Read the Episode Transcript
| 00:04 | ANNOUNCER: Welcome to Lawyers in the House with Montlick. Wish you had a lawyer in the family? Now you do. Here’s your host, Veronica Waters.
VERONICA: Hey, hey, welcome to the House. Lawyers in the House with Montlick on WSB. I’m Veronica Waters. Happy to welcome you into the House for another happy episode with us today. |
| 00:28 | VERONICA: We’ve got two, as always, special guests in the House with us. And I think you’re really going to like this because we’re taking you once again behind the scenes of what happens in the halls at Montlick Injury Attorneys. But before I get to our introductions, I want to throw a little pop quiz at you. If I say, “Batman and blank,” what’s the first thing that pops in your head?
LAMAR: Robin. VERONICA: People say Robin. LAMAR: Yep. VERONICA: I’m going to say… What if it’s Batman and somebody else? |
| 00:59 | LAMAR: I wouldn’t know what to say.
VERONICA: Someone who is a confidant, a father figure, a loyal counselor and protector, a conscience, a mentor… ELLEN: Superman? LAMAR: Ellen Forrester. VERONICA: Someone who knows all and sees all and helps coach Batman in every mission, grand or small. ELLEN: Who’s the guy? LAMAR: I don’t even know. |
| 01:27 | VERONICA: His name is Alfred Pennyworth, and he is so much more than a butler to the Wayne family. He is the man arguably behind some of Batman’s greatest moments, always there for him no matter what he’s doing when he’s out there, whether you call it being a vigilante or just taking care of business the way it needs to be on the streets of Gotham or Metro Atlanta or the United States or wherever. That man has his Alfred Pennyworth. And today we’re going to talk about who some of those magic people are behind the scenes in the halls of Montlick Injury Attorneys. |
| 02:00 | VERONICA: So first, let’s introduce you, or reintroduce you, to one of our favorite guests on the show. I know y’all have seen us on social media clowning. This is my girl, Ellen Forrester, Montlick injury attorney. Welcome back to the House.
ELLEN: Thank you. So glad to be back. I love these shows. VERONICA: You do? ELLEN: I do. VERONICA: Is it me or you just love being on the radio? I know we have such great chemistry. Do we not? ELLEN: We should start our own show just as a side, as a side gig. Side hustle. VERONICA: It would be about The Avett Brothers. ELLEN: Yes, The Avett Brothers, my favorite. I call them my fave-etts. VERONICA: Oh, I love that. Do you have a T-shirt that says that? |
| 02:30 | ELLEN: I do. I made a t-shirt that says, fave-etts.
VERONICA: Ellen’s like a Deadhead in that she travels all over the country to see The Avett Brothers perform. She and her husband go. I don’t really know their work very well, but apparently they’re amazing. ELLEN: Amazing. You should check out The Avett Brothers. VERONICA: All right, so she’s got wonderful taste in music, and she’s also a wonderful attorney. Tell us about your road to the law, Ellen. ELLEN: So actually, The Avett Brothers have a lyric in a song, and they say, “Decide what to be and go be it.” |
| 02:57 | ELLEN: And so, I decided when I was in college that I wanted to be a lawyer, and it took me a minute to get there, you know, as it does a lot of people. But once I decided what to be, I knew that that’s what I was going to do. And so, I just kept plugging away at it until I was able to get to law school and lived in New Orleans for law school. It was great. Went to Washington, D.C. after law school, got a post-doctorate Master of Law – a little extra law degree. And then I found my way back to Atlanta and to Montlick, and I love it. |
| 03:27 | ELLEN: I love being an attorney. I love helping people. So, everybody listening out there, decide what to be and go be it. You can do it.
VERONICA: Did you know that personal injury was going to be the field for you immediately? ELLEN: So, I initially went into criminal defense, but what’s interesting is that in law school, the best grade that I got was in torts, which is what personal injury is. We call them torts. One of my colleagues from Montlick actually was in my torts class, and that’s how I found my way back to Atlanta and back to Montlick and Associates. |
| 03:56 | ELLEN: So, it was a natural progression from being a defense attorney and helping people in that way to helping people in the personal injury context because you’re still meeting people oftentimes on their worst day and trying to bring them up out of that and help them and to change their lives. And so, the work is super meaningful, and I really love it.
