Letting Go of the Billable Hour with Trevor Riddle

Описание: What if your burnout isn’t caused by the work… but by the way you’re paid to do it?

After 14 years in high-stakes criminal defense, Trevor Riddle walked away. He thought he needed a new practice area. A new city. A fresh start.

But the real problem wasn’t the cases. It was the billable hour.

So he came back, built a firm on flat fees, and bet everything on alignment over tradition.

Would you have the courage to rebuild your career from the ground up?

Trevor Riddle is a veteran litigator and the founder of Triad Legal, where he applies over 20 years of "in the arena" experience to high-stakes state and federal cases. Born and raised in Oklahoma, he combines a deep-rooted work ethic with a sophisticated litigation background that includes taking on the government at all levels, from FBI stings to arguing before the 10th Circuit.

Triad Legal, is the vision of Trevor and his co-founder, Sal Intagliata. The firm's charge is to move beyond the traditional law firm model to build a practice defined by intentional systems and a client-first framework. By leveraging efficient operations and modern legal technology, the firm ensures that high-quality, zealous representation is always rooted in empathy and dignity. Trevor and his team are fierce advocates, dedicated to standing in the corner of their clients and relentlessly pursuing the outcomes they deserve.


CHAPTERS

00:00 Is the Way You Charge Clients Slowly Burning You Out?
00:18 The Hidden Cost of the Billable Hour
01:24 Why This Podcast Exists: The Truth Behind Law Firm Success
02:04 Who Is Trevor Riddle — And Why Did He Walk Away?
02:44 From Pre-Med to Prosecutor: A Career He Never Planned
08:01 Why a Successful Criminal Lawyer Switched to Estate Planning
09:47 The Shock of Starting Over in a New City
12:17 The Moment He Realized He Made the Wrong Pivot
15:42 Building a Firm Without Putting Your Name on the Door
18:56 The Conversations Most Partners Never Have (But Should)
21:45 Can You Really Run a Law Firm Across Two States?
24:28 Tech, Efficiency, and the Future of Legal Practice
24:52 Battle Bots, Philosophy, and the Making of a Systems Thinker
26:06 Why Most Criminal Defense Lawyers Resist Technology
28:36 Why He Abandoned the Billable Hour for Good
32:26 The Stress of High-Stakes Cases — And How He Survives It
38:36 The Marketing Myth: What Actually Brings in the Best Clients
41:17 When the Phone Rings at 2AM — What Do You Do?
47:16 The Hard Truth About Starting Your Own Firm
49:38 The Real Freedom of Owning Your Practice
50:26 If You’re Thinking About Leaving — Hear This First