{{Short description|American attorney and internet personality}} {{Use mdy dates|date=May 2026}} {{Use American English|date=May 2026}} {{Primary sources|date=April 2026}} {{infobox social media personality | education = University of Southern California {{small|(BA, 2009)}}<br>Duke University School of Law {{small|(JD, 2012)}} | name = Mike Mandell | birth_name = Michael L. Mandell<ref name="calbar" /> | occupation = {{hlist|Attorney|content creator|author}} | website = {{Official URL}} | youtube_id = UCKmmERguliWTynG9OIoDhDw | youtube_display_name = Law By Mike | youtube_years_active = 2020–present | youtube_genre = Law | youtube_subscribers = 18.3 million<!-- PLEASE DO NOT CHANGE WITHOUT UPDATING stats_update BELOW --> | youtube_views = 17.84 billion<!-- PLEASE DO NOT CHANGE WITHOUT UPDATING stats_update BELOW --> | youtube_handle = @LawByMike | tiktok_handle = lawbymike | tiktok_display_name = Law By Mike | tiktok_followers = 11.5 million | tiktok_genre = Law | tiktok_years_active = 2020–present |stats_update=April 22, 2026}}
'''Mike Mandell''', known online as '''Law by Mike''', is an American attorney and internet personality based in Los Angeles, California. He produces legal education videos on TikTok, YouTube, and Instagram and operates a law firm, Mandell Law APC. In 2025, Law by Mike was listed as one of the top YouTube creators of the year.<ref name="youtube2025">{{cite news |title=YouTube Unveils Personalized Year-End Recap Feature, Top Overall Trends And Creators Of 2025 |url=https://deadline.com/2025/12/youtube-recap-feature-top-trends-creators-2025-1236632997/ |work=Deadline Hollywood |date=December 2, 2025 |access-date=April 20, 2026|last=Hayes|first=Dade}}</ref>
==Early life and education== Mandell studied communications at the University of Southern California, graduating from the USC Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism in 2009.<ref name="maximumlawyer">{{cite web |title=Educating the Public w/ Michael Mandell 372 |url=https://maximumlawyer.com/michaelmandell372/ |website=Maximum Lawyer |access-date=April 20, 2026}}</ref> He has described coming from a family of personal injury lawyers.<ref name="rankings">{{cite web |title=Mike Mandell: Going Viral with Social Media |url=https://rankings.io/pim/123-mike-mandell/ |website=Rankings.io |access-date=April 20, 2026}}</ref>
He then earned a Juris Doctor from Duke University School of Law in 2012.<ref name="maximumlawyer" /> He was admitted to the State Bar of California in 2012, and as of 2026 his license has remained active.<ref name="calbar">{{cite web |title=Michael L. Mandell #288513 – Attorney Licensee Search |url=https://apps.calbar.ca.gov/attorney/Licensee/Detail/288513 |publisher=State Bar of California |access-date=April 20, 2026}}</ref>
==Legal career== After graduating from Duke Law, Mandell worked as an associate attorney at Reed Smith, an international law firm, at its Los Angeles office for approximately eight years, focusing on product liability litigation.{{cn|date=April 2026}} He has stated that the firm's policies restricted attorneys from engaging in personal marketing or social media activity during this period.<ref name="maximumlawyer" />
In 2020, Mandell left Reed Smith and founded '''Mandell Law APC''', based in Woodland Hills.{{citation needed|date=April 2026}} The firm handles cases in personal injury, criminal defense, entertainment law, and sexual abuse.<ref name="hachette">{{cite web |title=Mike Mandell |date=October 10, 2025 |url=https://www.hachettebookgroup.com/contributor/mike-mandell/ |publisher=Hachette Book Group |access-date=April 20, 2026}}</ref> Prior to founding Mandell Law, Mandell was recognized on the ''Daily Journal''s list of "Top Verdicts in California" for a 2014 case, ''Gisvold v. Merck''.<ref name="presspage">{{cite web |title=Mike in the Press |url=https://www.lawbymike.com/mike-in-the-press/ |website=LawByMike.com |access-date=April 20, 2026}}{{Dead link|date=April 2026}}</ref>
