PEAK PRACTICE
Peak Practice is a community that delivers expert industry insights on how to scale, streamline, and accelerate personal injury law practices. By providing knowledge and resources on law firm operations, marketing, and business growth, Peak helps personal injury attorneys gain a competitive edge. As the leader in lien resolution, Synergy partners with firms to eliminate settlement bottlenecks, optimize client outcomes, and drive greater profitability—so you can focus on securing justice. Join the community here and discover how partnering with Synergy helps you achieve Peak Practice.
Below are our Synergy InSights on all things related to Peak Practice.
What does it take to lead trial lawyers across the country, balance the demands of a very busy medical mal practice, and confront emerging challenges like artificial intelligence and attacks on the rule of law?
In a recent episode of the Trial Lawyer View by Synergy podcast, I sat down with Sean Domnick of Rafferty Domnick Cunningham & Yaffa, past president of the American Association for Justice (AAJ) and one of the nation’s most respected trial lawyers, for a conversation that every attorney focused on growth and impact should hear.
🤝👥The Power of Relationships in Leadership
When Sean reflected on his time as AAJ president, one theme stood out: relationships. He described how trial lawyers, despite differing opinions, rallied around the importance of being heard and respected. The lesson applies as much inside a law firm as it does in the courtroom: the ability to build consensus, unify strong personalities, and move in one direction is what defines real leadership.
As Sean put it, trial work isn’t just about winning one case, it’s about cases that become causes, transforming single outcomes into broader change. For firms seeking to scale, that same mindset of turning challenges into opportunities for lasting impact is essential.
⚖️🤖Confronting Today’s Challenges: AI and the Rule of Law
We also tackled issues shaping the future of the profession. Sean emphasized that artificial intelligence is no longer a distant concept; it’s here. The AAJ even created a special committee to explore how AI can support practices while safeguarding against risks.
Equally pressing is the erosion of the rule of law. From judicial independence to the enforcement of rulings, trial lawyers are seeing threats that strike at the heart of democracy. Sean underscored the duty of lawyers to stand up, not just for their clients, but for the system itself because without the rule of law, the practice of law cannot exist.
🌄 Why This Matters to the Peak Practice Community
For the Peak Practice community, conversations like this matter because Sean’s perspective is both inspiring and practical. Growth isn’t just about more cases or bigger verdicts. It’s about:
- Building teams that align around a shared mission.
- Embracing new technology with a critical but open mind.
- Standing firm on values that sustain not only your practice, but the profession itself.
🎧 Listen to the full podcast conversation on Trial Lawyer View here: https://triallawyerview.com/podcast/sean-domnick/
🔗 Want more insights like this?
If you’re a personal injury lawyer ready to scale, streamline, and step into your role as CEO, let’s talk. Join the Peak Practice Community, and learn how synergy. can help you eliminate settlement bottlenecks, resolve complex liens, and maximize recoveries. Learn more here: https://bk-0726.partnerwithsynergy.com/peak-practice/
If you want to grow and scale your law firm more effectively, consider partnering with Synergy for lien resolution. Learn more at: https://bk-0726.partnerwithsynergy.com/liens/
What happens when a drug designed to save lives ends up changing them forever for the worse? That question is at the center of a growing storm surrounding Ozempic and similar GLP-1 medications that have exploded in popularity for weight loss.
In a recent Trial Lawyer View by Synergy podcast episode, I sat down with mass tort veteran Michael Lynch of The Michael Brady Lynch Firm , who’s spent the last 20+ years holding pharmaceutical companies accountable for their missteps. From Baycol to Ozempic, Lynch has seen firsthand how billion-dollar drugs can quickly turn into billion-dollar liabilities and why trial lawyers are often the only line of defense for injured patients.
This episode is a masterclass in what it takes to anticipate, prepare for, and prosecute mass torts that are just beginning to unfold.
🚨 The Ozempic Lawsuits: What You Should Be Watching
Originally approved as a diabetes drug, Ozempic’s off-label popularity for weight loss has created a booming market and a rising tide of serious side effects.
