Burn the Partner Track: How One Law Firm is Redefining Everything (Ep. 117)
The traditional law firm structure—think partners, origination bonuses, and strict hierarchies—has long been considered the gold standard. But what happens when a forward-thinking firm decides to break the mold in pursuit of better business outcomes and a more fulfilling work culture? On this episode of The Lawyer Millionaire Podcast, host Darren Wurz sat down with Tara Jalali Malek, co-owner of Smith + Malek, to explore how her firm ditched outdated practices and built a business model that’s both people-focused and highly profitable.
Here’s how her firm is redefining what success looks like, and what you can take away if you’re a law firm owner ready to grow—in the right way.
The Problem with Traditional Law Firms
For most legal professionals, the standard law firm structure can feel isolating and even toxic. Malek points out how “siloing” partners leads to internal competition, where lawyers hoard work and chase their own origins for business, all at the expense of true collaboration.
This culture doesn’t just stifle innovation; it also creates unnecessary barriers for working parents and women, and adds stress for attorneys who aren’t natural rainmakers. “Better ideas—and better results—come from collaboration,” Malek says. And yet, traditional models make teamwork difficult and leave little room for meaningful personal connection or support.
A New Model: Collaboration Over Competition
At Smith + Malek, things look very different:
No origination bonuses or internal competition. Instead of rewarding attorneys for business they alone bring in, the firm fosters warm introductions and team-wide business development. The result? More referrals, a collaborative approach to client service, and less stress for everyone involved.
No partner track. Malek’s firm has eliminated the concept of “making partner.” Instead, there are owners and non-owners—but everyone has a voice and a seat at the table. This reduces hierarchy and ensures all team members can shape firm culture and decisions.
Flexible work options. Employees can work in the office or remotely, depending on their life stage and personal needs. What matters most is quality work and client service—not micromanaging hours.
Generous parental leave. All employees receive up to 16 weeks of paid parental leave, including for adoption and regardless of their role. This support, rarely seen in law, is a magnet for top talent who value work-life integration.
Clearly Defined Mission and Vision
One of the keys to the firm’s success? A laser-focused mission and vision. Every meeting at Smith + Malek starts with a quick reminder of why they’re there: to be a “force of justice for the world” and “change the world for the better.” This isn’t just an exercise in branding—it’s about keeping everyone aligned and making business decisions that reflect core values.
As Malek says, “The more clear you get about your vision, the more it attracts the right people—and repels the wrong ones.” This clarity is a cornerstone for law firm owners looking to build lasting, profitable businesses.
The Results: Stronger Culture, Clearer Identity, and Sustainable Growth
Is this unconventional approach good for business? Absolutely. Malek’s firm has seen tangible benefits: higher morale, greater staff retention, and an influx of the right clients and team members who align with the mission.
Most importantly, this business model enables growth—without sacrificing culture. As the firm defines its identity, it naturally attracts like-minded professionals and clients, and repels those who don’t fit. That makes scaling sustainable and intentional.
What Law Firm Owners Can Learn
Rethink compensation and career paths. If origination bonuses and rigid partner tracks are breeding competition and turnover, consider how a collaborative, transparent approach could create more value (and better client service).
Prioritize people. Generous benefits and flexible work policies aren’t just perks—they’re strategic investments in retention, morale, and reputation. Don’t underestimate their financial impact.
Make your mission real. Repeat your mission and vision until they become second nature for your team. Use them as filters for hiring, client selection, and strategic decisions.
Evolve constantly and stay open to feedback. What worked ten years ago may not be right today. Stay nimble, ask your team for input, and learn from businesses inside and outside of law.
Resources:
Book: Start with Why: How Great Leaders Inspire Everyone to Take Action by Simon Sinek
Book: The SPEED of Trust: The One Thing that Changes Everything by Stephen M.R. Covey
Book: The Trusted Advisor by David H. Maister, Charles H. Green and Robert M. Galford
Connect with Darren Wurz:
Connect with Tara Jalali Malek:
About our guest:
Tara is an Idaho licensed attorney and Smith + Malek, PLLC co-owner. With vast experience in civil and criminal law, Tara practices in state and federal court in business and commercial litigation.
