The Podvocate The Podvocate by Loyola University Chicago School of Law

For the final regular episode of our second season, the Podvocate team has a roundtable discussion about how our varied individual educational experiences have given us different preparation for law school, the increasing cost of an undergraduate education and seeming lack of increase in value, and expectations and advice we have for future generations.

This week, Jake sits down with Hillel C. Neuer, the executive director of UN Watch, an organization dedicated to holding the United Nations accountable to its own charter and fighting human rights abuses throughout the world. Jake and Hillel talk about the role of a non-governmental organization within the UN, the problems within the UN that UN Watch tries to combat, and how the UN is responding to the Covid-19 pandemic.

International lawyer, diplomat, writer and activist, Hillel C. Neuer is the Executive Director of UN Watch, a human rights NGO in Geneva, Switzerland. He has served as executive director of UN Watch since 2004, and has written globally on law, politics and international affairs. The Tribune de Genève has described Neuer as a human rights activist who is “feared and dreaded” by the world’s dictatorships. The Journal de Montreal wrote that Neuer “makes the U.N. tremble.” Israel’s Ma’ariv newspaper named him to its list of the “Top 100 Most Influential Jewish People in the World.” On social media, Neuer is one of the most active and consistent sources on exposing the United Nations often flawed agenda. Mr. Neuer has been quoted as an expert on the United Nations and human rights by the New York Times, Die Welt and Le Monde, and has appeared in debates on CNN, BBC, and Al Jazeera.

This week, Jake is sitting down with Jamie Miller to discuss the current state of the student loan debt crisis, how a recent court decision has opened the door to changes in how bankruptcy courts handle student loan debt and what form those changes might take.

Attorney James L. Miller is the owner of Miller & Miller, a consumer bankruptcy law firm based in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Jamie is a graduate of the University of Wisconsin and the University of Miami School of Law. He is a member of the National Association of Consumer Bankruptcy Attorneys and the American Bankruptcy Institute and serves on Governor Evers’ Student Loan task force. Miller & Miller is an inaugural member and ongoing participant of the Eastern District of Wisconsin Bankruptcy Court Help Desk. Jamie is the Board President of Milwaukee Jewish Free Loan Association and has served on the Operation Dream Board of Directors. Jamie is the father of two daughters, Erin and Hilary, and currently resides in Milwaukee with his wife, Felicia.

Haley sits down with Lisa Tamburini to talk about what the job experience of a chief compliance officer looks like, how her previous experience as a paralegal shaped her decision to go into law school, and advice for listeners interested in pursuing the field of compliance.

Lisa Tamburini is the Chief Compliance Officer at DiMeo Schneider & Associates, LLC. Prior to joining DiMeo Schneider & Associates earlier this year, Lisa was the Chief Compliance Officer at RMB Capital Management, an independent investment advisory firm, for eight years. Lisa is also a Senior Adjunct Lecturer at Loyola University Chicago’s Institute for Paralegal Studies. Lisa graduated from DePaul University College of Law in 2002.

We're back! Matt sat down with virologist Liam King to discuss the Covid-19 outbreak, how it compares with his experiences studying the ebola outbreaks in West Africa as well as other outbreaks, the U.S. and international response and where he finds hope in these challenging times.

Dr. Liam King studied the ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo and Sierra Leone. He has a BA in Chemical Biology from Berkeley, a PhD in Microbiology and Immunology from the University of California San Diego and is a year away from finishing his MD, also from UCSD.

Today, Haley is sitting down with Carrie Classick Johnson, Corporate Legal Counsel at McDonald’s Corporation in Chicago. Carrie began her legal career working in Big Law and made the move to McDonald’s Corporation two years later. Carrie discusses what it’s like to be an in-house lawyer at a large, well-known corporation like McDonald’s, the differences between working in Big Law and working in-house as a lawyer, and her advice to law students who are currently looking for job opportunities. Carrie attended Loyola University Chicago School of Law and the University of Colorado, Boulder.