VERONICA: You were award-winning when you were at Tulane Law, yes? ELLEN: Yes. VERONICA: And I know that I’ve heard that your clients think that you’re super great at taking really complex ideas and concepts and breaking them down in a simple way. |
| 04:30 | VERONICA: Is there something special about you that makes you perfect in that lane?
ELLEN: So, I think what’s special about me is that I don’t think I’m perfect in any lane. But I think that you just have to meet people where they are, no matter who it is, right? There is a way if you think… and you’re a compassionate person… and I say my arrows point outwards. I look at the world and how can I communicate with people? If you figure out where people are, you can find a way to explain things to them. |
| 05:00 | ELLEN: And if you’re not frustrated by it… but you have to, you know, just kind of see somebody and meet them where they are.
VERONICA: I love that. And that’s how you meet juries too, which is what your award was… trial advocacy was your award, which clearly means you know how to communicate with a jury, too. Sitting next to Ellen is someone who is, I’m going to say kind of like your Alfred Pennyworth. ELLEN: Absolutely. VERONICA: Yes, right? His name is Lamar Bridges. He is new to the House. Welcome, Lamar. LAMAR: Yes, thank you so much for having me. It’s an absolute honor to be here. |
| 05:29 | VERONICA: Now, Lamar, am I right that you are a paralegal at Montlick?
LAMAR: Yes, legal assistant. VERONICA: Legal assistant. Tell me a little bit about yourself and what led you into the halls of Montlick Injury Attorneys. LAMAR: Okay. To be quite honest, I didn’t really know what career field I wanted to go into, even going into college. I was a big athlete, a great student athlete, I would say. So, I always wanted to stay into sports. |
| 05:58 | LAMAR: So initially out of college, I went to work for Arthur Blank’s family of businesses and did stadium operations for the Falcons and the, you know, stadium and all that, which was amazing. That’s something I really cherish. I learned a lot of… but it wasn’t my passion, if you will. I thought it was, it wasn’t. My mother actually works at the firm as well. So that’s something I got to experience as a child with, you know, being around the firm, you know, being there as a kid sometimes and just the little kid running around the halls. |
| 06:30 | VERONICA: Like Jason Saltzman, when… his dad’s the managing attorney there, right? And Jason used to be in the halls in diapers, I think.
LAMAR: Yeah. Causing trouble. And my mom just, you know, bragging about me – of all my academic accomplishments. And oh, he won this championship and this and that. You know, eventually I took a liking to the building itself, the people around the firm. When it came to leaving the Arthur Blank’s family of businesses, which again, I loved and shout outs to them… |
| 07:02 | LAMAR: I had a deep conversation with my mother. It was one of those life decisions. I didn’t really know which direction life was gonna take me. She kind of, you know, she put that, put it into my ear, hey, you know, come to the firm. You’ll be great in this field. You know, there’s certain things about you that would be great, especially as a legal assistant. Obviously, the end goal is to become an attorney and to keep growing in that field.
VERONICA: Wow, that’s great. LAMAR: It took me a while to, I guess, come to with my mom asking me to come to the firm and all that. |
| 07:33 | LAMAR: Cause, you know, that in itself is a little bit tough, not just wanting to work under mom and all that stuff. But it’s been an absolute blessing, you know, just learning this career field and being a legal assistant is really rewarding for me because in life, I just kind of put the intention to put people first and I just love to help people. So, this is literally all I do is help people day in and day out. |
| 08:00 | LAMAR: Whether it be the client, whether it be the attorney, whether it be a provider, you know, that needs help with setting a client up for scheduling. There’s always help along in this career field. So, I’m just excited to be here and I’m excited to grow.