Lynch shared what he’s already seeing on the front lines of this litigation:
- Gastroparesis (paralyzed stomach): A potentially life-threatening condition requiring surgery. Many clients don’t even know this term until they end up in the ER.
- Blindness: An emerging second wave of cases that may soon eclipse the initial round of GI injuries.
Despite the mounting evidence, most consumers and many doctors aren’t aware of the risks. According to Lynch, “What’s going to change everything is when someone famous experiences a serious side effect. That’s when public awareness and regulation catch up.”
🔍 The Anatomy of a Mass Tort That Moves the Needle
What makes a drug litigation case viable? Lynch laid out the three pillars that help trial lawyers vet emerging mass torts:
- Signature injury – Clear and traceable side effects, like rhabdomyolysis in Baycol or gastroparesis in Ozempic.
- Bad actor behavior – Manipulated studies, ghostwritten medical journals, or regulatory shortcuts.
- Market scale – Widespread use and real human impact, which multiplies the legal and ethical urgency.
For those newer to mass tort work, Lynch’s story about getting his start with Baycol was both inspiring and strategic. It was a “perfect entry point,” he says a drug with a strong safety perception, obvious harm, and a quick FDA withdrawal. That combination allowed him to learn fast, build a reputation, and develop lasting relationships with other leading lawyers in the space.
💡 Why Trial Lawyers Should Be Paying Attention
Mass torts aren’t just about individual justice. They shape public health policy, expose systemic flaws, and deter corporate misconduct. As Lynch put it: “This is patient care on a wide scale. It’s the drugs your parents, your kids, your friends are using. These cases can literally change how medicine is practiced.”
If you’re a PI lawyer looking to grow your practice, mass torts are no longer a niche. They are a front line in the evolving landscape of personal injury law and a major opportunity for firms ready to scale, specialize, or partner.
🌄 Why This Matters to the Peak Practice Community
For the Peak Practice community, conversations like this matter because they reveal how legal insight and early action can shape the trajectory of mass tort litigation. Hearing Michael Lynch break down the risks of drugs like Ozempic—and how to identify viable cases before they dominate headlines—gives trial lawyers a tactical edge. The takeaways—recognizing signature injuries, understanding drug approval pitfalls, and anticipating shifts in public perception—equip firms to act with precision, protect clients, and build stronger cases. This is the kind of foresight that helps firms grow their impact while staying ahead of emerging litigation trends.
🎧 Listen to the full podcast conversation on Trial Lawyer View here: https://triallawyerview.com/podcast/michael-lynch/
🔗 Want more insights like this?
If you’re a personal injury lawyer ready to scale, streamline, and step into your role as CEO, let’s talk. Join the Peak Practice Community, and learn how synergy. can help you eliminate settlement bottlenecks, resolve complex liens, and maximize recoveries. Learn more here: https://bk-0726.partnerwithsynergy.com/peak-practice/
If you want to grow and scale your law firm more effectively, consider partnering with Synergy for lien resolution. Learn more at: https://bk-0726.partnerwithsynergy.com/liens/
When was the last time you calculated how much time your team spends chasing medical records? If you’re handling mass torts or high-volume single-event cases, you already know the answer, too much.
In a recent Trial Lawyer View by Synergy podcast conversation, I sat down with Daniel Miner of Angeion Group to talk about a challenge that plagues even the most sophisticated firms, validating cases quickly and thoroughly while keeping clients engaged through the long haul. The solutions his team is delivering could change how trial lawyers think about case development.
🔍 The Hidden Bottleneck in Mass Torts
Medical records are the backbone of any valid claim. But retrieving them is rarely straightforward. Facilities reject requests for everything from name changes to incorrect date ranges. Your staff ends up chasing both the providers and the clients, burning hours that could be spent building winning case strategy.
Angeion is tackling this head-on with a blend of AI, nursing expertise, and a nationwide client engagement operation. They start with electronic health record networks, pull everything available, then validate with trained nurses. The result? You get the right records, tied directly to the right claimant in your CMS, without the operational drag.
