Legally On The Move: The Lawyers Retreat is Back in Ibiza 2026 - Trevor Sterling - E03

0:00Welcome to Legally on the Move, the Lawyers Retreat Ibiza 2026, a special Legally Speaking podcast miniseries sponsored by Clio. We're back here in Ibiza as the official media partner for the Lawyers Retreat. And if last year taught me anything, it's this. When you get the right people in the right environment, good conversations quickly turn into real opportunities. Across this series, we'll be bringing you voices, ideas, and honest reflections from a retreat built around leadership, well-being, AI, growth, business development, and the future of law. So whether we're poolside, post-panel, or catching up in between sessions, expect practical insights, fresh thinking, and conversations that go beyond the surface.

0:45Trevor Sterling:So let's get into it. Welcome to the Legally Speaking podcast, recording live here from Ibiza. I am joined by name, title and organisation. Trevor Sterling, senior partner, Mo Barlow and founder of Be The Ladder. And a returning guest to the Legalism Podcast as well, but in a different setting and a beautiful setting, no less. And that leads me to my first question. What brought you to the lawyers retreat this year? Well, the idea of coming away on a retreat is really a way of treating myself, treating my mind, getting myself into the right mood to be able to recalibrate and to keep doing the kind of work that I've been doing.

1:23Trevor Sterling:So this is a great opportunity to regroup and to connect with people. Yeah, and you do a great job of connecting with people. And you've led major trauma for decades now as your senior partner at Moor Barlow. What has that taught you about leadership when the stakes are genuinely as high as they are in terms of the work that you're involved in? You know, the more senior you are, the more noise that there is around you. Yeah. What it's taught me is to ignore the noise. OK. The decisions you have to make are the decisions you have to make. You know, it doesn't matter how much pressure you're under.

1:53Trevor Sterling:You've always got to just try and keep your head straight, be fair, be consistent, and have ways of implementing those decisions from a practical point of view to make an impact and be able to measure that impact. So some very simple rules around leadership, and I live by those rules with every decision I make. Absolutely, and I see that through the incredible work you do for the legal and indeed wider communities that you're involved in. And this year's retreat, we've heard a lot around well-being and the sort of human factor. So in your own view, then, what does better leadership look like from a profession and still a very demanding one?

2:33Trevor Sterling:So good leadership is, I mean, the word retreat is a powerful word, right? If we drop the R and the E, there's a really important message there. Treat. Yeah. You have to treat yourself well. Yes. And by that, I mean, you have to treat yourself well physically. Yeah. You have to treat yourself well mentally in terms of well-being. And you have to create environments that ensure that everybody around you is treated well as well. So that retreat, a powerful message around well-being, because that's what enables us to deliver our best work for the people around us. Yeah. And on terms of people around us, you do incredible work with the Be The Ladder.

3:13And, you know, you're very much on a movement. is all about opening doors for others, which we fully support. So what does that look like in practice for law firm leaders today?

3:23Trevor Sterling:Well, we've got to remember that as we climb the ladder within the legal world, that ultimately that ladder should be there for everyone. The best lawyers, the best law firms, are those that don't just support people from across society, but are made up of people from across society. and in order to ensure that we've got to build those ladders. So that's very much a part of my leadership strategy is to help develop others, to bring them up and through so that at the top of our business, we have that level of diversity that reflects society. Yeah, absolutely. And plus one to that. And I would encourage listeners to go back and listen to Trevor's full story episode we've done on the Legally Speaking podcast before because you've broken so many barriers throughout your career.

4:08What progress are you seeing in the profession on inclusion and social mobility? And where do you think we still need to be braver?

4:16Trevor Sterling:Well, I think we've got to be brave because the landscape is changing, with AI in particular. And what we have to recognise is that we've got these digital natives coming into the profession. They're actually well-skilled to be able to cope with those changes. So as leaders, we've got to learn to listen more, embrace those new ideas for the new landscape. And it's one of the things that I've learnt most powerfully in leadership is that those are the best ideas and not necessarily those that are around the leadership table. From right through our business, that's where the best ideas come, from the most junior to the most senior.

4:52Trevor Sterling:So an open mind is the most powerful thing I've taken away from being a senior partner at Moorvala. Love that. And talking of junior and legacy, which I know is important to you, this year, your son, Rio, came out and performed night one at the Lawyer's Treat. Did a fantastic set. Really good. Definitely go and check him out. How did that feel, bringing your own family out here and getting a collaboration in the legal community. You know, it's wonderful. This is my world, the legal world. And Rio's brought his music world into this legal world. And it's beautiful. And one of the things I'm so proud of with Rio, even though he's in the early stage of his career and he's doing so incredibly well, he's already created Sterling Sounds where he's showcasing young talent to come through.

5:31Trevor Sterling:So he's already creating those ladders within the music world. So why wouldn't you bring music and law together? We are about making people's lives better. And so I'm really proud of them. Absolutely. As we all are as well. You touched on some of the things you're going to be taking away from this. But before I let you go, what's the one message you hope people leave Ibiza with after conversations like this that we've been having? A powerful message, I think, is connection. Yeah. actually one of the things i've really taken away from uh these last couple of days is that that connection has really made me understand that whatever pressures or challenges i have there are others that are going through similar things you're never alone yeah but also this beautiful way that we encourage and support each other yeah um it's a really powerful thing so you you come here and you leave that little bit taller with a treated brain love it absolutely love that and We is absolutely greater than me.

6:30Trevor, it's been an absolute pleasure having you back here in Ibiza on the Legally Speaking Podcast with incredible views, incredible people. If people want to connect with you online, where can they go? Feel free to share any social media handles or digital platforms.

6:40Trevor Sterling:So on LinkedIn, Trevor D. Sterling on LinkedIn, but also Diary of the Senior Partner on TikTok. There we go. Well, from all of us here in Ibiza, thanks so much for joining us. From everyone on the Legally Speaking Podcast, over and out. Thank you for listening to this week's episode. If you like the content here, why not check out our world-leading content and collaboration of the Legally Speaking Club over on Discord. Go to our website, www.legallyspeakingpodcast.com. There's a link to join our community there. Over and out.