VERONICA: You know what? I’ve said it once. I’ll say it again. Not all heroes wear capes. So, let’s welcome back to the House, Ellen Forrester and to the House for his first visit, Lamar Bridges. Thank you guys so much for being here with me. We are talking, as I said, about the things that go on behind the scenes. |
| 08:30 | VERONICA: You know, we’ve talked a lot about how court cases come about, you know, when they develop into lawsuits, what intake is like. But in between that are a lot of steps, a lot of different… there’s a lot of minutiae that goes into preparing a case, right? And helping a client on their journey to justice. So, let’s talk a little bit about what you need, Ellen, in your role. Because it’s my understanding that Montlick has dozens of Lamars, essentially, who are there to help you behind the scenes. How do they do that? |
| 09:01 | ELLEN: We do. I’ve worked some with Lamar, but my main legal assistant is… her name is Dayna Clark. I’m going to give a shout out to Dayna.
VERONICA: Shout out to Dayna. ELLEN: And I could not function. I could not do my job without Dayna. It would be literally impossible for me to do what I do without the Daynas and without the Lamars. Because lawyers, we spend a lot of time talking to other lawyers, like opposing counsel or insurance adjusters or doing the sort of legal work part of the puzzle, which oftentimes is really behind the scenes. |
| 09:35 | ELLEN: And the frontline folks, the intake people, the Lamars, the Daynas are doing the lion’s share of, you know, sorting out what documents do I need to get? They’re so good at what they do because they’ve been trained so well and they’re just so good at their jobs that they can look at a case and they can say, Ellen’s going to need this declarations page. She still needs to know whether the client has their own uninsured motorist policy. If they don’t, did they get a waiver? Who are the providers? |
| 10:05 | ELLEN: They keep up with the treatment. And they’re constantly checking in with me. I got a text from Dayna about 20 minutes ago giving me the heads up about something that I’m going to find when I get back to the office, right? And so, they stay one step ahead of us. Oftentimes I’ll message Dayna and say, I can’t find blah, blah, blah. I promise I looked in the file and she’s like, well, you didn’t because it’s in the file. And I’m like, OK, you’re right. I did not look. But it’s quicker for me to ask you. But they’re keeping the machine of the case. |
| 10:33 | ELLEN: You know… There are so many gears and so many widgets and so many things moving that they really keep it all together. And if it wasn’t for what they do, we wouldn’t be able to do our job because I wouldn’t be able to talk to the adjuster or the attorney because I would have to figure out where my declarations page is and where my this is and what’s happening with the client’s treatment. So, they’re on the front lines and an integral part of what we do. |
| 11:04 | ELLEN: You know they’re the ones that kind of call me and say, Hey, you know it seems like the treatment’s finished. You know, check back in with a client, but let’s move this forward. |
| 11:27 | VERONICA: So, what I was hearing is that every attorney at Montlick has a huge sort of complement- maybe not huge support staff, but you’ve got your receptionists from the very beginning, you’ve got your assistants, you’ve got your paralegals, you’ve got the mail persons, you’ve got anybody else and the colleagues in the world.
ELLEN: That’s right. And we’ve got an IT department, and we’ve got people that are in escrow and, you know, doing the finance side of it. I mean, it is a family feeling environment with lots of family members. |
| 11:58 | VERONICA: And incredibly, clients also get to talk to their attorneys one-on-one. Lamar, let’s start off before we go to our break with you talking a little bit about your role at the firm, what you do.
LAMAR: So, I can’t really put it into one thing. It’s pretty broad. In order to be a good legal assistant in my eyes, you’re gonna have to be a good communicator. |
| 12:21 | LAMAR: You know, that piece is very important as far as building that rapport with the client, building that trust factor, because there’s gonna be a lot of the case, the client’s gonna be communicating with you as the assistant, because we’re the ones that are gonna monitor that treatment. We’re gonna help you get set up for treatment. We’re gonna, you know, make sure the insurance claims are set up, help you deal with the insurance companies, kind of go over the case process with you, et cetera. |
| 12:48 | LAMAR: That’s like an ongoing process throughout the case process, if you, you know… if you will, because it’s… one, it’s a very stressful situation for the client, whether it’s a minor fender bender or whether it’s a catastrophic injury.
VERONICA: All right, we’re talking to Lamar Bridges and Ellen Forrester from Montlick Injury Attorneys about the machine behind Montlick. And we’re going to continue this coming up next on Lawyers in the House. |
| 13:18 | You’re listening to our podcast, Lawyers in the House with Montlick. Join us 8:00 a.m. every Sunday if you want to listen live on 95.5 WSB.
