November 20, 2025 • 25 mins
Rebecca Sposita is the President of The Sam Bernstein Law Firm, one of Michigan’s leading personal injury firms. She is a dedicated attorney with over 20 years of experience. Rebecca has been a strong advocate for victims of personal injury, medical malpractice, and sexual assault. In 2025, she published Win Win: Helping Organizations Mitigate Legal Risk for the Common Good, which offers strategies to reduce legal risk while promoting ethical business practices.
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
In this episode of CEOs you should Know meet Rebecca Sposida,
president of the Sam Bernsteinen Law Firm, one of Michigan's
leading personal injury firms. She's a dedicated attorney with over
twenty years of experience. Rebecca has been a strong advocate
for victims of personal injury, medical malpractice, and sexual assault.
In twenty twenty five, she published Win Win Helping Organizations
(00:21):
Mitigate Legal Risk for the Common Good, which offers strategies
to reduce legal risk while promoting ethical business practices. Rebecca
Sposida dot com is the website. Please join me in
welcoming Rebecca Sposida. Well, why don't we talk a little
bit first about you and what drew you to a
career in law? How did you get started?
Speaker 2 (00:39):
I was drawn to a career in law because I've
always been interested in advocating for those that have difficulty
advocating for themselves. That was my initial interest in the
pursuit of law.
Speaker 1 (00:50):
And how is your perspective of the legal system changed
over time?
Speaker 2 (00:55):
My perspective has changed over time in that while the
advocacy portion of our work is extremely important, of course,
I've learned that it's as much about listening and providing
guidance and council to our clients as well as advocating
for them.
Speaker 3 (01:11):
So it's a combination of all those things.
Speaker 1 (01:13):
When you started, did you feel that way or what
do you think caused the evolvement of that.
Speaker 2 (01:17):
I think that watching my clients go through very difficult
situations and not having the answers to how to cope
with those things at the same time as trying to
pursue their cases, it lended itself to, you know, a
greater appreciation for me of what my role was and
why don't we share everybody? What is the role that
you have at the firm? I'm the president and what
(01:40):
does samburnsay law firm?
Speaker 3 (01:41):
What does that entail?
Speaker 2 (01:42):
So I manage all of the operations of the firm,
both legal and operational.
Speaker 1 (01:48):
And what do you think when do you think of
the sam burnsde Law Firm? I mean it's hard not
to be super familiar with that brand. And congratulations to
you guys, because you've certainly established it in the marketplace.
What do you think for those who haven't had to
use your services? What do you think the differences between
what you do and how other personal injury law firms.
Speaker 2 (02:09):
Without a doubt, our firm is a fierce client advocacy firm.
We put our clients first in all things and always have.
The firm is started by and run by a family,
Sam first, and then Mark and Beth as well. We
treat our clients that way. We have a tremendous amount
of experience in the firm, and many of our attorneys
(02:32):
have been there twenty thirty, forty years, so it's a
great environment to take care of our clients.
Speaker 1 (02:39):
So with a staff that have been there that long,
they also subscribe to that philosophy too.
Speaker 3 (02:46):
They do, they do.
Speaker 2 (02:47):
I've been there fifteen years and I'm a newbie relatively
in the firm and the people that are there. We
surrounded ourselves with the best legal minds in the state,
and I'm really excited in proud to be a part
of it.
Speaker 1 (03:01):
So you run an obviously a high volume law firm,
very large in the marketplace, and certainly substantial. Tell us
some of the lessons you've learned about leading an organization
like that.
Speaker 2 (03:13):
There are so many amazing lessons that I learn every
day leading this organization. But most of all, I've learned
that who is part of the team is probably the
most important piece of it all. Making sure that you
have the right people surrounding you, people that complement and
people that I learned from every day.
Speaker 3 (03:33):
I completely agree.
Speaker 1 (03:35):
I think that you know, having the right people who
have the same mindset makes everything operate just so much
easier and so much better.
Speaker 2 (03:42):
Yes, definitely, we wouldn't be able to do all the
things that we do without the team that we have,
and those are the things that you learn over time.
When you're a young leader, you think I can do
all of this, and you know, I'm going to show
what I know how to do. And the more mature
I get in my leadership, the more I realize that
it's a about having people on the team that know
how to do all the things and watching them development
(04:04):
grow as well.
Speaker 3 (04:05):
What's your favorite thing about what you do?
Speaker 2 (04:07):
I think that mentorship and professional development is one of
my favorite things that I do at the firm, as
well as connecting with the clients when I get the opportunity.
Speaker 1 (04:17):
Do you get to do Do you have time for
much mentorship? I would imagine you're extremely busy. How you know,
how much of your role are you able to focus
on the development of your team members.
Speaker 3 (04:30):
Interestingly, an extraordinary amount of time I spend on that.
Good for you.
Speaker 2 (04:34):
We have a really we have a great leadership team
that's developing, and I engage regularly in that world.
Speaker 3 (04:41):
Oh, that must be so rewarding for you. It definitely is.
Speaker 1 (04:44):
How do you balance the business side of running a
large firm with the responsibility you'd mentioned, You know, you
wanted to do the right thing, deliver justice for your clients,
feel like you're making a difference for them as you've
you know, spent years and years kind of developing those
feelings of that's the most prior of the most priority
to you and also your teammates. How do you balance
(05:05):
the business side of that with the personal desire to
always spend the time and do the right thing for
your clients?
Speaker 3 (05:13):
You know what?
Speaker 2 (05:13):
That is probably the most important component of this being
able to balance those things. We have a very large firm.
There are one hundred and sixty one hundred and seventy
people now, oh wow, and have been doing this work
for a long time. And I think that the business side,
if we look to processes and systems and strategy and
data to enable us to handle things in an efficient way.
(05:36):
It allows for more time for us to get dedicate
to the cases and to our clients, where that's the
most important work that we do. So marroring those things
together allows us to do the job that we do well.
You have a book that you wrote, I do tell
us about it. Yes, the name of the book is
win when Helping Organizations Mitigate Legal risk for the Common.
Speaker 3 (05:56):
Good, which is in itself a title about it is.