Previously, Tara worked as a Kootenai County Deputy Prosecutor, a Special Assistant United States Attorney, and an Assistant United States Attorney at the United States Attorney’s Office in Boise. Tara’s most significant career accomplishments include a reversal of a jury verdict in federal court and reinstating a college president after an unlawful suspension.
Tara is a first-generation Iranian American who is fluent in both Farsi and English. She holds a B.A. in political science from the University of Arizona in Tucson. In 2008, Tara moved to Idaho to attend the University of Idaho College of Law where she graduated with her J.D. in 2011.
Tara’s personal ‘why’ is the pursuit of justice. She believes that lawyers can change the world for the better by pursuing justice on behalf of clients.
She’s a frequent legal pundit on national shows regarding criminal cases across the U.S. and teaches trial advocacy to law students at the University of Idaho College of Law, her alma mater.
When not in court, she serves on several boards, including Mountain West Bank, Building Hope Today, Idaho Contraceptive Education Network, Idaho for All, Your Health Idaho, and the University of Idaho Law Advisory Council. In her free time, Tara enjoys volunteering in her community, backpacking, hiking, skiing, and fly-fishing with her spoiled dog, Tequila.
BAR/COURT ADMISSIONS
Idaho
EDUCATION
J.D., University of Idaho College of Law
B.A., University of Arizona
ACHIEVEMENTS
Idaho Women Lawyers Notable Achievement, 2024
North Idaho Business Journal Top 40 Under 40, 2024
Idaho Business Review Idaho’s Women of the Year honoree, 2017, 2018, 2023
Soroptomists Women of Distinction, 2022
Kootenai County Young Professionals Top 30 Under 40, 2021
Leaders in Law, 2019
Transcript:
Darren Wurz [00:00:00]:
What if your law firm didn't have any partners, origination bonuses, or a rigid hierarchy, and yet still outperformed the traditional model? Welcome to the Lawyer Millionaire, helping law firm owners grow their businesses and their wealth. I'm your host, Darren Wurz. Let's face it, traditional law firm structures are outdated, isolating, and even toxic. From internal competition to barriers for working parents, they're not designed for today's legal professionals. But there's a better way, and today we're diving into it. Tara Malik is a former federal prosecutor and current co owner of a mission driven law firm transforming how legal practices operate. Her firm has eliminated the partner track, dropped origination bonuses, and built a people first culture that, that's achieving big results.
Darren Wurz [00:00:54]:
All right, Tara, I'm so excited to be here with you today. Thank you for joining me.
Tara Malek [00:00:58]:
Thank you for having me. I'm excited to be here as well.
Darren Wurz [00:01:02]:
Yeah.
Darren Wurz [00:01:02]:
So let's talk about the way law firms are structured. Right. You know, as an outsider myself, the old traditional models of law firm structure never really made a lot of sense to me. In your opinion, is the traditional law firm structure, is it fundamentally broken and why or why not?
Tara Malek [00:01:26]:
I think the traditional law firm structure really emphasized siloing people out. So you had your work, your book of business, and then someone else in your organization had theirs, and that's okay. It's just not great. And the reason why it's not great is because we, we know just on a fundamental level that better ideas, better answers to problems come out of collaboration. And also it really strengthens interpersonal relationships between members of a team, employees. And when a team feels really good, the work product that they're putting out is going to be better and that means it's going to be more impactful for the client as well. So for a number of reasons, I think that the traditional model really had a lot of downsides. And I think the other thing that it did was it, it created arbitrary barriers for women and parents in the practice of law as well.
Tara Malek [00:02:32]:
And so a more collaborative model means more support internally for employees too.
Darren Wurz [00:02:39]:
Interesting. Yeah. I mean, the old traditional model where you're siloed means that you're really responsible for business development and bringing in clients, you know, each, each person on their own. And that, that is really stressful for a lot of attorneys.
