Law Talk

SUZANNE CHESSLER

Special to the Jewish News

T

hey're both named Todd and
are both just over 30.
They're both avid skiers.
They're both lawyers. And
they're both on radio — together.
While they apparently have a lot in
common, their differences become evi-
dent every Sunday morning between
10 a.m. and noon. That's when they
take to the airwaves to answer callers'
quetions about law, and work at mak-
ing their points in a way that listeners
will find entertaining.
Todd Levitt, who pitched the idea for
the program to the management at 97.1-
FM, decided to name the broadcast after
himself and called it simply The Todd L.
Levitt Show. A specialist in criminal lid-
gation, he invited Todd Steam to work
with him and bring legal expertise in
other disciplines — as well as a personal-
ity that would complement his own.
"We're reaching out to people who
don't know where to turn when they
have legal problems," says Levitt, who
fields calls on issues as diverse as car
accidents, employment discrimination
and real estate transactions.
"Most people don't have family attor-
neys, and we give them information in a
way they can understand. We know that
people want to be entertained, so we try
to make them laugh at the same time."
Both attorneys will agree that the
more conservative Steam tones down
Levitt's almost no-holds-barred approach.
On the air they often are joined by Brian
Dailey, whose Farmington Hills law firm
includes Steam, and shares office space
with Levitt.
Dailey produces the show, which has
run for 22 weeks and is under contract
to continue through November. Guests
have included judges and prosecutors.
"-I feel the public should have more
access to them," says Levitt, who
advertised his practice on the radio sta-
tion that now carries his broadcasts.
"I'm not afraid to let people know
what I'm thinking, and the format is
based on my personality, which can be
wacky and outrageous."
Levitt, who grew up in Oak Park
and had his bar mitzvah at

1/28
2000

78

Photos by Bill Hansen

Got a legal question? Tune in Sunday mornings when local attorneys take to the airwaves
to provide information, and some laughs too.

""twOWT WNW'

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147r

Attorney Todd Levitt
had the idea for a
radio show where lis-
teners could call in
with their legal ques-
tions. "I think people
need to vent, and talk
radio lets them do
that," he says.

Todd Stearn: "Lawyers have to focus on
ideas very quickly, and being on the air
involves thinking even more quickly"

On the air: Broadcasting on location from this year's
Detroit Auto Show are, left to right, Todd Levitt, Brian
Dailey and Todd Steam.

Congregation Beth Abraham Hillel
Moses (now Congregation Beth Ahm),
attended Oakland Community
College, Central Michigan University
and Detroit College of Law.
In practice since 1994, he publishes
the professional newspaper The Legal
Advocator and does a cable TV program,
also called The Todd L. Levitt Show.
Airing at 9 p.m. Wednesdays on
Channel 12 in Novi, Farmington and
Farmington Hills, it has an interview for-
mat and has included Stearn as a guest.
"I look for marketing opportunities
to compete with other lawyers and law
firms, and a lot of the people who call or
write wind up retaining us," explains
Levitt, divorced and the father of an 8-
year-old daughter. "I think people need
to vent, and talk radio lets them do that.

I listen to talk radio and try to call in to
other shows."
Stearn only listened to talk radio
occasionally when he was asked to be on
Levitt's first program.
"We hit it off well, and people
seemed to like it," says Steam, whose
practice involves him with personal
injuries, wills and just about anything
outside divorces, bankruptcies and taxes.
"I had no expectations when I went into
this. We were doing it for fun and to see
if we could get some business."
Stearn, who earned his bachelor's
degree from the University of
Michigan and his law degree from
Indiana University, also has been
retained by a legal organization that
represents indigent clients.
He believes that answering questions

on the air isn't very different from
answering questions in an office.
"Lawyers have to focus on ideas very
quickly, and being on the air involves
thinking even more quickly," says
Stearn. "Trial lawyers will say that part
of being a good trial lawyer is being a
good teacher, and our program takes
that idea to the next level. Our listeners
hear legal problems and learn."
Steam, who grew up in Oak Park,
had his bar mitzvah at Congregation
B'nai David and belongs to
Congregation Beth Ahm. His wife, Terri,
who soon will give birth to their first
child, was a B'nai B'rith Girls adviser.
"Originally, the radio station gave us
a one-hour time slot on Saturdays, but
due to the response, they moved us to
two hours on Sundays," Levitt says.
"Now there's talk about putting us on
two or three days a week."

❑

The Todd L. Levitt Show can be
heard from 10 a.m.-noon
Sundays on 97.1 FM.

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