VERONICA: Welcome back to the House. It’s Lawyers in the House with Montlick on WSB. I’m Veronica Waters here with Montlick injury attorney Ellen Forrester and legal assistant Lamar Bridges from the halls of Montlick. |
| 13:40 | VERONICA: And they’re telling us a little bit about the teamwork that goes into making cases successful for their clients. Lamar, you were talking about, no matter how big or small the accident or injury, there is something to this need of yours to make the stress as minimal as possible for that client.
LAMAR: So, on my end, I’m gonna do everything as possible to overly communicate. VERONICA: Overly communicate. LAMAR: Overly communicate. |
| 14:09 | LAMAR: I don’t want them to put in any more effort than they need to. We’re gonna minimize the effort on their end. All we ask for the clients is to be compliant with treatment. Communicate with us if you have any type of address or phone changes or phone number changes or anything of that nature. And just, you know, communicate with us. You know, pick up when we call, answer emails if you can. I know everyone’s busy, but we just want to make sure everything’s in order for your case before we get the file over to the attorney. And, you know, so we can have everything in order for negotiations. |
| 14:39 | VERONICA: So, it seems that you would be one of those people that I would communicate with a lot, but that doesn’t mean that clients don’t get to talk to Ellen or the other attorneys at the firm.
LAMAR: Right, not at all. Right. It’s just that’s if you ask to speak to the attorney, we’ll get you right to the attorney, of course. It’s just during the case process, it’s gonna be the legal assistants slash paralegals who are gonna do a lot of that grunt work with notating the file, monitoring all the treatment, monitoring their claims. |
| 15:08 | LAMAR: You know, we’re gonna talk to the insurance companies a lot as well, even before it gets into negotiations. So, and I’ll make it known to my clients in the forefront. You and I are gonna be doing a lot of communicating, but if you like, just let me know and I’ll get you to the attorney right away.
VERONICA: Right away. Do you feel like an ownership of the cases too, along with the attorneys? LAMAR: Big time. VERONICA: Yeah? LAMAR: Big time. Again, I’m overly communicative, extreme ownership when it comes to these cases. I take it as, like I said, I was an athlete before. |
| 15:38 | LAMAR: So, to me, it’s something to consistently be growing at, consistently progressing at, finding new ways to do the job more efficiently, things of that nature.
VERONICA: Tell me about a time when you knew you were doing your job right, Lamar. LAMAR: Ooh, that’s a good question. That’s a tough one. ‘ Cause there’s so many different variables in these cases. VERONICA: Something that sticks with you. LAMAR: Yeah. There was a time to where I was helping a client that was on the verge of being evicted. |
| 16:08 | LAMAR: We were settling the case. The check had not yet been issued. We had settlement paperwork signed, et cetera. Sometimes the insurance companies can take a bit to send the check after the settlement paperwork is signed, which they shouldn’t. They should send it right away. What I did was I hassled that insurance company to the point of… I probably called them 30 times in that one day just to make sure we got that check sooner than later. I even offered to go drive up there and pick it up myself if possible, just because I knew that our client’s livelihood was depending on this check. |
| 16:42 | LAMAR: And again, it doesn’t… whether it’s a big or small check, they needed that check. We made it happen. Actually went and picked up the check. I believe I sent an investigator, went and picked up the check, got it in, got them an advance. They were able to keep their home.