Tara Malek [00:02:56]:
It is. And some people, that's just not their cup of tea. You know, everyone is different and they have different strengths. And to say and put the burden on every person, like you have to go out and, and get business in sounds well and great, but if you've got someone who's an introvert, who's just this wonderful, awesome transactional attorney, and they don't want to go have, you know, seven coffees or they don't want to go sell. They want to sit there and do this awesome, amazing work that they do. You know, it takes that burden off. And especially when you remove the internal competition, the things that reward internal competition through hoarding work or, you know, you're bringing in all this book of business and it is yours to keep. I think you smooth out the process.
Tara Malek [00:03:45]:
Process, and you really let people shine in the way that they're supposed to, depending on their particular strengths.
Darren Wurz [00:03:52]:
Yeah, absolutely. So that's kind of how you've done things in your firm. Right. That more of a collaborative environment. Tell us a little bit of what that looks like.
Tara Malek [00:04:02]:
Sure. So we do have a collaborative approach. We have gotten rid of things internally like origination bonuses, which we think does, you know, we were just talking about, which is. Fuels internal competition. You know, it encourages people to have a stack of work that they bring on their desk. And if it. If it takes three weeks, four weeks to get to it, so be it. Because it's their work.
Tara Malek [00:04:27]:
It leads to origination fights if you're bringing in somebody else to help on the matter and there's a spin off matter. So our teams, we have different practice area groups that are headed by practice group leads. And those leaders work collaboratively with each other to really identify what does this client need in particular. And if our practice group can't handle this or it's really not in their wheelhouse, they're going to pull in other team members. Because at the end of the day, what we want is really good service to our clients.
Darren Wurz [00:05:03]:
Interesting. So no origination fees. Do you feel like that hampers business development or enhances it?
Tara Malek [00:05:12]:
I think it enhances it. I think that, you know, if someone has a great contact and it may be in a particular area of the law that they don't practice in, I think there's a lot of incentive to make a warm introduction to that person or to that entity with somebody else in the firm. And so there's not this fear, fear of I'm going to lose out. Instead, it's. It's bringing the team back together again. It's really encouraging that sort of collaboration and not disincentivizing it.
Darren Wurz [00:05:45]:
Yeah, more like a we all win and lose together kind of a thing, Right?
Tara Malek [00:05:51]:
Exactly, exactly.
Darren Wurz [00:05:53]:
Very cool. What kind of gave you that Idea. Was there an event or was it just kind of something that you had been thinking about for a long time?
Tara Malek [00:06:02]:
Well, the folks that we had talked to, and I think it's just our differing experiences and life experiences. Both the founders and other attorneys that we brought in, we knew what we wanted. We wanted to be unified. And we knew that by being more unified and collaborative, we could have a greater impact. Our firm has a very particular mission and vision statement. We kind of live and die by it. And the vision is to be a force of justice for the world, and a force, meaning one unified together, moving forward as one energy to do good things. And our mission is to change the world for the better.
Tara Malek [00:06:53]:
And so what we do, our strategies and internally and externally, are really filtered through that lens. I mean, that's the. Those are the guiding principles and compass, if you will.
Darren Wurz [00:07:07]:
Yeah, absolutely. That's really cool. So did you kind of start the firm that way with. With not having those origination fees, or was that a change that you made later?
Tara Malek [00:07:17]:
So the firm was started with a semi traditional model. It wasn't. It wasn't exactly a traditional model. It was kind of a hybrid situation. But we didn't have the origination fees that has remained consistent. And what we've done is we've continued to make tweaks. I think that there's a real risk in getting comfortable and saying we've always done it this way and not being open to feedback, even from your own team members. How can we do it better? And also, we're great students of life.
Tara Malek [00:07:57]:
And so we're watching how other businesses run, and we're trying to figure out, okay, this works, or we tried it, and this doesn't work so great. So we're constantly changing and evolving with an eye towards really fulfilling both our mission and our vision.
Darren Wurz [00:08:12]:
Yeah. Yeah, that's fantastic. So what are modern legal professionals looking for as far as culture and a firm that other firms or maybe more traditional models are not providing nowadays?
Tara Malek [00:08:29]:
I think. I think that society at large is feeling loneliness and isolation. I think that's a great problem that we see echoed and reflected in all areas of life.
Darren Wurz [00:08:43]:
Yeah.
