8th Annual All Day MCLE La-LAW-palooza

ACC is proud to present a day of invaluable programs for San Diego's general counsel community. High-caliber and targeted industry content conveniently scheduled into one day with dual tracks.

Your ticket includes:

• Two MCLE options each hour - earn specialty credits including Implicit Bias, Ethics, Civility & Technology
• Continental breakfast
• Plated lunch
• Happy Hour with complimentary cocktails and appetizers

Make a great first impression with a new portrait!
ACC San Diego will be offering complimentary headshots during the event.  A good headshot helps build a credible reputation when hunting for a  job or building your company’s brand identity. Stand out in the crowd with a professional headshot from Brent Haywood Photography! (ACC members only.)

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Breakfast | 8:30 - 9:30 AM

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Session 1 | 9:30 - 10:30 AM
Inside the Privacy Hot Seat: Cross‑Functional Strategies for Today’s Litigation Risks

Speakers:
           

Wynter Deagle, Partner, Sheppard Mullin
Ceci Fuentes, Privacy Program Manager, Torrid
Chris Zohlen, Managing Director, FTI Consulting

This session explores the latest trends in privacy and data‑breach litigation through the combined perspectives of outside counsel, in‑house privacy operations, and a forensic expert. Together, the panel will break down how compliance risks and incidents evolve into litigation, the evidence and analyses that drive risk, and the operational realities that shape strategy. Attendees will gain a practical understanding of how cross‑functional coordination strengthens preparation, response, and ultimate defense. (1 General Credit)

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Session 2 | 9:30 - 10:30 AM
The Promises and Pitfalls of AI in Contracting

Speakers:
        
Tom Dunlop, CEO and Co-founder, Summize
Megan Newman, Senior Director and Associate General Counsel, Vistage

Explore how AI can genuinely accelerate your contracting lifecycle, while avoiding the hidden risks that can derail legal, compliance, and business outcomes. This discussion brings together in-house counsel and industry experts to unpack practical AI wins, the common pitfalls to avoid, and what smart governance looks like in an AI-enabled legal function. (1 Technology Credit)

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Session 3 | 10:45 - 11:45 AM
Recognizing and Addressing Implicit Bias in Legal Practice

Speakers:

Mary Hackett, Shareholder, Buchanan
Jennifer Oliver, Shareholder, Buchanan
Nicole Gates Lean, Senior Attorney, Buchanan
Bryant Hall, Senior Lead Counsel, Global Litigation and Regulatory, Pinterest, Inc.,

In today’s legal environment, in-house counsel are expected not only to manage risk and guide complex business decisions, but also to ensure that legal strategies, workplace investigations, litigation responses, and client interactions are free from unintended bias. Join attorneys from Buchanan and Byrant Hall, Senior Lead Counsel of Global Litigation & Regulatory at Pinterest, for a thought-provoking and practical program on recognizing and addressing implicit bias in legal practice and how unconscious assumptions can influence risk assessment, investigations, negotiations, and interactions with clients and outside counsel. Participants will gain actionable strategies to identify bias and make more consistent and defensible decisions. (1 CLE Implicit Bias)

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Session 4 | 10:45 - 11:45 AM
Tech Licensing Year in Review 2025:  Transactional and Litigation Perspectives

Speakers:
               
Matthew Ferry, Partner, Morrison Foerster
John Lanham, Partner, Morrison Foerster
Matthew Stephens, Partner, Morrison Foerster
Paul Liu, General Counsel, PacketFabric, Inc.

Attorneys from Morrison Foerster’s Technology Transactions and IP Litigation groups will share updates and new case law impacting technology licensing strategies. (1 General Credit)

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Session 5 | 1:00 - 2:00 PM
Prep for Success: Expert Selection, Preparation, and Ethical Collaboration

Speakers:

   
Janice Y. Walshok, Esq., Shareholder, Pettit Kohn Ingrassia Lutz & Dolin
Carolina Pinheiro, Assistant General Counsel, Virta Health 

Successful litigation attorneys know that it is vital to enlist expert witnesses to evaluate claims, clarify complex evidence, and offer authoritative opinions. An expert’s testimony is often pivotal to the outcome of a case and the collaboration between you and your expert can ultimately determine the strength of this testimony. This presentation will outline the best practices for selecting and preparing an expert witness for deposition and trial, as well as how to build an ethical and respectful partnership to ensure optimal results. (1 Civility Credit)