Speaker 2 (06:01):
Definitely I think that that's something that I'm drawn to
in all areas of my life. So yes, that's what
the book is called. It came out in January, and
I'm very excited about it. Congratulations, Thank you. Tell us
a little bit about the book. So the book was
born out of, you know, decades of watching my clients
facing very difficult times when they're coming forward with their
(06:21):
lawsuits and not being treated in a way that really
helps them get through the process by the other side
and by insurance companies, and watching the way that their
complaints and their cases have been handled, and seeing that
there's a I believe that there's a better way for
this to take place. So that's really what it came from.
Speaker 1 (06:41):
There's the cliffhanger folks find out where the better way
is by getting books.
Speaker 2 (06:46):
No, I think that, you know, treating people in a
trauma informed and empathetic way when they come forward with
these things can help not only the person coming forward,
but also the organization in the long run.
Speaker 1 (06:58):
So that's an interesting and trauma informed How long does
it take for somebody who's come out of school to
really understand and become trauma informed?
Speaker 3 (07:07):
You know, I don't think that it is time. Maybe
it's not time.
Speaker 2 (07:11):
Yeah, I think it is time and learning how to
work through that and show up in a way that's
trauma informed. I think that it's it's not a natural
thing for people. And when you think about an organization
who receives complaints, right, hospitals, educational institutions, things of that nature,
they're you know, their legal departments are structured in a
(07:32):
way that when people come forward, you're met with, you know,
legally in some way resistance and resistance and kind of
you know, all that comes with it. And so I
think that people when they come forward, they're really going
through a lot in those moments, and it's it's how
those initial conversations happen that really gauge how it's going
to proceed and how things will resolve eventually. And if
(07:55):
organizations handle it in a way that's trauma informed and
in service of the person coming forward, it will not
only help them identify problems within their organization that they
need to fix, but will also help this person get
through the moment.
Speaker 1 (08:11):
Oh, that's an interesting way to look at it that
it's also helping the organization.
Speaker 3 (08:15):
Yes, definitely.
Speaker 2 (08:17):
You know, the University of Michigan Health System did this
a similar program with their former risk manager.
Speaker 3 (08:23):
His name is Rick Boothman. He's amazing.
Speaker 2 (08:25):
But they they the way that they handle their cases
coming forward is when they when they believe somebody has
a legitimate complaint, they handle it and work with the
person rather than kind of fight against them. And it's
it's resulted in them saving a lot of money and
you know, helping people through these times. And so it's
it's really something that we can apply in all different
(08:49):
types of companies an organization.
Speaker 1 (08:50):
You can. I mean, it's that's just wonderful to hear
because really it builds trust among human beings. You know, like, hey,
if I mess up, I messed up, and I'm going
to take responsibility for it. And I'm going to figure
out how to remedy that to you. And just the
relief a person must feel knowing that the person is
taking responsibility and wants to help figure it out, just
really just a fascinating thing to hear that an organization
(09:14):
of that size is doing right.
Speaker 2 (09:16):
And you know, most of my clients who you know,
over the years, you hear people say over and over
and over, you know, if they had just sent a
card to my mom's funeral, or if they had just well,
you know, fill in the blank.
Speaker 3 (09:28):
Right.
Speaker 2 (09:30):
It's people are looking for humanity in those moments, and
they're not met with it often enough.
Speaker 3 (09:34):
Right, Oh my goodness.
Speaker 1 (09:36):
So you've seen these kinds of situations for more than
fifteen years. You've been in the legal industry for more
than fifteen years. So why was now the right time
to write this book?
Speaker 2 (09:47):
So in twenty twenty two, I decided to go back
to school and get a business degree, and I went
to Harvard Business School. And while I was a student there,
I went through an incident that required a reporting.
Speaker 3 (09:59):
And while you were at Harvard Business School.
Speaker 2 (10:01):
Yes, yes, And so after all the years of advocacy
that I have, you know, done, I found myself in
the seat of the person coming forward to make a complaint.
And what I found in those moments was profound actually
to me, because I've heard my clients talk about these things,
and I've you know, fought for them through these things,
(10:25):
but I never really understood what it was, and I
did for the first time. And so while I was
still a student, I worked with administration and talked through
some of these issues, and after I graduated, they actually
flew me back out to meet with some of the
administrators and talk to them about what could have you know,
been done differently or how things could have been handled better,
(10:46):
and they actually put some things into place that I recommended.
And so that was really where the book was born out.
Speaker 1 (10:51):
Of, Wow, what a journey to go through that, and
then the insight that you now have for your own clients. Yes, absolutely,
and I'm sorry about that whatever it was, but.
Speaker 2 (11:04):
No, I appreciate that, but it was really it was
one of those things where you know, I never anticipated
writing a book. I not something I ever thought of,
But when it was over, I was like, how can
I not do this.
Speaker 3 (11:14):
I think it's really important and I think it will
help a lot of people.
Speaker 1 (11:16):
So The book was based on, you know, your learnings
of that journey and how to help companies like.
Speaker 2 (11:27):
Do what yep, So I talk about the incident universities
in this case, Yeah, sure, anyone.
Speaker 1 (11:32):
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (11:33):
I talk about the incident itself, what happened, and kind
of walk through the details of that to show the
different touch points along the way and how things could
have been handled differently. But then I use it to
apply to any other situation, and I bring in a
bunch of other real world examples of times that has
just gone terribly wrong. And you see the you know,
you see these things in the media, and you know
(11:54):
the Harvey Weinstein, you know all the all the different
scenarios that you've seen, and we all know of what
I do. And the book is talk about how those
things could have gone differently if they had been handled
in a different way.
Speaker 3 (12:05):
And I give organizations, you know, a way to do that.
Speaker 1 (12:08):
And just so we can stop down here for sex
so everybody knows. The book is called again.
Speaker 2 (12:14):
Win when helping organizations mitigate legal risk for the common good.
Speaker 1 (12:18):
And I'm joined today by Rebecca Sposido. She's president of
the sam Burnstein Law Firm. Continuing on you talk about
the on target response framework. How does that help organizations
handle complaints differently?
Speaker 2 (12:30):
Sure, so the book is more theoretical and explains kind
of the background, but I also wrote a workbook to
go alongside with it and included a framework called the
on target framework, which is an acronym for the steps
that you go through, and it really does provide a
step by step guide on what organizations can do in
those moments to handle the complaints when they come forward,
(12:51):
regarding transparency and accountability and being genuine and responsive in
your in your handling.