🚀 Why This Matters for Growth-Minded Firms
Scaling a trial practice isn’t just about signing more clients, it’s about moving them from intake to resolution efficiently. Every time your paralegals stop to resend a HIPAA form or confirm a doctor’s visit from three years ago, momentum slows. Miner’s approach keeps that process moving, letting your team focus on the advocacy that wins.
Angeion also solves a problem many firms overlook: client fallout. Mass torts can take years, and frustrated clients can disappear. Proactive engagement throughout the litigation keeps them connected, informed, and ready when it’s time to sign settlement documents.
💡 The Takeaway for Innovative Trial Lawyers
If you’re serious about growth, think beyond marketing and intake. Look at your operational bottlenecks. Ask yourself:
- How much of our team’s time is spent on tasks that don’t require legal expertise?
- Do we know which cases will hold up at resolution — before investing years into them?
- Are we keeping clients engaged from day one to settlement?
The firms that can answer those questions with confidence will be the ones that scale profitably in the next decade.
🌄 Why This Matters to the Peak Practice Community
For the Peak Practice community, conversations like this matter because they show how operational excellence directly fuels case outcomes and firm growth. Hearing how Dan Miner and the Angeion team tackle the bottlenecks of medical record retrieval, case validation, and client engagement gives trial lawyers practical ways to free up their teams for higher-value work. The lessons — leveraging technology for accuracy, combining it with skilled human review, and maintaining strong client relationships over long litigation timelines — are exactly what help firms scale without losing their personal touch.
🎧 Listen to the full podcast conversation on Trial Lawyer View here: https://triallawyerview.com/podcast/dan-miner/
🔗 Want more insights like this? If you’re a personal injury lawyer ready to scale, streamline, and step into your role as CEO, let’s talk. Join the Peak Practice Community, and learn how synergy. can help you eliminate settlement bottlenecks, resolve complex liens, and maximize recoveries. Learn more here: https://bk-0726.partnerwithsynergy.com/peak-practice/
If you want to grow and scale your law firm more effectively, consider partnering with Synergy for lien resolution. Learn more at: https://bk-0726.partnerwithsynergy.com/liens/
When you hear “mass tort,” you probably think complexity, coordination, and chaos. But what if it’s also the future of scalable legal practice?
On a recent episode of the Trial Lawyer View by Synergy podcast, I sat down with Vance Andrus—a seasoned litigator and architect of some of the most impactful mass tort cases in the country. We were also joined by Vance’s son, Cameron Andrus who is the mass tort manager for Roman Balaban and Associates. Together, we unpacked not just the litigation mechanics of MDLs (multi-district litigation), but what it really takes to lead in that space.
Let me tell you—this wasn’t your typical war story.
🎯 The Untold Challenge of MDLs: Leadership Isn’t Just Assigned. It’s Earned.
Vance put it bluntly: “In a single event, you’re the leader. In mass torts, you have to earn the right to lead thousands.”
The behind-the-scenes politics of MDL leadership can be brutal, elections, personalities, and the need to prove you can manage not just discovery and strategy, but human relationships. And for those already managing thousands of clients back at the firm, this can mean choosing your lane: be the MDL leader, or run the firm. Rarely both.
If you’re trying to grow, here’s the lesson: real scale comes from real delegation. And it starts by empowering people, not just assigning them tasks.
👥 Your Clients Aren’t Inventory. They’re Populations.
Cameron dropped a truth that should hit home for any lawyer looking to scale ethically: “Clients aren’t inventory. They’re people. Populations. And they deserve to be treated that way.”
He outlined a practical system that any firm can implement: a centralized communication rhythm. Send monthly updates to everyone, even if nothing has changed. Call every client quarterly. Ask how their family’s doing. Keep their email current. Simple? Yes. But harder in practice.
If you’re scaling mass tort or simply trying to manage large caseloads better, this approach is a masterclass in operational empathy.
⚖️ How Do You Deal with Problematic MDLs?
