebu...
Feb 10, 2025•31 min
Send us a text Wondering how to build a killer team culture AND speed up training for your new attorneys at the same time? In this episode, I sit down with Austin Miller (one of our Partners) and Bailey Holt (our rising star Senior Associate) from our Milwaukee team to share a simple but powerful tool we stumbled on - what we call "The Big Table." We dive into: How a simple office layout change transformed our team culture Why our attorneys choose to work together instead of behind closed doors ...
Feb 06, 2025•18 min
Send us a text In this episode, I sit down with Antonio Jimenez, a Florida family law attorney and technologist who's created Divorce.law, which is a lead gen tool for lawyers. ------------------------- Go to: www.JSterlingHughes.com for tons of Family Law Practice resources. My purpose is to Empower Family Law Attorneys so they can build a beautiful family law practice and have the practice of their dreams. I share my family law firm’s secrets, tactics, and strategies of how we have grown fro...
Jan 30, 2025•46 min
Send us a text Is a massive opportunity storm brewing for family law practices? In this show, I explore the impending stories that could reshape how we run our family law firms. Here’s what I covered: Washington State’s new 10-year pilot program to test non-lawyers practicing in a limited way How KPMG moving into big law (through Arizona) will trickle down to people law The surge of private equity firms circling small and rural law practices looking for a way to enter ------------------------- G...
Jan 27, 2025•18 min
Send us a text Growing a family law firm is hard. As we built Sterling Lawyers to a 25+ attorney firm doing $15M in revenue, I learned that you need clear competitive advantages to break out of the pack. In this show, I cover: Why having just one advantage wasn't enough for us Examples of what's working for successful family law firms across the U.S. How to identify your firm's unique advantages Deploying your advantages to increase margins I hope this helps you build a beautiful family practice...
Jan 20, 2025•19 min•Ep. 117
Send us a text Four months into his new family law practice, Tom Hartin shares some frank insights about December 2024. While revenue hit a new high at $10,820, new client signings were slower than expected—though that's typical for the holiday season. Listen in as we discuss: The mindset shifts needed when running your own practice and managing growth expectations Tom's plans for hiring his first associate (and why lead flow matters more than current case count) Real challenges around marketing...
Jan 17, 2025•29 min•Ep. 116
Send us a text Obtaining great client outcomes is not enough to satisfy family law clients. There's a mind-bending truth on what clients want more than great outcomes—it's meeting their emotional needs. In this episode, I share: The truth about what clients will pay premium rates for (hint: it's not legal outcomes) The two things we aggressively focus on at Sterling to deliver this at scale Why the gap between good and great family lawyers isn't about legal skill ------------------------- Go to:...
Jan 13, 2025•12 min•Ep. 115
