A 'Pay What You Can' Law Practice? Prosecutors Say That Encourages Crime.

Opening Arguments

Opening Arguments Media LLC

Atheist, Opinion, Harvard, News, Politics, Legal, Law, Liberal, Supremecourt

4.3 • 3.7K Ratings

🗓️ 23 May 2025

⏱️ 64 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

OA1160 - Sheryl Weikal is an Illinois trial lawyer with a name-your own-price practice representing marginalized people facing eviction, foreclosure, discrimination, and incarceration--which is all incredibly cool unto itself, but she also has a story like no one else you’ve heard. Sheryl won an incredible victory three years ago against the Illinois state bar for trans attorneys throughout the state in the face of years of open prejudice which she suffered from fellow lawyers, court staff, and even judges from the bench, and has written the story of her personal and professional life in a memoir which will be out June 3rd. This isn’t one to miss!

Preorder I Was an Abomination: A Story of Trans Survival in Conservative America by Sheryl Weikal (to be released 6/3/2025)
“Transgender lawyer wins suit for declaration that trans discrimination violates attorney ethics rules,” ABA Journal (4/18/2022)
Follow Sheryl on Bluesky

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Transcript

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0:00.0	You must never ever give out or give in.
0:03.1	You must keep the faith and keep your eyes on the prize.
0:07.6	That is your calling.
0:08.9	That is your mission.
0:10.1	That is your moral obligation.
0:12.1	That is your mandate.
0:13.4	Get out there and do it.
0:15.0	Get in the way.
0:19.7	Change. Change happens because people care.
0:26.6	You the people have the power to make this life free and beautiful, to make this life a wonderful adventure.
0:36.6	I still believe with all my heart, America can't. free and beautiful to make this life a wonderful adventure.
0:44.1	I still believe with all my heart, America can be a place where no child is left hungry,
0:47.9	no community is left behind, and no one gets told they don't belong.
0:55.0	The fight for our country is always worth it.
1:00.0	Hello and welcome to opening arguments. This is episode 1160.
1:01.9	I'm your host Thomas Smith and just me for the intro today because, as promised at the very end of last episode, it's an interview.
1:09.4	Matt's coming on.
1:10.4	He'll be on after the break
1:11.5	with our interviewee, who is phenomenal. I am so excited to bring you this interview. So I'm
1:18.1	traveling a little bit this week. I'm going to the God Offa Movies Live Show in Portland.
1:22.8	A lot of fun. Maybe I'll even see some of you there. Who knows? Say hi if you happen to be there. But that's going to be a lot of fun.
1:28.4	But as a result, no rapid response Friday.
	...

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