Podcast Blog Posts

The Shifting Political Landscape is Drawing More Individuals to Public Service Lawyering

Sat, 21 Mar 2026 12:00:00 +0000

While almost half of beginning law students say they want to work in public service, by graduation those percentages fall dramatically. Still, the trend is changing: these days more newly-minted lawyers are choosing careers in government and the nonprofit sector, as the ever-shifting political landscape draws more individuals to consider public service lawyering.

Legal Practices are Learning that Training on AI has Never Been More Important

Tue, 24 Feb 2026 12:00:00 +0000

With Artificial Intelligence increasingly used in legal practice, our guest today says it’s time for everyone - from first year law students to the most senior law firm partners - to be trained on AI.

Diving Deep into the NH Constitution

Fri, 30 Jan 2026 12:00:00 +0000

Bryan Rome, a second-year law student whose project conducting deep research into the New Hampshire constitution revealed long-forgotten aspects of this vital founding document.

Passports, Trans Rights, and the Supreme Court

Thu, 18 Dec 2025 12:00:00 +0000

In November, the U.S. Supreme Court gave a temporary “green light” to a Trump Administration policy concerning transgender Americans and their passports.The State Department will now only issue passports that match the applicant's sex as shown on their birth certificates.

Trade, Tariffs, and the Court

Mon, 27 Oct 2025 12:00:00 +0000

October's guest on the Legal Impact is Christine Abely, an assistant professor at UNH-Franklin Pierce ��һ�Թ� and an expert on economic sanctions, international trade, and compliance. On this month’s episode we examine the arguments behind a US Supreme Court case over extensive tariffs put in place by the Trump Administration in early 2025.

The Risk Collaborative -- Navigating Risk Around the Globe

Fri, 19 Sep 2025 12:00:00 +0000

September's guest on The Legal Impact is UNH Franklin Pierce ��һ�Թ� alumna Sabrina Segal. She’s Director of The Risk Collaborative, an initiative that fosters partnership, knowledge-sharing and advocacy among nonprofits, non-governmental organizations, and funders. From the tiny charity in your community to global NGOs, like Save the Children, Segal helps them craft a system for assessing, planning, and managing risk, and she does it on a shoestring budget.

AI & the Role of the Library

Sat, 23 Aug 2025 12:00:00 +0000

In an era of instant information, where Artificial Intelligence will not just answer your question but write the essay for you - what is the role of the law library? Or even…books? We find out on the latest episode of “The Legal Impact.” Our guests are two longtime law librarians at UNH Franklin Pierce ��һ�Թ�: Susan Drisko Zago, Professor and Law Library Director; and Kathy Fletcher, Reference and Public Service librarian. Listen in as they reflect on the massive shifts they’ve seen in legal research and library practice, and how all these changes may affect the next generation of lawyers.

Professor Stanley Kowalski Sees a Renewed Vision for Latin America

Fri, 25 Jul 2025 12:00:00 +0000

On this episode of The Legal Impact, Professor Stanley Kowalski recalls President John F. Kennedy's South American initiative called the "Alliance for Progress," unveiled sixty years ago. Kowalski says it's time to revive this effort, but updated for our times: promoting a stable, prosperous Latin America through technology transfer and intellectual property.

Tom Rath Remembers U.S. Supreme Court Justice David Souter

Thu, 26 Jun 2025 12:00:00 +0000

Former U.S. Supreme Court Justice David Souter, who died in May, had an impressive legal career in NH, long before he went to Washington. We also discuss why his appointment to the High Court didn't turn out to be the "slam-dunk" for conservatives that was predicted.

The Daniel Webster Scholar Honors Program

Fri, 23 May 2025 12:00:00 +0000

The Daniel Webster Scholar Honors program: UNH-Franklin Pierce ��һ�Թ�'s unique approach toward training lawyers who are ready to practice on day one after graduation.