==Online career== ===Origins=== Mandell started his YouTube channel, and also posted his first TikTok video on November 17, 2020. He has said he began posting as a low cost way to attract clients to his newly founded firm.<ref name="loio">{{cite web |title=Law By Mike: From the Courtroom to TikTok Stardom |url=https://loio.com/guides/business/entertainment-law/from-courtroom-to-tiktok-stardom/ |website=Loio |date=June 13, 2025 |access-date=April 20, 2026}}{{Dead link|date=April 2026}}</ref> His first public YouTube video, which discusses what to do if pulled over for speeding, appeared on February 26, 2021.<ref>{{cite web|author=Law By Mike|date=February 26, 2021|url=https://www.youtube.com/shorts/1P_vIJWFIc0|title=What to do when you get pulled over for speeding #shorts|publisher=YouTube|access-date=May 26, 2026}}</ref>
Early videos attracted limited attention, but a clip about what to say during a police traffic stop went viral, accumulating tens of millions of views.<ref name="loio" /> By October 2021, one year after creating his YouTube channel, Mandell had surpassed 100,000 subscribers.{{citation needed|date=April 2026}}
===Content=== Mandell's videos cover legal situations relevant to everyday life, including police encounters, landlord tenant disputes and workplace rights. He has stated that his content shifted over time from a purely business oriented goal toward legal education more broadly: "I went from a lawyer mentality to an educator mentality."<ref name="loio" />
==Book== In 2024, Mandell published ''Oops... That's Illegal!: A Handbook for the Wildly Curious (and the Accidental Outlaw)'' through Balance, an imprint of Hachette Book Group.<ref name="hachette" /> The book addresses unusual and everyday legal questions in a format consistent with his video content, covering topics such as police interactions, tenant rights, and civil disputes.<ref name="amazon">{{cite book |title=Oops... That's Illegal!: A Handbook for the Wildly Curious (and the Accidental Outlaw) |isbn=0306837617 }}</ref><ref name="audible">{{cite web |title=Oops... That's Illegal! (Audible Audio Edition) |url=https://us.amazon.com/Oops-Thats-Illegal-Handbook-Accidental/dp/B0FY7QWGT2 |website=Audible / Amazon |access-date=April 20, 2026}}</ref>
==Podcast== Mandell hosts ''Law by Mike on the Mic'', a podcast featuring interviews with legal professionals, public figures, and others whose lives have intersected with legal matters. The show is described as aimed at general audiences rather than legal professionals.<ref name="spotify">{{cite web |title=Law by Mike on the Mic |url=https://open.spotify.com/show/2p9YYpYuml8RI3RYF6cEfz |website=Spotify |access-date=April 20, 2026}}</ref>
==Bibliography== {| class="wikitable" ! Year !! Title !! Publisher |- | 2024 || ''Oops... That's Illegal!: A Handbook for the Wildly Curious (and the Accidental Outlaw)'' || Balance / Hachette Book Group |}
==See also== * List of YouTubers * Legal education in the United States * Devin Stone (LegalEagle)
==References== {{Reflist}}
==External links== * {{Official website|https://www.lawbymike.com}} * [https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCKmmERguliWTynG9OIoDhDw Law by Mike on YouTube] * [https://www.tiktok.com/@lawbymike @lawbymike on TikTok] * [https://apps.calbar.ca.gov/attorney/Licensee/Detail/288513 State Bar of California – Michael L. Mandell]
{{DEFAULTSORT:Mandell, Mike}} Category:1987 births Category:Living people Category:American lawyers Category:YouTubers from California Category:American TikTokers Category:American podcasters Category:American legal writers Category:USC Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism alumni Category:Duke University School of Law alumni Category:People from Los Angeles