Michael Smikun
Michael exposes liars and upholds the truth. He was an indispensable leader in successfully obtaining a $33 million and a $27.6 million dollar jury verdicts, making Callagy Law one of only two law firms in the country to have two top 100 national jury verdicts in 3 years, including the largest jury verdict in the State of Arizona since 2016 and both with multiple millions of dollars in punitive damages.
He also successfully argued and won cases in the United States Circuit Court of Appeals for the Second, Third, Fifth, and Ninth Circuits; various state trial and appellate courts; the NJ Supreme Court; and has even been granted admission t the highest court in the United States, the Supreme Court. He has won cases valued in the hundreds of millions dollars for his clients. Michael attacks every matter with immense caring, unstoppable urgency and ferocious aggression that inspires his team to do the same. When not aggressively attacking cases or developing his team, you will often find Michael watching and quoting movies from the ‘90s, reading and reciting every piece of trivia he can find, and spending time with his daughter and trying to convince her that Star Wars is the greatest film in history.
Brian Williamson
A California native, Brian Williamson relocated to the Valley of the Sun in 2010. In no time at all, he fell in love with Arizona’s verdant deserts, forested mountains, and cool lakes. Like many in the Phoenix area, he is thrilled to be living in this southwestern paradise.
Brian is an accomplished litigator with more than fifty (50) civil trials under his belt. In addition to championing his clients in the courtroom, Brian is also experienced in helping small businesses negotiate contracts and draft governing documents that provide certainty in daily operations while maximizing opportunities for vocational success.
Beyond serving as an advocate, Brian takes the moniker “counselor” very seriously, and always looks for opportunities to further empower his clients and help them realize their own potential and abilities to handle the various challenges life brings their way. Fundamentally, clients are people, and they should be treated and cared for as people.
FREE LIVE CLE CREDIT IS ONLY AVAILABLE FOR IN-HOUSE COUNSEL (FRACTIONAL GCs, GOVERNMENT ATTORNEYS, & ALSP ATTORNEYS INCLUDED) AND SUBSCRIBERS TO IN-HOUSE CONNECT ON-DEMAND.
IF YOU ARE A LAW FIRM ATTORNEY YOU ARE WELCOME TO ATTEND OUR LIVE EVENTS BUT UNLESS YOU ARE SUBSCRIBED TO IHC ON-DEMAND, WE WILL NOT BE PROCESSING YOUR CLE REQUESTS.
This program is approved for CLE credit in the following states: New York, Pennsylvania, California, Illinois, Texas.
This program is pending CLE credit in the following states: Georgia, Iowa, Minnesota, Missouri, North Carolina, Ohio, Tennessee, Utah, Vermont, Wyoming and Wisconsin.
This program is pending CLE and CPD credit for self-application by the attorney or for reciprocal CLE credit in the following states: Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Hawaii, Idaho, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Jersey, New Hampshire, New Mexico, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Oregon, Québec, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Virginia and Washington.
We do NOT provide CLE for: Mississippi or Arkansas.
This program is appropriate for newly admitted attorneys and experienced attorneys.
COURAGE OVER COMFORT: How to Deliver Unpopular Legal Advice Internally—So It’s Heard, Understood, and Drives Smart Business Action
Event Description
In-house lawyers often face a critical leadership challenge: how to speak uncomfortable truths—especially when business partners are sprinting toward results and would rather not hear “bad news.” Whether it’s pausing a risky deal, raising a compliance flag, or saying “no” to a shortcut, the real challenge isn’t just legal accuracy—it’s communication that lands, builds trust, and leads to better outcomes.
This session offers a practical framework to help in-house counsel deliver hard messages with empathy, clarity, and influence. You’ll learn how to shift from being seen as the “no police” to a valued strategic ally—even when you’re raising red flags.
Join us on Tuesday, August 12 at 12pm ET as Michael J. Smikun, Esq. and Brian Williamson of Callagy Law break down the Rapport–Truth–HUI–Action–Agreement model for legal advocacy. Through real-world stories, tools, and reflection prompts, they’ll help you build confidence and credibility in the messenger role—so your legal advice doesn’t just get heard, but acted on.
Key Takeaways:
- How to calibrate your delivery based on the businessperson’s pressures, energy, and incentives
- Techniques to frame legal risk in business-relevant terms—without blame or fear tactics
- How to position yourself as a partner, not a blocker—with language that offers options, not ultimatums
- Tools to move from compliance pushback to shared decision-making and aligned outcomes
- Coaching cues for helping your team build influence in high-stakes internal conversations
Who Should Attend
This session is designed for in-house counsel and legal leaders who frequently advise cross-functional stakeholders and want to elevate how they communicate legal risk—especially when the advice may be unpopular, urgent, or disruptive to business plans.
There is NO COST to attend this LIVE program!
This program is FREE, thanks to our gracious sponsor, Callagy Law! If you can’t attend the live program, the recording will be available for viewing via our paid CLE library, In-House Connect On-Demand!
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