Tara Malek [00:08:44]:
And people really seek meaning and connection. And so I think that in the traditional models, there's less opportunity for that meaningful connection with a shared vision. And so one of our goals is to try and eliminate that sort of isolationism, that loneliness. I think that's just the human aspect of how do you do things better and, you know, happier. Happier people, happier employees, happier clients. I mean, it has an effect has kind of this butterfly effect out into society as well. And you know, our goal is we want to be that positive impact. We want to be that force of justice.
Tara Malek [00:09:34]:
And so that means getting our ducks in a row and figuring out, constantly figuring out, how do we do it better, how can we do this better, how can we bring people together?
Darren Wurz [00:09:43]:
Yeah, absolutely. You've done a lot of other things in your practice to align it with what you feel people are really looking for nowadays. One of those things I think I read somewhere is that you have eliminated the partner track.
Darren Wurz [00:09:57]:
Is that correct?
Tara Malek [00:09:58]:
Yep.
Darren Wurz [00:09:58]:
So tell us about that. What does that look like and what did you replace it with?
Tara Malek [00:10:02]:
Sure. So back when we were first talking about should we have partners, should we not have partners? And we had all worked at different law firms, and when we were initially discussing partnership, what we realized was there were so many definitions of partnership. You could be an equity partner, you could be a non equity partner, you could. And so we're like, what does this even mean? Right? Like, what are we talking about? Like, what's. And when you have a bunch of type A, you know, individuals who are super goal oriented, which attorneys usually are, they want something, they want a goal to work towards. Right? They want something to work towards. And partnership is like the thing.
Darren Wurz [00:10:45]:
Right.
Tara Malek [00:10:46]:
And what we realized when we started getting into those conversations, that we're like, well, what does that mean to you? And we were getting differing opinions of what that meant. And ultimately we're like, well, if it means feeling an ownership in the place that you work, we can do that in a different way. Having a voice, we can do that in a different way. We don't need a term like partnership to define that. That's really cultural is what we're talking about. And so instead, instead of having partners, we don't. We have owners and we have non owners. We treat our non owners like partners.
Tara Malek [00:11:24]:
We communicate with them in a way to continually try and increase transparency. We want to hear their voice. It doesn't matter if they've been here a year or six months or five years or six years. Like, we want those opinions. So, you know, it's been, it's been really good. I don't know that we've replaced it any with anything. You know, we're still growing and changing too. And we're, you know, in the talks of, you know, what does ownership look like? Right.
Tara Malek [00:11:53]:
How do you get there? But I think what, what we have, if, if there's true replacement, we've leaned into building the culture that we want so that people have a voice.
Darren Wurz [00:12:05]:
Yeah, absolutely. You kind of redefined it. It sounds like. Yeah. Do you find that like the, the partnership idea kind of like makes people feel like they're separated or, or in different categories?
Tara Malek [00:12:20]:
A little bit. I mean, it's hierarchical and, and also, you know, when we're talking about partnership, it more than, I think more than once, what we heard was, you know, I want to have a seat at the table. And it's like, okay, like, tell me that's the conversation I want to have. What does that look like? What is the seat that you want and why? What's the motivation behind it? So, yes, we have redefined it and I think it's been helpful and it continues to evolve and that's what we want. We don't want to be an organization that's static, where we're not making changes or really rigid. I think flexibility is really key, especially in this very dynamic business and dynamic society.
Darren Wurz [00:13:12]:
Yeah. And do your team members, are they all in person? Are they remote? Are they hybrid? What does that look like for you?
Tara Malek [00:13:18]:
So we give people the option of being remote if they'd like to be remote. What we find is that most people like to be in the office. They like the interactions, the in person interactions, at least for a couple of days of the week. So, but, you know, things come up. People have young children, for instance, and as we all know, the cost of childcare is huge. And so we want to provide that flexibility to let adults be adults, let them operate in the way that works best for them in that stage of their life. And if that means working more days remotely, so be it. We want them to have that because that's such a minor thing.
Tara Malek [00:14:00]:
If the work isn't being done or the client's needs are not being attended to, that's a different issue. That's a character issue. I don't need to micromanage somebody in the office because that would happen probably here too. So that's a different thing. And we don't want to conflate those things together.