VERONICA: Talking to Lamar Bridges and Ellen Forrester from Montlick Injury Attorneys, Lawyers in the House will be right back. You’re listening to our podcast, Lawyers in the House with Montlick. Join us 8:00 a.m. every Sunday on 95.5 WSB. |
| 17:15 | VERONICA: Hey, hey, welcome back to the House. It’s Lawyers in the House on WSB with Veronica Waters. That is me. I’m here with Montlick injury attorney Ellen Forrester and legal assistant from Montlick, Lamar Bridges. We’re talking about what goes on behind the scenes at Montlick on clients’ journeys to justice. If you missed any of the cool part of the first part of the show, you don’t have to worry. Just subscribe to us on your favorite podcast platform. |
| 17:42 | VERONICA: We are there every single week. Whenever the new episode drops, you’ll have it in your ears just like that. And between shows, make sure you follow us on every social platform, @MontlickLaw. I can’t wait to see you there. Ellen and Lamar, we were talking about, again, Lamar’s role as a legal assistant at the firm. And one of the first things I asked you, Lamar, was whether you were a paralegal, but you said you’re a legal assistant. What’s the difference? |
| 18:09 | ELLEN: So generally speaking, paralegals have an extra certification or degree to be a paralegal. They, you know, create legal documents, you know, like they’ll do, like, lawsuits. They’ll, like, put together paperwork for a lawsuit or they’re, you know… they have training in how to, like, read cases and things like that. So, some legal assistants are paralegals. Some paralegals are legal assistants, but the two are separate. And at Montlick, we have both. |
| 18:37 | ELLEN: You know, I know that we have clients that call in a lot and they maybe have retained another law firm to represent them, and they feel like they only ever talked to a legal assistant, or they only ever talked to a paralegal. They don’t necessarily know that there’s a difference, right? One of the things that I think sets us apart is that the very day that you call into the firm, you’re going to get to talk to a lawyer. And like Lamar said, if he’s handling a case and he’s got a client that wants to talk to a lawyer, they’re going to get me on the phone. |
| 19:06 | ELLEN: You’re going to get to talk to a lawyer. That’s one thing that I think makes us so special is that we know everybody has a role and we work those roles together. Wouldn’t you agree?
LAMAR: I would agree. It’s a well-oiled machine. I think teamwork makes the dream work, is basically what I can say. We lean on the attorneys a lot as I feel like sometimes the attorneys can lean on us. But we have to build that rapport, not only with the client, but with the attorney. |
| 19:35 | VERONICA: Yeah, the client comes in so scared, hurt, anxious.
LAMAR: And that’s my opportunity to kind of, I call it turning a moment of truth into a moment of delight. I’m gonna discuss the whole process with them. I’m gonna give them a very clear understanding. And I’m also gonna just, you know, give them that trust that, hey, I’m gonna stay on top of this for you. If you have any questions, there are no dumb questions. Ask me anything and I will help you facilitate. It is a process. And like I said before, it’s a stressful situation. |
| 20:05 | ELLEN: It is. It’s also the “help us help you” thing I think is really important because you know the legal assistants, paralegals help the attorneys, they’re also helping the clients. The client participation in this is a critical component, right? Because there are going to be some things that you, as the client, like, are most effective if you do them. And we may ask you to do things that you don’t have the capacity to do. I’ve quit sending things to people to ask them to print them. Nobody has a printer at home, right? |
| 20:35 | ELLEN: Unless you’re me and I’ve got like nine craft printers, right? My husband’s like, oh, you bought another printer, and I’m like, oh, I got a craft to do. But like, you know, so we’re not gonna put anything on a client that we don’t think that they can handle. But if you can’t handle it, tell Lamar. He’ll figure it out. Like, that’s okay, but help us help you, right? Because we’re all a really important piece of the whole case, right? It starts and stops with all of us.
VERONICA: And some of it’s like the little stuff. |
| 20:59 | VERONICA: I remember Lamar was mentioning when we were talking off air about little things like medical bills and making sure clients tell you where they go for treatment or if they had another treatment, that kind of thing that might slip my mind. You know, it might be routine to me, but it’s something that you need to know when you’re building the evidence in the case.
LAMAR: And it can get redundant. A lot of times I will call clients and I’ll apologize. I’m so sorry. I know I ask you this a lot, but… You know, who are you currently treating with right now? And I’ll let them know, hey, I don’t mean to bug you or annoy you, but I just wanna ensure that your case is as strong as possible. |
| 21:33 | LAMAR: And I’m also gonna reiterate the importance of compliance. You wanna show up to every scheduled treatment session. Obviously, life happens. You know, you may get sick, there may be a family emergency. You just wanna simply call the facility, you know, in a timely manner, let them know and they will reschedule you.