When an MDL is a problem, it’s not always the defense—or the facts. It can be a judge who doesn’t understand aggregation. It can be discovery processes that spiral out of control. Or worse, internal misalignment between MDL and state court strategies.
Cameron offered tactical advice: coordinate early. If you know your MDL is going to be tough, explore state court pathways. But don’t go rogue. Loop in leadership, coordinate terms, and negotiate information sharing from day one.
The best results come when there’s alignment across jurisdictions and leadership—not just litigation firepower.
Key Takeaways for Growth-Minded Firms
· Clients need to feel seen even at scale. Thoughtful communication systems are your edge.
· Real leadership in mass torts starts with humility and strategy, not hunger for headlines.
· Your firm’s scalability hinges on who you empower and how much authority they’re actually given.
🌄 Why This Matters to the Peak Practice Community
For the Peak Practice community, conversations like this matter because they bridge the gap between courtroom strategy and business growth. Understanding how leaders like Vance and Cameron Andrus navigate the complexity of MDLs gives trial lawyers actionable insight into scaling their practices without sacrificing client care. These lessons: delegating authority, treating clients as people not case numbers, and building systems that withstand high-volume litigation are exactly what allow firms to grow sustainably. By learning from top practitioners, our community gains the tools to operate more efficiently, serve clients better, and position their firms as leaders in the evolving personal injury landscape.
🔗 Ready to Think Differently About Your Practice?
🎧 Listen to the full conversation on Trial Lawyer View here: https://triallawyerview.com/podcast/vance-cameron-andrus/
📩 Subscribe to the Peak Practice newsletter for more content like this
🗣️ Join the conversation in our growing LinkedIn community
🔗 Want more insights like this?
If you’re a personal injury lawyer ready to scale, streamline, and step into your role as CEO, let’s talk. Join the Peak Practice Community, and learn how Synergy can help you eliminate settlement bottlenecks, resolve complex liens, and maximize recoveries. Learn more here: https://bk-0726.partnerwithsynergy.com/peak-practice/
If you want to grow and scale your law firm more effectively, consider partnering with Synergy for lien resolution. Learn more at: https://bk-0726.partnerwithsynergy.com/liens/
“At some point, your grandchild is going to ask you what you did for a living… and I want to be able to say I made a difference in society.” Troy Rafferty
That moment of reflection from Troy Rafferty of Rafferty Domnick Cunningham & Yaffa during our recent recording of the Trial Lawyer View by Synergy podcast stopped me in my tracks.
Rafferty, who has led litigation in some of the most consequential mass tort cases in U.S. history, think opioids, gadolinium, asbestos, joined me for a conversation that every personal injury lawyer serious about scaling impact and influence needs to hear.
But this wasn’t just another war story session. This was a masterclass in what it means to pursue justice at scale.
🏥 From One Client in a Hospital Bed to Thousands Helped
Troy’s journey into mass torts began 30 years ago with a single client in a hospital bed. That client’s liver was failing because of a widely prescribed diabetes drug. Troy could’ve handled the claim and moved on.
Instead, he saw a systemwide failure and an opportunity to use the power of litigation to change it.
That mindset? That’s what separates elite trial lawyers from everyone else.
“All cases are important. But there’s something about working on a case that changes not just one life, but an entire system.” – Rafferty
👁️ Why Mass Tort Lawyers Are the Watchdogs of Society
Rafferty didn’t sugarcoat the realities. He laid out exactly how pharmaceutical giants operate and why trial lawyers are often the only ones holding them accountable.
He’s seen it all: deceptive marketing, fraud, systemic neglect. Yet what keeps him in the fight isn’t just verdicts or settlements, it’s the societal change that can result when lawyers lean in.
One example: nephrogenic systemic fibrosis (NSF), a once-devastating condition caused by gadolinium-based contrast agents used in MRIs. Through litigation, warnings were updated, protocols changed, and now… the disease is virtually gone.
That’s not hyperbole. That’s the impact of relentless legal advocacy.