Darren Wurz [00:14:18]:
Yeah, giving a little bit of trust to your employees. You know, I'll never forget my first job I, I did. I had a career as a teacher before this. And my, the first school I taught at, we had to clock in and clock out as teachers. They wanted us to come. We had to go over to the main building and we had to swipe our badge to let them know what time we had arrived. And I was like, really? I just, I gotta, I just went through college. I Got my degree.
Darren Wurz [00:14:48]:
I have my teaching certificate. I'm a professional. Right. And I have to clock in. This is so ridiculous.
Tara Malek [00:14:55]:
Yeah, yeah, absolutely. It feels very micromanaging, doesn't it?
Darren Wurz [00:14:58]:
Yes.
Tara Malek [00:15:00]:
And we don't. And when. And when people feel, like, micromanaged or, like, watched in a really overbearing way, most people kind of freeze. It triggers an emotional response and almost triggers, like, a fear response. And we know.
Darren Wurz [00:15:14]:
Yeah.
Tara Malek [00:15:15]:
When feelings of, you know, being unsafe are triggered, you're not going to get really great anything out of that person because they're now in fight or flight mode. So we don't want people there. We want to get them out of that state. So, you know, which is another reason why we're. We are constantly creating new avenues for feedback so we can tell what's working, what's not working. You know, what feels micromanaging.
Darren Wurz [00:15:44]:
Absolutely. And one of those things you've done a little differently is expanded your parental leave. As I understand it, you have 16 weeks of paid parental leave. Tell us about that and what kind of response you've seen from that.
Tara Malek [00:15:57]:
It was met with overwhelming enthusiasm, I would say.
Darren Wurz [00:16:02]:
I bet you did.
Tara Malek [00:16:04]:
We didn't just get to 16 weeks. We had to build up to it as we grew as a firm. But we have 16 weeks of paid parental leave for anyone. So all of our employees, that includes staff, includes attorneys. We felt that it was really important to allow people that time with their families. And it includes adoption. It includes, you know, your own biological children. So it has been really good, I think, and we've had members take advantage of that, and we really want to encourage that.
Tara Malek [00:16:44]:
I think it's really been hard in the legal profession to be a parent because of a number of different things. And one of the things that we realized we could do to help support parents was create this space and give them some breathing room to connect with their child, especially in those early days.
Darren Wurz [00:17:06]:
Yeah, that makes a lot of sense. You know, I'm curious, with all these things you have implemented, what can you say about, like, the. The tangible results for your business? Have you seen an improvement in. Obviously, it improves the morale and the culture, but has. Has that translated substantially to profitability as you've witnessed it?
Tara Malek [00:17:26]:
I think that what it does is it really hones in the identity of the firm. And so people are free to choose where they want to work. Right. And some things work. Some models work for them, and some models don't work for them. And I think as we've gotten more and more clear about who we are and what we are, you know, we're seeing buy in into that and. And we've seen some people leave because, you know, that wasn't their vision for what they wanted, and that's okay too. So, yeah, what it's translated into, I think really is a shared understanding and a shared definition and a shared value system, which I think is so important.
Tara Malek [00:18:11]:
So for us, again, especially with that vision that we have, that very particular vision mission that we have, it really relies on this shared value system. And so we have a business coach who told us years ago, he's like, the more clear you get, the more people it'll repel because it'll be, you know, there'll be people who opt out and that's okay. And vice versa, the more people that really share that vision who are going to have an interest and opt into it. And I think he's right.
Darren Wurz [00:18:44]:
Yeah, that makes a lot of sense. And as you've refined that vision and mission and made it specific and it sounds like that's a really core part of your, Your operations. How do you. How do you communicate that to the team? How do you. How do you keep people aligned to that vision as you continue to operate?
Tara Malek [00:19:04]:
Repetition. Okay, yeah, lots of repetition, which I'm sure you're familiar with from being a teacher, Right. So you want to ingrain it. And I think it's one thing to say it, and then it's another thing to say it and interpret it and explain. This is our vision, this is our mission statement. We start our meetings with that, with our reciting the mission and the vision. Like, remember, here's what we're doing, here's where we're going. And then we are tying it back to what we're doing now, you know, and what we'll talk about is in terms of even clients that are our ideal clients, you know, this client, this entity, this person really wants to do these great things in the world.