VERONICA: It’s striking to me that this isn’t just like one call with the firm and then everything is over. There’s like a constant flow of communication. ELLEN: And that’s one thing that makes this different too. |
| 21:59 | ELLEN: I mean, we have clients that have left other law firms because they said it has been months and no one has called me, and I don’t even know my lawyer’s name. And you know, I tell them that’s not going to happen here. That’s not going to happen with our team. You know one thing that I really want to kind of just like piggyback on what Lamar said about making sure that you go to treatment… I’m not sending clients to treatment to make a case. I’m sending clients to treatment because they’re hurt, right? And so, when I say go to treatment, it’s because if you go to one session of PT, physical therapy, and your physical therapist… who we send people to are like DPTs. |
| 22:33 | ELLEN: They have like a doctorate in physical therapy, right? They’re like physician-y PT people. If they tell you you need to come back in four days and you make an appointment for four days, it’s not that they want you to come back in four days just for fun. They want you to come back in four days because it’s critical for your physical treatment and your recovery to schedule it that way. So, when he’s talking about be compliant with your treatment, it’s because you got to connect the dots, right? If A plus B equals C and going, you know, once a week or twice a week makes you feel better, that’s why you need to be going. |
| 23:04 | ELLEN: I mean, I tell people, I say… some clients will say, well, how many times do I have to go? There’s no magic number. I want you to feel better. Like that’s the point.
VERONICA: It’s dependent upon your body, your healing. Oh, and I’ve also heard several of the attorneys at the firm say you don’t want to rush into a settlement or trying to wrap up the case too quickly, because depending on what the injury is, you might need treatment farther down the line. You settle your case, or you try to do it on your own, which has happened. You settle your case… |
| 23:32 | VERONICA: Then next thing you know you need surgery, you got half million dollars in medical bills…
ELLEN: …and you’re out of luck. VERONICA: Yeah. ELLEN: Yes, that’s right. VERONICA: Yeah. Yeah. So how much of what you… you know, I opened the show talking about Alfred Pennyworth and, you know, if there was any… LAMAR: That was a good one by the way. ELLEN: About halfway through, I was like, oh, I know. I know where she’s going. VERONICA: Yet neither of you knew his name. Alfred Pennyworth, do you not watch the Pennyworth show? He’s got, you know, there’s a whole show about… ELLEN: I only listen to The Avett Brothers. VERONICA: Pennyworth. He’s amazing as a young guy. |
| 24:03 | VERONICA: You’re used to seeing him as a much older butler. But you know, this is in his young days in the UK anyway.
LAMAR: So, they have the story of that? VERONICA: Yes. And it’s action packed. It is lovely. So, I just want to say that people talk about Batman and Robin. But don’t you think that like Lamar, the other legal assistants, the paralegals and everybody that’s on the team, the receptionists, everybody, those are like the trustworthy friends, the loyal confidants, the people who help things move along behind the scenes for the high-powered attorneys out front in the courtroom. |
| 24:35 | ELLEN: Absolutely. Absolutely. I mean, again, we could not do it without them. And I think it even goes beyond them, like the people… you know like the people that keep our building clean and you know the people that patrol the parking lot and make sure like if I work until 8 o’clock at night and I leave and it’s dark, I can call the security team and they will come and make sure that I get to my car, right? And I think that’s so true. Everybody that’s listening right now, there are people that are like often invisible that keep the entire world running. Right? |
| 25:05 | ELLEN: And like, shout out to those people because but for those people, you know. Like, be nice to the person at the restaurant that’s bringing you your food. Like, you wouldn’t get your food if you’re not nice to that person, right? Like, I don’t know. I just think that that’s like that’s the way I view the world, right? And so, I think that we need to like say hi to those people and acknowledge those people and see those people because they are often so invisible. And like when our clients call and they talk to us and they call and talk to Lamar, they don’t know that we have 15 people in the mail room that are like sorting the mail and keep… making sure we all get what we’re getting. |
| 25:40 | ELLEN: They don’t know that we have an IT department and that I send them the most ridiculous requests, right? I’m like, I can’t figure out and I’m pretty savvy. I mean, I’m an old mom, but I’m not like a boomer or anything. But I, you know, like, send a message and I’m like, I can’t figure out how to you know whatever. And they are so kind; and they will get back to me promptly and they are professional. And I mean just exquisitely talented at solving problems. And I think that that’s one thing that goes for everybody, right? |
| 26:09 | ELLEN: Would you agree that like everybody’s a problem solver?