Speaker 3 (12:57):
What an interesting idea? Tell us more about the workbook.
Speaker 2 (13:00):
So the workbook is a guide that accompanies the book
and can be together with or apart from the book,
and it gives information and then it gives questions and
information and then questions, So typical workbook style. I also
didn't built an online course that you can use as well,
depending on your learning style.
Speaker 1 (13:20):
And I understand there's an on target Response AI assistant.
Speaker 3 (13:23):
Yes, so I built an AI.
Speaker 2 (13:26):
AI is something that I'm very interested in and spend
a lot of time thinking about when I'm not working.
But yes, I built an AI assistant that in real
time organizations can use to give information and insight about
how to how to handle something in the moment.
Speaker 1 (13:41):
How do how do you think those tools take the
ideas from the book into real world practice.
Speaker 2 (13:47):
You know, we read a lot of books and we
hear a lot of things, and sometimes it's hard to
bring those things to light into work. And so I
built those other tools to enable the concepts to be
broken down in a way that makes an organization see
how it can be applicable to their work.
Speaker 1 (14:01):
Okay, and we mentioned a cliffhanger before, so let's give
another cliffhanger right now. If a leader could only remember
one principle, but there are many from Win WIN, what
would you want it to be.
Speaker 2 (14:12):
The most important principle to take away from Win Win
would be you can handle a complaint in a way
that doesn't retraumatize the person coming forward and at the
same time protect your business and your organization.
Speaker 3 (14:26):
It's a very important thing. It's not one or the other.
Speaker 2 (14:29):
You can do both and oftentimes by handling these complaints
properly from the beginning, you are protecting your organization as well.
So that's the most important thing that I hope people
take from it.
Speaker 1 (14:38):
What an interesting concept re traumatize. Tell us more about
how that comes about.
Speaker 2 (14:44):
Sure, any of the incidences that I've worked with, and
you know, our firm represents people that have had grievous
and terrible things happen to them, and so that's the
first incident, right.
Speaker 3 (14:55):
This is the difficult thing.
Speaker 2 (14:56):
You come forward to present this or ask for help
from somebody, and when you're met with defensiveness and denial,
it's like a secondary assault. And so that's the retraumatization
that people go through, which oftentimes is more harmful to
them than the original injury, and it's more damaging over
the long run because it doesn't enable somebody to get
(15:19):
through it and to kind of move on from it.
Speaker 1 (15:21):
Let's talk more about your leadership style. What is the
most important leadership lesson you've learned? Do you think over
the fifteen years that you've been at the Sam Bernstein
Law Firm.
Speaker 2 (15:31):
Ironically, I think the most important leadership lesson that I've
learned at the firm has been that I always have
more to learn, that the more I know, the less
I realize I know, and that there are exceptional people
everywhere that I can learn from every day. That's the
biggest takeaway for me, can't we just get older and
know everything.
Speaker 3 (15:51):
That has not been my experience? No, it's terrible. Would
love for that to be true. You know, you're thinking, oh, I'm.
Speaker 1 (15:55):
Getting older and should get wiser, And the more you
listen to are people you're like, oh my gosh, I
have so much more to learn.
Speaker 3 (16:02):
Yes, it's absolutely true.
Speaker 1 (16:05):
But thank goodness because it keeps life interesting. I suppose
it does. How do you balance being you know, being
you know it's again, Sam Bernstein Law Firm, Huge Law firm.
Being a decisive leader with being empathetic and people focused.
How do you think you carry that balance?
Speaker 2 (16:19):
Due that is a challenge, right, being able to make
decisions one hundred decisions a day, along with hold yourself
and your colleagues accountable to the work that we're all doing,
and at the same time letting them letting them know
that you care about them and care very deeply about
the work that we do.
Speaker 3 (16:37):
I don't think that those things are opposite things.
Speaker 2 (16:39):
I think that you show how much you care and
have empathy for your colleagues when you are honest and
giving feedback and you know, expecting the same from your colleagues.
Speaker 3 (16:49):
So I think that's the way that I balance.
Speaker 1 (16:51):
Yeah, it's funny that you mentioned that's hard to give
honest feedback, but when you do, it really creates actually
does create more trust because people know every people know
the truth about what's.
Speaker 2 (17:01):
Going on, right, And you know, I know that because
I appreciate it genuinely when I receive it, and so
I give it equally as you know, willingly.
Speaker 1 (17:10):
Yeah, or it gives insight into what's going on. Yes, definitely.
What what role do you do authenticity and vulnerability play
in leadership today?
Speaker 3 (17:19):
Do you think?
Speaker 1 (17:21):
And I asked that because people think of law firms
as you know, kind of hardcore and hard hitting, but
you guys really take such a different approach we do.
Speaker 2 (17:30):
I mean, you know, starting with Sam and then now
Mark and Beth, the way that they've always handled the
firm and our clients is treating them as family. And
you know, Sam used to talk to every single client.
Mark and Beth now do and it's it's real and
it's genuine. It's not a you know, it's not something
just for advertisements. It's just part of the fabric of
(17:52):
the firm, and so it's very special in that way.
And I think that permeates throughout the whole firm. Just
the care that they have always put into the firm.
Were eager to match that. That's got to be hundreds
and hundreds and hundreds and.
Speaker 1 (18:04):
Hundreds of people every year, thousands, thousands of people every year.
Speaker 3 (18:07):
Yes, wow.
Speaker 1 (18:08):
But they have a personal, you know, personal vested interest
in knowing what's going on and helping them know that
they care.
Speaker 3 (18:14):
They do, they really do.
Speaker 1 (18:15):
That's wonderful. You know, when you think about success, and
now you've written a book and you work with obviously
a very successful law firm, how do you define success
in your business and in your life.
Speaker 2 (18:29):
Success in the business I for me is just feeling
like I'm doing good work and I'm making a difference
in people's lives. And as long as I have that,
I'm continuing to learn and grow, and I you know,
I find very deeply at the firm that that is
the truth.
Speaker 3 (18:44):
In my personal life.
Speaker 2 (18:45):
I'm you know, I've married twenty six years, I have
two children, and they are the joys of my life,
and so making sure that I always have time and
energy to spend with them. I think that's what what
else is really remarkable about the San Bernstay Law firm.