💡 What Innovative Lawyers Should Take From This
If you’re leading a personal injury firm and thinking about growth, real growth, you need to think bigger than caseloads and verdicts.
You need to think in terms of legacy and leverage:
- Legacy: Are you building a firm that changes lives or just files claims?
- Leverage: Are your systems and strategies optimized to make space for high-impact cases?
Mass torts may not be for everyone. But the mindset is.
Troy’s story is a call to rethink how we scale justice and how law firm leaders can do more than just keep pace. They can lead change.
🛡️ Final Word: Courage is a Competitive Advantage
Rafferty reminded us that you can’t outspend the pharmaceutical industry. But you can outthink them. Outwork them. Outlast them.
That takes courage.
It also takes a firm that’s built for battle, not bogged down by administrative bottlenecks or inefficient operations. That’s why the most innovative trial lawyers are rethinking how they run their practices, from lien resolution to litigation finance to case acquisition.
The question isn’t whether the industry is changing. It’s whether you’ll lead that change or be left behind.
🌄 Why This Matters to the Peak Practice Community
Troy Rafferty’s story isn’t just compelling, it’s a roadmap for what’s possible when trial lawyers align purpose with scale. For the Peak Practice community, his approach reinforces why building a profitable practice doesn’t mean compromising on mission. It’s about using your legal skills not only to win cases, but to reshape industries and safeguard the public. His insights validate what we believe at Peak: that the most successful personal injury firms are those that think bigger about operations, outcomes, and impact. Whether you’re handling motor vehicle cases or exploring mass torts, the principles of courage, efficiency, and advocacy apply across the board. This is the kind of thinking that moves the profession forward.
🎧 Listen to the full conversation on Trial Lawyer View here: https://triallawyerview.com/podcast/troy-rafferty/
🗣️ Join the conversation in our growing LinkedIn community
🔗 Want more insights like this?
If you’re a personal injury lawyer ready to scale, streamline, and step into your role as CEO, let’s talk. Join the Peak Practice Community, and learn how Synergy can help you eliminate settlement bottlenecks, resolve complex liens, and maximize recoveries. Learn more here: https://bk-0726.partnerwithsynergy.com/peak-practice/
If you want to grow and scale your law firm more effectively, consider partnering with Synergy for lien resolution. Learn more at: https://bk-0726.partnerwithsynergy.com/liens/
What if your best associate wasn’t human?
That’s not a punchline. It’s the very real and rapidly emerging future that trial lawyer and tech entrepreneur Robert Simon of The Simon Law Group is building toward. And if you’re serious about growing your personal injury practice, it’s time to pay attention.
In our recent episode of the Trial Lawyer View by Synergy podcast, Robert joined me to unpack the ideas behind his firm’s growth fueled by tech, his pioneering work in the legal tech stack, and why empathy, not ego, is the secret to both scale and success.
Here’s what every trial lawyer should take away from my conversation with Robert:
🎯Niche Down or Be Left Behind
For Simon, the path to growth started with going narrow. His personal connection to spinal injury law—his uncle was hit by a drunk driver and left with a spinal cord injury—sparked his specialization in disc cases. That decision wasn’t just personal. It was strategic.
“Niche practices are where the future is,” he said. “It’s easier to market, easier to be found, and way more powerful than trying to be everything to everyone.”
It’s not just about marketing, it’s about mastering the medicine, the courtroom language, and the client experience in a way that generalists can’t. His book, Trying Disc Injury Cases, was written to be the “meat and potatoes” playbook for PI lawyers, filled with practical, day-one insights from discovery through verdict.
Takeaway: If you want to grow your brand, go deep, not wide. Specialization isn’t limiting, it’s empowering.
🤖AI Is Not a Threat, It’s Your Leverage
Simon is bullish on AI, but not in a vague, buzzwordy way. He’s building actual tools. From AI-driven intake and case triage to a custom chatbot trained on his firm’s closed data set (trial transcripts, deposition outlines, verdicts), he’s doing what many firms still think is impossible.