Mediation's Role in our Legal System

Fri, 25 Apr 2025 12:00:00 +0000

Mediation: It plays a huge role in our legal system and is in the spotlight in this edition of "The Legal Impact!" Our guest is Melinda Gehris of Prism Conflict Solutions. She's also an adjunct professor at UNH-Franklin Pierce ��һ�Թ�, where she teaches dispute resolution. Pop-culture images of litigation often present the drama of a courtroom, with lawyers “battling it out” before a judge and jury. But in reality - most litigation is settled without a trial, often saving the individuals involved - time, money, and stress.

The Legal Impact: Challenges to Academic Freedom on College Campuses

Sat, 29 Mar 2025 12:00:00 +0000

Challenges to Academic Freedom is in the spotlight in this edition of "The Legal Impact! We talk with UNH-Franklin Pierce Law Professor Seth Oranburg about how colleges and universities are reacting to the Trump Administration's threat to withdraw federal funding from schools that engage in speech that runs counter to its agenda on diversity, gender, inclusivity and anti-semitism. We explore the legal principles and political realities at stake.

The Legal Impact: Frankly Speaking, IP Attorney Patrick Muffo Shares His Journey

Thu, 27 Feb 2025 12:00:00 +0000

Alumni are in the spotlight, on the latest episode of The Legal Impact! Our guest is Patrick Muffo, an intellectual property attorney at the Polsinelli Law Firm in Chicago. He graduated in 2007 from what was then called Franklin Pierce Law School. His experience deeply shaped his life, so much so that last year, he started a podcast called “Frankly Speaking,” where he checks in with fellow alums, to learn what directions their lives have taken since leaving “the cozy embrace of Concord, N.H.

The Legal Impact: The Legal Landscape for Sports Gambling, with Professor Mike McCann

Fri, 14 Feb 2025 12:00:00 +0000

Today on The Legal Impact, one of the country’s leading experts on this topic, Michael McCann. He's founding director of the Sports and Entertainment Law Institute at UNH-Franklin Pierce ��һ�Թ� and is a visiting professor at Harvard.

The Legal Impact: Voting Laws

Fri, 06 Dec 2024 12:00:00 +0000

In the four years between the last two presidential campaigns, hundreds of new election laws have been passed in states around the country, including New Hampshire. With a major election just behind us, The Legal Impact looks at the ever-shifting legal landscape around voting, with Professor Kelsey Klementowicz. She’s an attorney, and an academic visiting professor at UNH-Franklin Pierce ��һ�Թ�, with a specialty in civil rights and election policy. She has advised many groups nationwide about these issues.

The Legal Impact: The High Cost of Healthcare

Fri, 25 Oct 2024 12:00:00 +0000

On the latest episode of The Legal Impact, UNH Franklin Pierce ��һ�Թ� Professor Lucy Hodder explains why care is so expensive in this country. Listen to this fascinating overview by one of our state’s leading experts.

The Legal Impact: Campus Protests and Free Speech

Mon, 23 Sep 2024 12:00:00 +0000

On the latest episode of The Legal Impact, we explore First Amendment rights of free speech and free assembly in light of anti-war demonstrations last spring on college campuses around the country. Our guest is Seth Oranburg, professor at UNH-Franklin Pierce ��һ�Թ�.

The Legal Impact: The U.S. Supreme Court

Mon, 12 Aug 2024 12:00:00 +0000

A special two-part series on The Legal Impact! There were so many key decisions decided by the high court this year, we decided to present them in two episodes. Part One covers the so-called “Trump Docket” - those rulings concerning the former President, including the immunity case. Part Two covers a half-dozen other important decisions, ranging from government regulation, environmental protection, local homelessness policies, and those perennial Supreme Court issues: guns and abortion.

The Legal Impact: The "War on Drugs"

Fri, 26 Jul 2024 12:00:00 +0000

In the latest episode of The Legal Impact, UNH-Franklin Pierce Law professor and former Public Defender Melissa Davis explains the ever-shifting legal landscape around this issue, and why most of these approaches haven’t worked.

The Legal Impact: What is the NextGen Bar?

Wed, 22 May 2024 12:00:00 +0000

On the latest episode of The Legal Impact, we learn more about this new bar exam and what will change.