Is that not only do we provide the level of
care that we do for our clients, but we also
make sure that our employees and our team has time
(19:08):
to be with their families and meaningful ways. And so
it's just again balance well, and you.
Speaker 1 (19:13):
Guys do meaningful things at the san Burnstein Law Firm,
like the Chopper Shop, yes, and many other things.
Speaker 3 (19:20):
Yes, absolutely, so I.
Speaker 1 (19:21):
Would imagine that's really not only you know, rewarding to
help people who are suffering in some way with some
kind of remedy, but also to touch the community in
so many different ways.
Speaker 2 (19:32):
Absolutely, the Samburnsy Law Firm is very involved in community affairs.
And you mentioned the Chopper Shop. We've been doing this
for many years now. We've raised over one hundred thousand
dollars and that money goes directly to Metro Detroit area
veterans and we partner with Voami on that, and it's
just it's a wonderful opportunity for us to be able
to be engaged. Also, we're in football season, we're official
(19:55):
partners Lyons coach Dan Campbell, Alex Anzeloni. So love you know,
we love Detroit and everything about it and being so
ingrained in the fabric of the city has just been
It's amazing.
Speaker 1 (20:06):
You have to admit the commercials with Mark and Beth
and Dan are really good because Dan's always like, he
looks so tough, and then you look at Mark and
we were like, you don't just you don't think of like,
Mark's such a sweet, nice guy, you know, a hard
working guy and a successful lawyer obviously, but all of
a sudden he looks really tough next to Yeah, and
you're like, hey, don't mess with him either.
Speaker 3 (20:26):
You know what, you'd be surprised about Mark. He's certainly
not Beth. No, it's it's awesome.
Speaker 2 (20:36):
Dan Campbell's amazing and you know having the opportunity to
you know, shoot those ads and spend the time with
them is fantastic.
Speaker 1 (20:42):
Yeah, it's had to have been so much fun and
just fun in the partnership to watch them do well.
Speaker 3 (20:47):
Yes, absolutely, it's so exciting.
Speaker 2 (20:49):
You know, we're always Lions fans, and it's awesome after
all the years you know that we weren't as successful
being in the in this position we're in right now.
Speaker 3 (20:57):
It's a great team, awesome environment.
Speaker 1 (20:59):
It is. The feeling around that team is just great.
And it's nice to see you guys attached to such
a good organization. Two two good organizations come together. Yes,
we appreciative of that. What would you say to someone
who wants to be in a leadership position similar to
what you're in, Like, what kind of advice would you
give them? You know, they're just let's say there's let's
say somebody who's been in a business for a while
(21:21):
and they are being you know identified as you know, hey,
you probably will be in leadership. You know, so they're
right there, and there are things that you can impart
to them that might help them. What would you give
a couple pieces of stage words?
Speaker 2 (21:35):
Sure, So, first of all, I would say, as advice
to give to a young leader who is coming up
in the ranks, I would say that if you're interested
in being a boss, it's probably not the path for you.
I think that it's important for people to realize that
leadership is so much more about service than it is
about leadership. In many, many ways, most of my time
(21:57):
is spent in service of others, and I would not
have that any other way.
Speaker 3 (21:59):
And I think it's really important.
Speaker 2 (22:01):
That that's how it's approached, or else it's a title
for titles sake. I think that that's the most important
thing and piece of advice that I would give.
Speaker 3 (22:09):
It's hard work. Yeah, give one more.
Speaker 2 (22:12):
You know. Sam gave me the best piece of advice
when I became the CEO, before I turned into the president.
He said, if you don't want to see what you're
doing on the front page of the newspaper, then don't
do it.
Speaker 3 (22:22):
And it's just something that's always stuck in.
Speaker 2 (22:23):
My head, like ethical leadership is just tremendously important, especially
in today's day and age, you know, And so I
think that that's a really great piece of advice, and
it's simple, you know, when choosing between two paths, I
kept in mind at all times what was it like
being with Sam? He is just such an extraordinary person
(22:45):
and personality. So I think that in equal parts hard work.
He was there every day all the time talking to clients,
just a kind, wonderful human And so I learned a
tremendous amount from him about client service and just being
a just being a good person. I learned from him
and from Mark and Beeth every day. Honestly, it's a joy.
Speaker 1 (23:09):
What's your favorite thing about your whole staff and what
you do with them.
Speaker 3 (23:14):
We're a fun bunch.
Speaker 2 (23:15):
We have a lot of amazing, interesting, different personalities that
we just it's a great team to get together. We
just moved into a like a sixty five thousand square
foot space that's triple the size of our last office,
and so it's great post COVID to get everybody back together.
We still kind of do a hybrid schedule, but everybody
being back in the office together has just been phenomenal
(23:37):
and so much fun to be together as a team.
Speaker 3 (23:39):
Great to be around the team together. What do you
want to see happen for your book?
Speaker 2 (23:44):
I would love to see companies read it, understand it,
and learn what I'm trying to say, because I think
it's actually really truly important and it would be helpful
for institutions organizations to learn this and understand that they
can do this a different way and still, you know,
abiding by the legal requirements and still you know, that's
(24:06):
the most important thing for me.
Speaker 3 (24:07):
It's not about selling the book. Don't even care about
that at all.
Speaker 2 (24:10):
I would really just love for people to understand what
it is that I'm talking about. I think it can
change the world if people are just treated better and differently.
Speaker 1 (24:19):
Is there a movement toward that kind of philosophy do
you think or do you think there's just a really
long way to go.
Speaker 2 (24:25):
I think we're just in such polarizing times right now
that I do believe that there's a movement in some ways,
but I don't think it's always push forward and seen
as the most important thing. And so I try to
show it in a way that I try to show
it in a way that not only emphasizes the care
for the human but also showing how it can benefit
(24:45):
the business in hopes that that will make people more
interested in it.
Speaker 1 (24:50):
As a leader of the sam Bernstein Law Firm, what
do you see in the coming years for the firm?
Speaker 2 (24:55):
I see continued growth and ongoing dedication and to our
clients and our purpose.
Speaker 3 (25:03):
Do you see you routing the Detroit Lions onto a
Super Bowl? Yes, that's the right answer. Let's go. Let's
go Lions.