Tara Malek [00:19:49]:
We want to partner with them, we want to help them, we want to collaborate with them, because that's aligned with our vision too, and our value system as well. So. And when we do have wins like that, we're like, wow, we got this great entity, this great person. This is really cool because now we can collaborate with them and help them be better in what they're trying to do and remove these barriers to them being successful and meeting their own mission and vision. So we really, I think over the years, one of the lessons that we've learned is you can't just say it now. You have to talk about and really explain to people this is how we're incorporating it into our policies, into our decision making, into our strategies.
Darren Wurz [00:20:29]:
Yeah, definitely. So, yeah, so. So it sounds like you. You repeat it at your, like, weekly meetings and things like that.
Tara Malek [00:20:36]:
Yep.
Darren Wurz [00:20:36]:
That's cool.
Tara Malek [00:20:37]:
Yeah, yeah, it's. And on our one on one meetings with folks and, you know, a question, we really try and understand what our individual employees goals are as well. So we're into the development of humans, the development of people, not just we want to help them develop. And so in order to help them develop, it's like, here's our mission, here's our vision, here's what we're doing. Give me feedback. Like, what do you think about that? Is that, is that ringing true with you? And also what is your individual mission, vision and goal in life? Like, what does that look like?
Darren Wurz [00:21:15]:
Yeah, I love it. We talk about that so much in our work with clients. Right. In developing their personal mission. Right. Like, what do you really want your life to look like? And if you're listening to this and you're thinking about this. Right. You know, like, if you've never done this before, it might feel a little strange at first to start your weekly meetings reciting your mission and vision, but it can be so easy just to dive right into the numbers and the business stuff and forget why you're there.
Darren Wurz [00:21:46]:
Right, right.
Tara Malek [00:21:47]:
Absolutely. Absolutely. And I think it's different, you know, it doesn't have to be an awkward, like, all right, everyone chant it together. You know, doesn't have to be something like that. Like, very cult, like, weird.
Darren Wurz [00:21:58]:
Sure.
Tara Malek [00:21:58]:
That's not what we're talking about. What we're talking about is, you know, you know, whenever that meeting is.
Darren Wurz [00:22:05]:
Yeah.
Tara Malek [00:22:05]:
This has been a great week, you know, or we've had some challenges this week, but really want to focus in, like, we are here to do this type of work. We are here to lean in in order to achieve this vision. And then you talk about it. And so I think when you bring people back together to that shared mission and vision, it almost changes the tone of the conversation as well. From the get go.
Darren Wurz [00:22:30]:
Sure.
Tara Malek [00:22:30]:
Because they may come in. May have been a hard week. It may have been a hard day, hard month. And when you're like, okay, but remember, like, we're in this together. Right. Okay, let's start here now. Let's talk about it.
Darren Wurz [00:22:44]:
Right, right. Absolutely. Just clarifying. Right. Because you're right. You come into that meeting, there might be so many things going on.
Tara Malek [00:22:52]:
Absolutely. Absolutely.
Darren Wurz [00:22:53]:
Yeah.
Tara Malek [00:22:54]:
Yeah.
Darren Wurz [00:22:55]:
Tara, tell Us a little bit about the size of your practice as it stands right now.
Tara Malek [00:23:00]:
Sure. So we've got offices in Kennewick, Washington, Spokane, Coeur d' Alene, Idaho and Boise. And our clients are all over. So we've got clients in Montana, Wyoming, Idaho, Alaska, Utah and Arizona. So we've got clients everywhere. So our, our footprint as far as physical offices doesn't really reflect the actual reach of the work that we're doing. So I would say we're definitely a smaller, small to mid size firm. Team size about 14, 14 attorneys excluding staff and executive team.
Tara Malek [00:23:47]:
Yeah.
Darren Wurz [00:23:47]:
And what are the main practice areas that you're focused on?