LAMAR: Big time. ELLEN: Different problems, right? But like Lamar is a problem solver. He sees things. He anticipates things. He solves the problems before they become problems. VERONICA: That’s huge. That’s huge. And leadership starts at the top too. And the culture of the firm that I keep hearing about over and over and over is one of comfort, of security. As you said, inside and outside the hallways. You know, people, if you feel good where you’re going to work, you’re going to do a better job. |
| 26:39 | VERONICA: I think that’s absolutely true for any of us, no matter what. And it’s beautiful to remember the people that we often could see as invisible because they don’t maybe have a direct hand in what we’re doing at that moment. But you know they’re people too. They have lives too. They’re making the world go round.
ELLEN: That’s right. LAMAR: And they work really hard. VERONICA: They work really hard. LAMAR: Really hard. And they’re an integral part of the process. VERONICA: Yeah, they’re making everything seamless, you know, by their invisibility. You would notice them if something was wrong. |
| 27:10 | VERONICA: But they’re keeping everything right, which is why, you know, they definitely need… hats off to everybody in that realm as well. Do you feel that you have had the inspiration-? Well, you actually did say earlier, Lamar, you now know that you want to be an attorney. And you didn’t even know it before. How much of your mom’s influence went into that decision?
LAMAR: I mean, honestly, a lot of it, my mom has put into me, one thing that she always pressed in my head was that everyone has a story. |
| 27:41 | LAMAR: So, growing up, you know I would see a lot of different walks of life. And I would have to always keep in mind that everyone has a story. Some of them may appear a certain way outwardly, but they have a story. I’ve always just wanted to help someone, put a smile on someone’s face, connect with someone. So that’s basically, my mom just put that into me as far as the need and the want to help others. You know what I mean? And just to make other people feel like they matter and feel special. |
| 28:10 | LAMAR: That’s kind of my, that’s kind of my goal in life. That what pushes me in life is to just, I just want you… to put a smile on your face, even if it’s in a legal situation, an auto accident case. Somehow, I’m gonna make our conversation a good one. You’re gonna remember our conversation somehow. That’s just kind of how I look at it.
VERONICA: Your folks must be so proud of you. LAMAR: I hope so. VERONICA: And your mom sees you in the hallways at Montlick, ’cause she’s still there, right? LAMAR: She is. VERONICA: Yeah, how often do you guys get to work hand-in-hand? LAMAR: We don’t work hand-in-hand per se. But I can always lean on her if I need some advice. |
| 28:40 | ELLEN: His mom is amazing, and I call her too. Like, if I’m like, if I, like, can’t get somebody, like, whatever, and I’m like, Suzanna, and she’ll always take my call, right? And like, again, like kind. And sometimes I preface with, I should probably know the answer to this question, but where is this such and such? And she’s like quick… is like, will stop what she’s doing and help me. And it’s, I mean, makes it… makes the world go round. She’s amazing. Shout out.
LAMAR: Thank you. Shout out to mom. VERONICA: All right. So, tell. And what’s her name? |
| 29:10 | LAMAR: Suzanne.
VERONICA: Shout out to Suzanne. All right. So, tell me… I’m always curious to know like what it feels like… those heartfelt moments for you guys. Can you tell me, share some stories with us about those moments when you knew you were making a difference? ELLEN: Sure. So, I had a case not too long ago where the client had a terrible injury. We thought that there was only a certain amount of money, and we got all that money. |
| 29:39 | ELLEN: She was injured bad enough that every policy that we found we got the money. So, we settled the case in November. There was this thing in the back of my head about this other policy and the insurance company had said that it didn’t, you know, have coverage. I was like, ah, something just didn’t quite sit right with me. So, I do a bunch of research and I dig back in. I was able to call the client in… like a month ago, and I said, “Hey,” I said, “I got you another $25,000!” |
| 30:07 | ELLEN: And she started crying on the phone, and she said, “You have no idea. Like I’ve been having this really hard time.” And she came into the firm to sign the paperwork, and I walked her down to my legal assistant’s office so that she could hug it out with everybody. And that was just a really special moment. And I could tell that it made a huge difference in her life.