Speaker 1 (25:13):
Our guest today has been Rebecca Sposito, President of the
sam Bernstein Law Firm, and her new book is called
Win Win, Helping organizations mitigate legal risk for the common Good.
Speaker 3 (25:24):
Thank you for joining us today, Rebecca, Thank you so
much for having me
In this episode of CEOs you should Know meet Rebecca Sposida,
president of the Sam Bernsteinen Law Firm, one of Michigan's
leading personal injury firms. She's a dedicated attorney with over
twenty years of experience. Rebecca has been a strong advocate
for victims of personal injury, medical malpractice, and sexual assault.
In twenty twenty five, she published Win Win Helping Organizations
(00:21):
Mitigate Legal Risk for the Common Good, which offers strategies
to reduce legal risk while promoting ethical business practices. Rebecca
Sposida dot com is the website. Please join me in
welcoming Rebecca Sposida. Well, why don't we talk a little
bit first about you and what drew you to a
career in law? How did you get started?
Speaker 2 (00:39):
I was drawn to a career in law because I've
always been interested in advocating for those that have difficulty
advocating for themselves. That was my initial interest in the
pursuit of law.
Speaker 1 (00:50):
And how is your perspective of the legal system changed
over time?
Speaker 2 (00:55):
My perspective has changed over time in that while the
advocacy portion of our work is extremely important, of course,
I've learned that it's as much about listening and providing
guidance and council to our clients as well as advocating
for them.
Speaker 3 (01:11):
So it's a combination of all those things.
Speaker 1 (01:13):
When you started, did you feel that way or what
do you think caused the evolvement of that.
Speaker 2 (01:17):
I think that watching my clients go through very difficult
situations and not having the answers to how to cope
with those things at the same time as trying to
pursue their cases, it lended itself to, you know, a
greater appreciation for me of what my role was and
why don't we share everybody? What is the role that
you have at the firm? I'm the president and what
(01:40):
does samburnsay law firm?
Speaker 3 (01:41):
What does that entail?
Speaker 2 (01:42):
So I manage all of the operations of the firm,
both legal and operational.
Speaker 1 (01:48):
And what do you think when do you think of
the sam burnsde Law Firm? I mean it's hard not
to be super familiar with that brand. And congratulations to
you guys, because you've certainly established it in the marketplace.
What do you think for those who haven't had to
use your services? What do you think the differences between
what you do and how other personal injury law firms.
Speaker 2 (02:09):
Without a doubt, our firm is a fierce client advocacy firm.
We put our clients first in all things and always have.
The firm is started by and run by a family,
Sam first, and then Mark and Beth as well. We
treat our clients that way. We have a tremendous amount
of experience in the firm, and many of our attorneys
(02:32):
have been there twenty thirty, forty years, so it's a
great environment to take care of our clients.
Speaker 1 (02:39):
So with a staff that have been there that long,
they also subscribe to that philosophy too.
Speaker 3 (02:46):
They do, they do.
Speaker 2 (02:47):
I've been there fifteen years and I'm a newbie relatively
in the firm and the people that are there. We
surrounded ourselves with the best legal minds in the state,
and I'm really excited in proud to be a part
of it.
Speaker 1 (03:01):
So you run an obviously a high volume law firm,
very large in the marketplace, and certainly substantial. Tell us
some of the lessons you've learned about leading an organization
like that.
Speaker 2 (03:13):
There are so many amazing lessons that I learn every
day leading this organization. But most of all, I've learned
that who is part of the team is probably the
most important piece of it all. Making sure that you
have the right people surrounding you, people that complement and
people that I learned from every day.
Speaker 3 (03:33):
I completely agree.
Speaker 1 (03:35):
I think that you know, having the right people who
have the same mindset makes everything operate just so much
easier and so much better.
Speaker 2 (03:42):
Yes, definitely, we wouldn't be able to do all the
things that we do without the team that we have,
and those are the things that you learn over time.
When you're a young leader, you think I can do
all of this, and you know, I'm going to show
what I know how to do. And the more mature
I get in my leadership, the more I realize that
it's a about having people on the team that know
how to do all the things and watching them development
(04:04):
grow as well.
Speaker 3 (04:05):
What's your favorite thing about what you do?
Speaker 2 (04:07):
I think that mentorship and professional development is one of
my favorite things that I do at the firm, as
well as connecting with the clients when I get the opportunity.
Speaker 1 (04:17):
Do you get to do Do you have time for
much mentorship? I would imagine you're extremely busy. How you know,
how much of your role are you able to focus
on the development of your team members.
Speaker 3 (04:30):
Interestingly, an extraordinary amount of time I spend on that.
Good for you.
Speaker 2 (04:34):
We have a really we have a great leadership team
that's developing, and I engage regularly in that world.
Speaker 3 (04:41):
Oh, that must be so rewarding for you. It definitely is.
Speaker 1 (04:44):
How do you balance the business side of running a
large firm with the responsibility you'd mentioned, You know, you
wanted to do the right thing, deliver justice for your clients,
feel like you're making a difference for them as you've
you know, spent years and years kind of developing those
feelings of that's the most prior of the most priority
to you and also your teammates. How do you balance
(05:05):
the business side of that with the personal desire to
always spend the time and do the right thing for
your clients?
Speaker 3 (05:13):
You know what?
Speaker 2 (05:13):
That is probably the most important component of this being
able to balance those things. We have a very large firm.
There are one hundred and sixty one hundred and seventy
people now, oh wow, and have been doing this work
for a long time. And I think that the business side,
if we look to processes and systems and strategy and
data to enable us to handle things in an efficient way.
(05:36):
It allows for more time for us to get dedicate
to the cases and to our clients, where that's the
most important work that we do. So marroring those things
together allows us to do the job that we do well.
You have a book that you wrote, I do tell
us about it. Yes, the name of the book is
win when Helping Organizations Mitigate Legal risk for the Common.
Speaker 3 (05:56):
Good, which is in itself a title about it is.
Speaker 2 (06:01):
Definitely I think that that's something that I'm drawn to
in all areas of my life. So yes, that's what
the book is called. It came out in January, and
I'm very excited about it. Congratulations, Thank you. Tell us
a little bit about the book. So the book was
born out of, you know, decades of watching my clients
facing very difficult times when they're coming forward with their
(06:21):
lawsuits and not being treated in a way that really
helps them get through the process by the other side
and by insurance companies, and watching the way that their
complaints and their cases have been handled, and seeing that
there's a I believe that there's a better way for
this to take place. So that's really what it came from.