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Session 6 | 1:00 - 2:00 PM
Planning for the Risks of Tomorrow, Today:  A Chief Legal Officer Panel Discussion and Interactive Town Hall

Moderator:

Tali Tuchin, Member, Mintz

Speakers:
                                   
Celia Eckert, SVP, General Counsel & Corporate Secretary, Xencor
Jeff Cohn, General Counsel and Corporate Secretary, Connect Biopharma
Terezka Sabka, VP & General Counsel, San Diego Padres

Join an engaging town hall discussion with CLOs as they share forward-looking insights into the evolving risk landscape. Representing a diverse range of company types, these legal leaders will discuss how they are identifying, prioritizing, and proactively managing the complex challenges ahead—while inviting open dialogue and questions from attendees.

Topics to be addressed include:
•    Establishing a risks continuum that fosters innovation and growth in an increasingly competitive market
•    Long term strategic planning for risk
•    Building trust and promoting cross-functional collaboration
(1 General Credit)

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Session 7 | 2:15 - 3:15 PM
The Anatomy of an Employment Lawsuit and the Tools for Prevention 

Speaker:
         
Marie Burke Kenny, Partner, Procopio
Sierra Spitzer, Senior Corporate Counsel - Labor & Employment, Solar Turbines
Virginia Morrison, General Counsel, Bill Howe Family of Companies

Marie Burke Kenny, together with in-house counsel Sierra Spitzer, Senior Corporate Counsel,  Labor & Employment at Solar Turbines, and Virginia Morrison, General Counsel at Bill Howe Family of Companies, will present a case study illustrating how an employment lawsuit can develop and the resulting exposure for an employer.  Drawing on both outside counsel and in-house experience, the presentation will examine warning signs and employer missteps that can contribute to disputes and will offer practical insights and tools to help employers avoid or reduce liability. As more former employees retain counsel and pursue litigation, this session provides a valuable opportunity to explore how legal, HR, and management teams can work collaboratively together to prevent claims or place the employer in a stronger position if litigation becomes inevitable.  (1 General Credit)

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Session 8 | 2:15 - 3:15 PM
Smart AI Governance In 2026

Speaker:
   
Peter Stockburger, Office Managing Partner, Dentons    
Mary Hardy,  Senior Corporate Counsel in Open Source, Standards, and Open Machine Learning, Microsoft

As AI continues to scale in capability, autonomy, and organizational impact, governance models are being tested in new ways. This session will examine the current and near-term state of AI regulation and governance as we move into 2026, with a particular focus on the shift from model-centric AI to agentic and system-level AI deployments. We will explore how emerging legal frameworks, litigation, and technical standards are converging, and where gaps remain in areas such as accountability, human oversight, and third-party risk. The session will also provide practical insights into how leading organizations are operationalizing AI governance at scale. (1 Technology Credit)

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Session 9 | 3:30 - 4:30 PM
AI With Integrity: Ethical Guidance for Legal and Compliance Teams

Speakers:

Tracie Stender, Counsel, Snell & Wilmer
Clint Engleson, Counsel, Snell & Wilmer
Amber Gardina-Quintanilla, Director, Employment Law, Articulate Global

This presentation examines the ethical use of AI in legal and compliance departments. As sanctions mount against lawyers for misuse of AI, this session will empower lawyers to leverage this technology to improve productivity and learning, while maintaining diligence, confidentiality and professional responsibility. We will discuss implications of AI-use under the California Rules of Professional Conduct, the State Bar’s Practice Guidance for the Use of Generative AI and recent case law. This session will provide practical guidance on managing AI risks internally and with outside counsel. (1 Ethics Credit)

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Session 10 | 3:30 - 4:30 PM
Diligencing Culture and Conduct Risk

Speakers:
    
Sam Esan, Partner, DLA Piper
Alexa Zanolli, Director - Legal, Articulate Global

This session will examine practical checklists for assessing bullying, harassment, and retaliation patterns; integrating findings into price, structure, RWI, and covenants. (1 Competence Credit)

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Happy Hour | 4:30 - 6:00 PM