Tara Malek [00:23:50]:
So we really focus on helping and supporting businesses. And so the way that we do that is through a couple different practice areas. We have a transactional team that works with business leaders, their executive teams, their C suites on whatever they need, contract reviews, mergers and acquisitions, banking law. We also have a real estate practice and that's that same team that works on that. So we get a lot of, I would say a ton of referrals regarding real estate issues and both for businesses and also we get some spin offs with residential stuff that comes up. So we've got a practice that includes healthcare, so healthcare regulation. We do a lot of work with healthcare entities and small to very large, so helping them navigate those regulations, deal with personnel issues that come up. So really acting like general counsel, but externally to them and helping support them.
Tara Malek [00:24:51]:
And then we've got a mining practice, we have a lobbying practice as well. And this is really consistent with what we believe is when, when a client really wants to see fundamental change. And so we may be working on a problem or issue together and we're like, you know what this, this area of the law is like we need a, we need a change here.
Darren Wurz [00:25:13]:
We need to change.
Tara Malek [00:25:15]:
Like what can we do? Let's like get ahead of this problem because you can' the only one who's struggling with this. And so our lobbying practice really focuses on the clients that we have and that we serve that really have an interest in making more permanent changes out there. And then we have a litigation practice and that practice is everything under the sun, as you can imagine. So any barrier that a business has or an individual has, we try and really help. We don't do criminal law, we don't do family law. So we have great, great referrals for those out that everything handle.
Darren Wurz [00:25:51]:
Where do you see the firm evolving to in the next five to 10 years? What are, what are the big things that are next for you guys, you.
Tara Malek [00:25:59]:
Know, I think we are going to continue to try and increase our impact. You know, we, I talk about reach, but what I really mean is our impact and we want our impact to continually be more and more positive out in the communities in which we live. You know, we work where we have family members. And so, you know, we're going to continue on that vision of being a force of justice in the world. And I think what that looks like for us is continuing to partner with and align with clients that share wanting to do good out there. So I think our evolution is going to be continual evolution, kind of a reach, always to do better. And you know, like I said, this is a very dynamic society that we live in and there's all these changes, especially with AI. And so we're continually trying to figure out, okay, like, how do we provide better value more efficiently, more productively?
Darren Wurz [00:27:01]:
Absolutely. Yeah. It's constantly changing what we're all thinking right now. Over the years, about five to 10 years will, will shift probably a lot as time goes on. I want to give you a chance to tell a little bit of your story too. Tara. You have just such an amazing story. How did you come to be where you are now as a law firm owner? Tell us about the journey.
Tara Malek [00:27:26]:
Well, my professional journey was I started off in civil practice actually after law school. I thought in law school I was going to go be a real estate attorney in like Seattle. And then I worked at a local firm right out of law school in Idaho for a little bit civil law. And I was like, oh my gosh, it's taking me half a day to prepare for one little hearing in front of the judge. Like, I can't get this nervous all the time. So I'm like, I'm gonna go be a prosecutor for a while. I just gotta get in court as much as possible. So I switched and I became a criminal prosecutor.
Tara Malek [00:28:02]:
I was a deputy county prosecutor for a number of years and ended up really enjoying it, loving the trial work. And then I became a special assistant United States attorney, which was a kind of cross deputized federal state prosecutor. And then I became an assistant United States attorney, which was a federal prosecutor. Loved that. Really challenged me in great ways and got better at being in court. And then I decided that this, this personal drive for justice, I could also translate into a different area and go back to civil law. And the challenge of owning and helping shape a civil law firm to do things differently, to address the issues of justice both internally and externally for a firm was really enticing and exciting to me. And so that's, that's how I ended up here.
Darren Wurz [00:29:00]:
So.
Darren Wurz [00:29:00]:
So straight from federal prosecutor to then launching your practice, is that, that how it went?
Tara Malek [00:29:06]:
So the practice was actually launched and established by two other folks that was then Luke Malik. And so at the time when it launched, they were looking for a litigator. The practice was really small. I had a skill set to be a litigator and had done that, you know, my, just about my entire career. And so I decided to come over and help start that up and really just focus on civil litigation, which is what I've been doing since I joined the firm. So the firm just celebrated. It's a 10 year anniversary in April. So we're still the baby firm compared to other ones.
Tara Malek [00:29:49]:
But it's been a really neat journey to be a part of.