Speaker 1 (06:41):
There's the cliffhanger folks find out where the better way
is by getting books.
Speaker 2 (06:46):
No, I think that, you know, treating people in a
trauma informed and empathetic way when they come forward with
these things can help not only the person coming forward,
but also the organization in the long run.
Speaker 1 (06:58):
So that's an interesting and trauma informed How long does
it take for somebody who's come out of school to
really understand and become trauma informed?
Speaker 3 (07:07):
You know, I don't think that it is time. Maybe
it's not time.
Speaker 2 (07:11):
Yeah, I think it is time and learning how to
work through that and show up in a way that's
trauma informed. I think that it's it's not a natural
thing for people. And when you think about an organization
who receives complaints, right, hospitals, educational institutions, things of that nature,
they're you know, their legal departments are structured in a
(07:32):
way that when people come forward, you're met with, you know,
legally in some way resistance and resistance and kind of
you know, all that comes with it. And so I
think that people when they come forward, they're really going
through a lot in those moments, and it's it's how
those initial conversations happen that really gauge how it's going
to proceed and how things will resolve eventually. And if
(07:55):
organizations handle it in a way that's trauma informed and
in service of the person coming forward, it will not
only help them identify problems within their organization that they
need to fix, but will also help this person get
through the moment.
Speaker 1 (08:11):
Oh, that's an interesting way to look at it that
it's also helping the organization.
Speaker 3 (08:15):
Yes, definitely.
Speaker 2 (08:17):
You know, the University of Michigan Health System did this
a similar program with their former risk manager.
Speaker 3 (08:23):
His name is Rick Boothman. He's amazing.
Speaker 2 (08:25):
But they they the way that they handle their cases
coming forward is when they when they believe somebody has
a legitimate complaint, they handle it and work with the
person rather than kind of fight against them. And it's
it's resulted in them saving a lot of money and
you know, helping people through these times. And so it's
it's really something that we can apply in all different
(08:49):
types of companies an organization.
Speaker 1 (08:50):
You can. I mean, it's that's just wonderful to hear
because really it builds trust among human beings. You know, like, hey,
if I mess up, I messed up, and I'm going
to take responsibility for it. And I'm going to figure
out how to remedy that to you. And just the
relief a person must feel knowing that the person is
taking responsibility and wants to help figure it out, just
really just a fascinating thing to hear that an organization
(09:14):
of that size is doing right.
Speaker 2 (09:16):
And you know, most of my clients who you know,
over the years, you hear people say over and over
and over, you know, if they had just sent a
card to my mom's funeral, or if they had just well,
you know, fill in the blank.
Speaker 3 (09:28):
Right.
Speaker 2 (09:30):
It's people are looking for humanity in those moments, and
they're not met with it often enough.
Speaker 3 (09:34):
Right, Oh my goodness.
Speaker 1 (09:36):
So you've seen these kinds of situations for more than
fifteen years. You've been in the legal industry for more
than fifteen years. So why was now the right time
to write this book?
Speaker 2 (09:47):
So in twenty twenty two, I decided to go back
to school and get a business degree, and I went
to Harvard Business School. And while I was a student there,
I went through an incident that required a reporting.
Speaker 3 (09:59):
And while you were at Harvard Business School.
Speaker 2 (10:01):
Yes, yes, And so after all the years of advocacy
that I have, you know, done, I found myself in
the seat of the person coming forward to make a complaint.
And what I found in those moments was profound actually
to me, because I've heard my clients talk about these things,
and I've you know, fought for them through these things,
(10:25):
but I never really understood what it was, and I
did for the first time. And so while I was
still a student, I worked with administration and talked through
some of these issues, and after I graduated, they actually
flew me back out to meet with some of the
administrators and talk to them about what could have you know,
been done differently or how things could have been handled better,
(10:46):
and they actually put some things into place that I recommended.
And so that was really where the book was born out.
Speaker 1 (10:51):
Of, Wow, what a journey to go through that, and
then the insight that you now have for your own clients. Yes, absolutely,
and I'm sorry about that whatever it was, but.
Speaker 2 (11:04):
No, I appreciate that, but it was really it was
one of those things where you know, I never anticipated
writing a book. I not something I ever thought of,
But when it was over, I was like, how can
I not do this.
Speaker 3 (11:14):
I think it's really important and I think it will
help a lot of people.
Speaker 1 (11:16):
So The book was based on, you know, your learnings
of that journey and how to help companies like.
Speaker 2 (11:27):
Do what yep, So I talk about the incident universities
in this case, Yeah, sure, anyone.
Speaker 1 (11:32):
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (11:33):
I talk about the incident itself, what happened, and kind
of walk through the details of that to show the
different touch points along the way and how things could
have been handled differently. But then I use it to
apply to any other situation, and I bring in a
bunch of other real world examples of times that has
just gone terribly wrong. And you see the you know,
you see these things in the media, and you know
(11:54):
the Harvey Weinstein, you know all the all the different
scenarios that you've seen, and we all know of what
I do. And the book is talk about how those
things could have gone differently if they had been handled
in a different way.
Speaker 3 (12:05):
And I give organizations, you know, a way to do that.
Speaker 1 (12:08):
And just so we can stop down here for sex
so everybody knows. The book is called again.
Speaker 2 (12:14):
Win when helping organizations mitigate legal risk for the common good.
Speaker 1 (12:18):
And I'm joined today by Rebecca Sposido. She's president of
the sam Burnstein Law Firm. Continuing on you talk about
the on target response framework. How does that help organizations
handle complaints differently?
Speaker 2 (12:30):
Sure, so the book is more theoretical and explains kind
of the background, but I also wrote a workbook to
go alongside with it and included a framework called the
on target framework, which is an acronym for the steps
that you go through, and it really does provide a
step by step guide on what organizations can do in
those moments to handle the complaints when they come forward,
(12:51):
regarding transparency and accountability and being genuine and responsive in
your in your handling.
Speaker 3 (12:57):
What an interesting idea? Tell us more about the workbook.
