Narain Maclear: Building a tech-driven firm with trial-ready young lawyers | ITCC

Sabrina Narain and Amy Maclear met as defense counsel for a shared client and quickly became friends. Within months of deciding to start a firm together, they launched Narain Maclear LLP. On this episode of In the Counsel's Chair, they join host Jack Needham to talk about building a firm around technology and a staffing model that frees lawyers to focus on practicing law. They explain how they mine historical data from their high-volume consumer warranty docket, from defect types and settlement values to how individual judges have ruled on recurring motions, to shape their litigation strategy, and why corporate clients now expect outside counsel to use AI. They also discuss why they put first- and second-year lawyers in front of juries, how judges are pushing firms to let junior attorneys argue, and why courtroom advocacy is one skill AI can't replace.

Episode chapters

00:00 -- Introductions

00:26 -- From friends to co-founders

02:00 -- Their practice backgrounds

03:00 -- Designing a firm around innovation

04:12 -- Hiring for strengths, not job titles

06:05 -- What they look for in a remote team

07:46 -- Launching at scale

09:16 -- Are they an AI-native firm?

09:50 -- Turning litigation data into strategy

12:11 -- Why clients expect AI from outside counsel

13:14 -- Judges giving junior lawyers the floor

16:32 -- Why firms hold young talent back

17:54 -- Training first-year trial lawyers

21:13 -- Advocacy skills AI can't teach

22:39 -- Why trial lawyers will last

23:35 -- Remote hearings and remote work

26:15 -- Will they ever try a case together?

Sabrina Narain is a co-founding partner of Narain Maclear LLP, where she leads the firm's consumer protection litigation practice. She defends breach of warranty, fraud and product liability cases, including cases involving catastrophic injuries and rollover accidents. She also represents businesses in general liability, business litigation and employment disputes. Narain has been lead trial counsel in numerous consumer protection and employment cases. She has represented major domestic and international automotive manufacturers against claims under the Song-Beverly Consumer Warranty Act, the Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act, California's Unfair Competition Law and the Consumers Legal Remedies Act. Her results include dismissals, defense verdicts at trial and successful challenges to opponents' attorney fee claims. In employment cases, she has been lead trial counsel in discrimination, retaliation and whistleblower matters for public entities and franchises.

Amy Maclear is a co-founder of Narain Maclear LLP. She defends automotive manufacturers and mobility companies in consumer, mass tort and product liability actions in state and federal courts. She also regularly serves as coordinating counsel, managing multi-firm defense teams across high-volume defect dockets. Maclear has also defended clients in class actions, consumer food-labeling cases, national asbestos litigation, rideshare sexual assault and catastrophic injury matters, and commercial disputes involving fraud and fiduciary duty claims. Before co-founding the firm, she was a partner at Shook, Hardy & Bacon LLP and Gordon & Rees LLP. Her pro bono work includes adoption matters and civil justice initiatives. She also mentors first-generation college and law students and judges undergraduate and law school mock trial competitions.