Darren Wurz [00:29:53]:
Yeah, absolutely. That's, that's really incredible. Well, I've got one more question for you. Unfortunately, we're coming down to the, the end of our time here, but it's been great chatting with you. Tara. You may, you may or may not know this, but we have a book club for law firm leaders and we read one book, book a quarter. Right now we're reading Shoe Dog by Phil Knight, which has just been an incredible read. So one question I ask all of my guests.
Darren Wurz [00:30:21]:
Are there any great books that you're reading right now that you're really excited about? Or if not, maybe you could share a book that you read before that was just really life changing for you either in terms of business or the practice of law or, you know, just life.
Tara Malek [00:30:37]:
Sure. We also have a book club at our.
Darren Wurz [00:30:39]:
Oh, sweet. Okay.
Tara Malek [00:30:41]:
Yeah. So we're constantly like trading book recommendations and choosing ones for our team too. We love all the, and I love all the Simon Sinek books. So start with why, Finding why. I think those are phenomenal, phenomenal books. The other one that I really had recommended to me a number of times and I really enjoyed, it's called the Speed of Trust. And wonderful book, really helpful because it talks about the layers of building trust. And you know, the first one, the foundational one that a lot of us skip over is self trust.
Tara Malek [00:31:18]:
So I found a lot of value in that particular book and certainly try and incorporate it into my practice.
Darren Wurz [00:31:25]:
Oh, very cool. The Speed of Trust. Fantastic. Well, we'll make sure we put that in the show notes for anybody who wants to check that out. I haven't read that one yet, so thank you very much for the recommendation. It sounds great though. I mean in our business, it's a very high trust business. One book I'm reading, additionally to the others I'm reading is the Trusted Advisor, kind of along those same lines about developing those, those strong relationships with clients and being more in that advisory seat to help them with their issues.
Tara Malek [00:32:00]:
That's great. I'll have to add that to my list.
Darren Wurz [00:32:03]:
Yeah, certainly. Well, Tara, it's been great chatting with you. Any other pieces of advice, last things that you want to mention for our audience, for them as takeaways?
Tara Malek [00:32:14]:
I mean, I think they probably already know this. The greatest strength, I think as a lawyer, as a leader, is to continue to educate yourself and to grow. And so really being open to sources of information that aren't just in the law, I think it's so important and impactful. And I think especially as leaders, if we can show our teams that we are open to constantly improving and changing and taking feedback and evolving, you're modeling the behavior that you want to see too.
Darren Wurz [00:32:52]:
Right?
Darren Wurz [00:32:52]:
Right. We don't have it all together all the time.
Tara Malek [00:32:56]:
Rarely.
Darren Wurz [00:32:58]:
Right. Absolutely. Well, Tara, thanks so much for joining us. We'll put all your links and stuff in the show notes. Where can our listeners go to learn more about your you?
Tara Malek [00:33:09]:
Well, our firm website is Smith Malik.com and we've got bios on there and always happy. I'm on LinkedIn as well. Always happy to make new connections with people and hear their best tips and learn from them too.
Darren Wurz [00:33:24]:
Absolutely. Well, thank you, Tara.
Tara Malek [00:33:25]:
All right. Thank you so much.
Darren Wurz [00:33:27]:
All right. A big thank you to Tara Malik for joining us today and sharing her firm's incredible journey toward a more human, collaborative and impactful law practice. You can connect with Tara on LinkedIn or visit her firm's website. Check the show notes for all the links. If there's one thing I want you to take away from today, it's this. You don't have to follow the old rules. You can build a firm that reflects your values, supports your team and drives real success. And that's what the Lawyer Millionaire is all about.
Darren Wurz [00:34:00]:
Helping law firm owners like you design businesses that not only generate wealth, but give you the freedom, fulfillment and lifestyle you deserve. Whether it's compensation, structure, firm culture, or your personal financial strategy, we're here to help you rethink, redesign and rise. To learn more about us, visit lawyermillionaire.com and download the first chapter of my book, the Lawyer Millionaire. And don't forget to join our book club for law firm leaders. It's totally free and open now. You can get there at community.lawyermillionaire.com who is the lawyer millionaire? It's you, my friend.