VERONICA: Ellen Forrester, Montlick injury attorney and Lamar Bridges, Montlick legal assistant coming up: what you’ve been waiting for all hour long, the Montlick closing argument is just around the corner. Don’t miss it. |
| 30:37 | You’re listening to our podcast, Lawyers in the House with Montlick. If you want to listen to our radio show live, you can hear it every Sunday, 8:00 a.m. on 95. 5 WSB.
VERONICA: Welcome back to the House. Lawyers in the House on WSB with Veronica Waters. I’m here with Lamar Bridges, legal assistant at Montlick Injury Attorneys, and Montlick injury attorney Ellen Forrester, both sitting next to me. |
| 31:06 | VERONICA: And it’s what you’ve been waiting for all hour long. The Montlick closing argument is finally here. So, Ellen and Lamar, the floor is yours.
ELLEN: Thank you. So, I think what we want people that are listening to know is that we love working at Montlick. We have a family atmosphere, we care about each other, and we are always looking for people to add to our family. So, if anybody out there is deciding what to be and wanting to go be it, and you want to come work at Montlick as a lawyer, I can tell you it is the most rewarding job that I’ve had. |
| 31:38 | ELLEN: I have so much support from my colleagues and from my management that I would encourage anyone that’s out there that’s listening, that’s an attorney that’s interested in working at Montlick to check out our website. We have a section on there for careers. You can send an email to [email protected], and we would love to… We always love adding new lawyers to the team. So, we’re always looking for new people.
VERONICA: I love it. LAMAR: Yeah. And on the legal assistant side, if you wanna come to a big family, if you wanna have basically unlimited resources, unlimited support, the training here is magnificent. |
| 32:13 | LAMAR: Again, come to Montlick. This has been the best career choice I could have possibly made, to be quite honest with you. I’m always growing. Your growth is not gonna stop at Montlick and Associates. I’ve been growing. I’ve been here for a little over five years now, and I’ve been constantly growing each and every year. And that has done nothing but just helped me in my career and my life. So, if you want the same for your career, I would advise you to come join the Montlick and Associates family. We would love to have you. |
| 32:43 | LAMAR: And again, come on in. I believe it’s [email protected]. You can just go on Montlick.com. I believe the careers tab.
VERONICA: Slash contact. LAMAR: Slash contact, the careers tab, and go ahead and apply. Yeah, come on in. We’ll love to add it to the family. ELLEN: And also, just really quickly, if anybody listening has any questions about insurance or any of the other shows that we’ve done, please call. We’re always here. |
| 33:10 | ELLEN: And I’ve taken several calls from folks that have listened to the show and they had some follow-up questions. We are accessible, right? I’m accessible. Lamar is accessible. So, if you’re listening and we’ve piqued an interest and you want to chat with us, give us a call. And you can call us at 1-800 LAW-NEED. And we love to talk to folks and make relationships with people.
VERONICA: And talk to an attorney the first time you call, which is incredible. |
| 33:35 | VERONICA: I just want to say shout out to Veronica for letting the attorneys at Montlick look at her insurance personally so that people could listen to us on the radio and say, you know what? Let me get my insurance looked at too and then calling up Ellen to get it done because it has happened to people. It has. It is happening to this day.
ELLEN: Call me. I’ll tell you what you need. VERONICA: Thank you so much to Ellen Forrester and Lamar Bridges. It’s been so lovely chit chatting with you today. I would like to wrap up the show with a quote from Batman movie, one of Batman movies, the Dark Knight Rises. |
| 34:05 | VERONICA: Bruce Wayne said, “A hero can be anyone, even a man doing something as simple as reassuringly putting a coat on a young boy’s shoulders.” Batman also said, “It’s not who we are, but what we do that defines us.” And I really couldn’t decide which one of those quotes summed up this show better. So you got them both today. It’s teamwork, making the dream work at the machine that is Montlick, that family of attorneys, helping you on your journey to justice. Thank you so much for joining us in the House. We’ll see you next time. I’m Veronica Waters. Peace out. |
| 34:35 | If you’re listening to our podcast, Lawyers in the House with Montlick. Catch us live every Sunday, 8:00 a.m. on 95.5 WSB. |
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