7 Lessons from a $100M Law Practice | The Scalable Law Blueprint Ep. 2

The Scalable Law Blueprint | AI, Automation & the Future of Law Firm Growth

What if your law firm ran like a growth-driven business instead of a reactive practice?
In this episode of The Scalable Law Blueprint, host Julien Emery talks with Michael McCready, Managing Partner of McCreadyLaw. From a single Chicago office to four states and over 100 team members, Michael has built one of the most forward-thinking plaintiff firms in the country. His edge? Relentless focus on systems, metrics, and culture.
Whether it's using AI to grade intake calls in real-time, building a data-first intake engine, or training his leadership team to think like operators, Michael shows how scalable law firms are built, one system at a time.
KEY TAKEAWAYS
• Hiring the right people is the foundation of sustainable scale
• Why being a good lawyer is not enough, you also need to lead a business
• The power of SOPs and internal training for consistency across teams
• How to track intake metrics like conversion rate, want rate, and fee generation
• Using AI to evaluate empathy and performance in real-time phone calls
• Why law firms must start acting like modern businesses to compete
• What to measure daily, weekly, and monthly to forecast firm growth
• The right time to hire a full-time trainer (and why it matters)
• Common intake mistakes that cost law firms qualified clients
• The ethical obligation to understand and use AI in legal practice
BEST MOMENTS
00:03:00. “Technology is one of our core values and has been for the 25 years I've been running my firm.”
00:05:23. “Now the top of the pyramid, so to speak, is building a law firm on culture.”
00:07:04. “Most people just put a job posting out... and then they’re stuck with them.”
00:08:12. “We have an in-house full-time trainer that walks them through a very, very specific process.”
00:11:09. “Law is really behind the times... most law firms don’t run their business on metrics. I do.”
00:13:13. “I'm looking at intake every day... the number of leads, the number of cases we signed up.”
00:17:13. “My job is like a sound engineer. I balance the metrics, intake, capacity, settlements.”
00:28:16. “My goal is to have the best intake team around because that’s the first impression of your firm.”

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• X (Twitter): https://twitter.com/julienemery
🎙️ New episodes drop every 1st & 3rd Wednesday at 5am PT
Bi-weekly conversations with the operators, innovators, and legal tech leaders building the digital law firms of the future.
⚖️ About the show:
The Scalable Law Blueprint explores how modern plaintiff firms streamline operations, scale capacity and deliver five-star client experiences using automation, AI and smarter systems.
Friendly, grounded, and built for law firm leaders who want to scale without burning out their teams.
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