“AI is not replacing lawyers,” he said. “It’s replacing inefficiency. The lawyer who uses AI will beat the one who doesn’t every time.”
His bot isn’t just a gimmick. It can answer complex medical/legal valuation questions, draft deposition outlines, and help new attorneys in his firm ramp up faster—without having to ping Robert directly. That’s scale without burnout.
And yes, he’s built an AI avatar of himself.
Takeaway: AI isn’t coming, it’s here. Use it to free your team’s time, enhance client service, and make better decisions faster.
🧱 Systems Build Freedom
Simon doesn’t just win cases—he builds platforms. Justice HQ , his tech-forward legal community, gives solo and small firm lawyers access to mentorship, trial strategy groups, AI trainings, and even co-working spaces across the country.
Attorney Share, another venture he co-founded, is shaking up the referral model. Lawyers can post and track case referrals in a transparent marketplace that integrates with their CRM ensuring compliance, clarity, and better outcomes for clients.
“If you’re still managing referrals on a spreadsheet,” Simon said “you’re putting your license and your clients at risk.”
Takeaway: Don’t scale chaos. Invest in tools that let your practice run like a business, not a fire drill.
💬Mentorship and Storytelling Are Still King
Despite the tech talk, this conversation kept returning to one timeless truth: people matter.
Whether it’s mentoring young lawyers through Justice HQ, telling client stories to inspire staff, or simply choosing to give back freely, Simon believes that helping others wins in the long run.
“Ask your clients to tell their stories,” he urged. “It’s way more powerful than you saying how great you are.”
Takeaway: Innovation should never replace humanity. If your tech doesn’t deepen your empathy, it’s the wrong tech.
Final Word: Define Success on Your Terms
As we wrapped up the episode, Simon shared one last challenge: define what happiness looks like and build toward it.
Whether you’re a solo looking to scale or a managing partner ready to modernize, the key is clarity. Define your mission, invest in your niche, and leverage tools that let you do more of what actually matters.
Because in this new legal era, efficiency isn’t optional. But neither is meaning.
🚀 What’s Next for Growth-Minded Trial Lawyers
If you’re ready to take action on Bob Simon’s advice, start by narrowing your focus, this is where to start:
- Identify the types of cases or clients you’re most passionate about and build your brand around that niche.
- Explore how AI and legal tech can help you operate more efficiently without sacrificing quality.
- Join communities like Justice HQ to learn from other innovative attorneys and get access to resources that support modern practice management.
Don’t wait for perfection—start small, test what works, and refine as you go…
🎯 Why This Matters to the Peak Practice Community
If you’re serious about future-proofing your firm, Robert Simon’s episode is essential listening. His insights matter because they bridge the gap between traditional trial practice and the next generation of legal innovation. From leveraging AI to streamline case prep and intake to building scalable communities like Justice HQ, Robert lays out a clear vision for how personal injury lawyers can grow with intention—not just hustle. His approach shows that technology, when grounded in empathy and purpose, can amplify your impact without burning you out. For a community like Peak Practice, focused on sustainable growth and operational excellence, Robert’s blueprint is a powerful example of what’s possible when lawyers think—and build—like entrepreneurs.
🔗 Ready to Think Differently About Your Practice?
If you’re a trial lawyer who’s hungry to scale and grow your firm, this episode is for you.
🎧 Listen to the full conversation on Trial Lawyer View here: https://triallawyerview.com/podcast/bob-simon/
📩 Subscribe to the Peak Practice newsletter for more content like this
🗣️ Join the conversation in our growing LinkedIn community
🔗 Want more insights like this?
If you’re a personal injury lawyer ready to scale, streamline, and step into your role as CEO, let’s talk. Join the Peak Practice Community, and learn how synergy. can help you eliminate settlement bottlenecks, resolve complex liens, and maximize recoveries. Learn more here: https://bk-0726.partnerwithsynergy.com/peak-practice/
If you want to grow and scale your law firm more effectively, consider partnering with Synergy for lien resolution. Learn more at: https://bk-0726.partnerwithsynergy.com/liens/
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