Speaker 2 (13:00):
So the workbook is a guide that accompanies the book
and can be together with or apart from the book,
and it gives information and then it gives questions and
information and then questions, So typical workbook style. I also
didn't built an online course that you can use as well,
depending on your learning style.
Speaker 1 (13:20):
And I understand there's an on target Response AI assistant.
Speaker 3 (13:23):
Yes, so I built an AI.
Speaker 2 (13:26):
AI is something that I'm very interested in and spend
a lot of time thinking about when I'm not working.
But yes, I built an AI assistant that in real
time organizations can use to give information and insight about
how to how to handle something in the moment.
Speaker 1 (13:41):
How do how do you think those tools take the
ideas from the book into real world practice.
Speaker 2 (13:47):
You know, we read a lot of books and we
hear a lot of things, and sometimes it's hard to
bring those things to light into work. And so I
built those other tools to enable the concepts to be
broken down in a way that makes an organization see
how it can be applicable to their work.
Speaker 1 (14:01):
Okay, and we mentioned a cliffhanger before, so let's give
another cliffhanger right now. If a leader could only remember
one principle, but there are many from Win WIN, what
would you want it to be.
Speaker 2 (14:12):
The most important principle to take away from Win Win
would be you can handle a complaint in a way
that doesn't retraumatize the person coming forward and at the
same time protect your business and your organization.
Speaker 3 (14:26):
It's a very important thing. It's not one or the other.
Speaker 2 (14:29):
You can do both and oftentimes by handling these complaints
properly from the beginning, you are protecting your organization as well.
So that's the most important thing that I hope people
take from it.
Speaker 1 (14:38):
What an interesting concept re traumatize. Tell us more about
how that comes about.
Speaker 2 (14:44):
Sure, any of the incidences that I've worked with, and
you know, our firm represents people that have had grievous
and terrible things happen to them, and so that's the
first incident, right.
Speaker 3 (14:55):
This is the difficult thing.
Speaker 2 (14:56):
You come forward to present this or ask for help
from somebody, and when you're met with defensiveness and denial,
it's like a secondary assault. And so that's the retraumatization
that people go through, which oftentimes is more harmful to
them than the original injury, and it's more damaging over
the long run because it doesn't enable somebody to get
(15:19):
through it and to kind of move on from it.
Speaker 1 (15:21):
Let's talk more about your leadership style. What is the
most important leadership lesson you've learned? Do you think over
the fifteen years that you've been at the Sam Bernstein
Law Firm.
Speaker 2 (15:31):
Ironically, I think the most important leadership lesson that I've
learned at the firm has been that I always have
more to learn, that the more I know, the less
I realize I know, and that there are exceptional people
everywhere that I can learn from every day. That's the
biggest takeaway for me, can't we just get older and
know everything.
Speaker 3 (15:51):
That has not been my experience? No, it's terrible. Would
love for that to be true. You know, you're thinking, oh, I'm.
Speaker 1 (15:55):
Getting older and should get wiser, And the more you
listen to are people you're like, oh my gosh, I
have so much more to learn.
Speaker 3 (16:02):
Yes, it's absolutely true.
Speaker 1 (16:05):
But thank goodness because it keeps life interesting. I suppose
it does. How do you balance being you know, being
you know it's again, Sam Bernstein Law Firm, Huge Law firm.
Being a decisive leader with being empathetic and people focused.
How do you think you carry that balance?
Speaker 2 (16:19):
Due that is a challenge, right, being able to make
decisions one hundred decisions a day, along with hold yourself
and your colleagues accountable to the work that we're all doing,
and at the same time letting them letting them know
that you care about them and care very deeply about
the work that we do.
Speaker 3 (16:37):
I don't think that those things are opposite things.
Speaker 2 (16:39):
I think that you show how much you care and
have empathy for your colleagues when you are honest and
giving feedback and you know, expecting the same from your colleagues.
Speaker 3 (16:49):
So I think that's the way that I balance.
Speaker 1 (16:51):
Yeah, it's funny that you mentioned that's hard to give
honest feedback, but when you do, it really creates actually
does create more trust because people know every people know
the truth about what's.
Speaker 2 (17:01):
Going on, right, And you know, I know that because
I appreciate it genuinely when I receive it, and so
I give it equally as you know, willingly.
Speaker 1 (17:10):
Yeah, or it gives insight into what's going on. Yes, definitely.
What what role do you do authenticity and vulnerability play
in leadership today?
Speaker 3 (17:19):
Do you think?
Speaker 1 (17:21):
And I asked that because people think of law firms
as you know, kind of hardcore and hard hitting, but
you guys really take such a different approach we do.
Speaker 2 (17:30):
I mean, you know, starting with Sam and then now
Mark and Beth, the way that they've always handled the
firm and our clients is treating them as family. And
you know, Sam used to talk to every single client.
Mark and Beth now do and it's it's real and
it's genuine. It's not a you know, it's not something
just for advertisements. It's just part of the fabric of
(17:52):
the firm, and so it's very special in that way.
And I think that permeates throughout the whole firm. Just
the care that they have always put into the firm.
Were eager to match that. That's got to be hundreds
and hundreds and hundreds and.
Speaker 1 (18:04):
Hundreds of people every year, thousands, thousands of people every year.
Speaker 3 (18:07):
Yes, wow.
Speaker 1 (18:08):
But they have a personal, you know, personal vested interest
in knowing what's going on and helping them know that
they care.
Speaker 3 (18:14):
They do, they really do.
Speaker 1 (18:15):
That's wonderful. You know, when you think about success, and
now you've written a book and you work with obviously
a very successful law firm, how do you define success
in your business and in your life.
Speaker 2 (18:29):
Success in the business I for me is just feeling
like I'm doing good work and I'm making a difference
in people's lives. And as long as I have that,
I'm continuing to learn and grow, and I you know,
I find very deeply at the firm that that is
the truth.
Speaker 3 (18:44):
In my personal life.
Speaker 2 (18:45):
I'm you know, I've married twenty six years, I have
two children, and they are the joys of my life,
and so making sure that I always have time and
energy to spend with them. I think that's what what
else is really remarkable about the San Bernstay Law firm.
Is that not only do we provide the level of
care that we do for our clients, but we also
make sure that our employees and our team has time
(19:08):
to be with their families and meaningful ways. And so
it's just again balance well, and you.
Speaker 1 (19:13):
Guys do meaningful things at the san Burnstein Law Firm,
like the Chopper Shop, yes, and many other things.
Speaker 3 (19:20):
Yes, absolutely, so I.
Speaker 1 (19:21):
Would imagine that's really not only you know, rewarding to
help people who are suffering in some way with some
kind of remedy, but also to touch the community in
so many different ways.
Speaker 2 (19:32):
Absolutely, the Samburnsy Law Firm is very involved in community affairs.
And you mentioned the Chopper Shop. We've been doing this
for many years now. We've raised over one hundred thousand
dollars and that money goes directly to Metro Detroit area
veterans and we partner with Voami on that, and it's
just it's a wonderful opportunity for us to be able
to be engaged. Also, we're in football season, we're official
(19:55):
partners Lyons coach Dan Campbell, Alex Anzeloni. So love you know,
we love Detroit and everything about it and being so
ingrained in the fabric of the city has just been
It's amazing.
Speaker 1 (20:06):
You have to admit the commercials with Mark and Beth
and Dan are really good because Dan's always like, he
looks so tough, and then you look at Mark and
we were like, you don't just you don't think of like,
Mark's such a sweet, nice guy, you know, a hard
working guy and a successful lawyer obviously, but all of
a sudden he looks really tough next to Yeah, and
you're like, hey, don't mess with him either.
Speaker 3 (20:26):
You know what, you'd be surprised about Mark. He's certainly
not Beth. No, it's it's awesome.
Speaker 2 (20:36):
Dan Campbell's amazing and you know having the opportunity to
you know, shoot those ads and spend the time with
them is fantastic.
Speaker 1 (20:42):
Yeah, it's had to have been so much fun and
just fun in the partnership to watch them do well.
Speaker 3 (20:47):
Yes, absolutely, it's so exciting.
Speaker 2 (20:49):
You know, we're always Lions fans, and it's awesome after
all the years you know that we weren't as successful
being in the in this position we're in right now.
Speaker 3 (20:57):
It's a great team, awesome environment.
Speaker 1 (20:59):
It is. The feeling around that team is just great.
And it's nice to see you guys attached to such
a good organization. Two two good organizations come together. Yes,
we appreciative of that. What would you say to someone
who wants to be in a leadership position similar to
what you're in, Like, what kind of advice would you
give them? You know, they're just let's say there's let's
say somebody who's been in a business for a while
(21:21):
and they are being you know identified as you know, hey,
you probably will be in leadership. You know, so they're
right there, and there are things that you can impart
to them that might help them. What would you give
a couple pieces of stage words?
Speaker 2 (21:35):
Sure, So, first of all, I would say, as advice
to give to a young leader who is coming up
in the ranks, I would say that if you're interested
in being a boss, it's probably not the path for you.
I think that it's important for people to realize that
leadership is so much more about service than it is
about leadership. In many, many ways, most of my time
(21:57):
is spent in service of others, and I would not
have that any other way.
Speaker 3 (21:59):
And I think it's really important.
Speaker 2 (22:01):
That that's how it's approached, or else it's a title
for titles sake. I think that that's the most important
thing and piece of advice that I would give.
Speaker 3 (22:09):
It's hard work. Yeah, give one more.
Speaker 2 (22:12):
You know. Sam gave me the best piece of advice
when I became the CEO, before I turned into the president.
He said, if you don't want to see what you're
doing on the front page of the newspaper, then don't
do it.
Speaker 3 (22:22):
And it's just something that's always stuck in.
Speaker 2 (22:23):
My head, like ethical leadership is just tremendously important, especially
in today's day and age, you know, And so I
think that that's a really great piece of advice, and
it's simple, you know, when choosing between two paths, I
kept in mind at all times what was it like
being with Sam? He is just such an extraordinary person
(22:45):
and personality. So I think that in equal parts hard work.
He was there every day all the time talking to clients,
just a kind, wonderful human And so I learned a
tremendous amount from him about client service and just being
a just being a good person. I learned from him
and from Mark and Beeth every day. Honestly, it's a joy.
Speaker 1 (23:09):
What's your favorite thing about your whole staff and what
you do with them.
Speaker 3 (23:14):
We're a fun bunch.
Speaker 2 (23:15):
We have a lot of amazing, interesting, different personalities that
we just it's a great team to get together. We
just moved into a like a sixty five thousand square
foot space that's triple the size of our last office,
and so it's great post COVID to get everybody back together.
We still kind of do a hybrid schedule, but everybody
being back in the office together has just been phenomenal
(23:37):
and so much fun to be together as a team.
Speaker 3 (23:39):
Great to be around the team together. What do you
want to see happen for your book?
Speaker 2 (23:44):
I would love to see companies read it, understand it,
and learn what I'm trying to say, because I think
it's actually really truly important and it would be helpful
for institutions organizations to learn this and understand that they
can do this a different way and still, you know,
abiding by the legal requirements and still you know, that's
(24:06):
the most important thing for me.
Speaker 3 (24:07):
It's not about selling the book. Don't even care about
that at all.
Speaker 2 (24:10):
I would really just love for people to understand what
it is that I'm talking about. I think it can
change the world if people are just treated better and differently.
Speaker 1 (24:19):
Is there a movement toward that kind of philosophy do
you think or do you think there's just a really
long way to go.
Speaker 2 (24:25):
I think we're just in such polarizing times right now
that I do believe that there's a movement in some ways,
but I don't think it's always push forward and seen
as the most important thing. And so I try to
show it in a way that I try to show
it in a way that not only emphasizes the care
for the human but also showing how it can benefit
(24:45):
the business in hopes that that will make people more
interested in it.
Speaker 1 (24:50):
As a leader of the sam Bernstein Law Firm, what
do you see in the coming years for the firm?
Speaker 2 (24:55):
I see continued growth and ongoing dedication and to our
clients and our purpose.
Speaker 3 (25:03):
Do you see you routing the Detroit Lions onto a
Super Bowl? Yes, that's the right answer. Let's go. Let's
go Lions.
Speaker 1 (25:13):
Our guest today has been Rebecca Sposito, President of the
sam Bernstein Law Firm, and her new book is called
Win Win, Helping organizations mitigate legal risk for the common Good.
Speaker 3 (25:24):
Thank you for joining us today, Rebecca, Thank you so
much for having me
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