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ACC Houston November Chapter Meeting CLE Webinar
Emerging Employment Law Issues Keeping In-House Counsel Up at Night
November 30, 2023 | 12:00 pm - 1:00 pm | Zoom

Now more than ever, in-house counsel must be vigilant about understanding the ever-changing employment law landscape. The panel will discuss emerging employment law issues, including updates relating to discrimination and religious accommodations, steps employers should take to ensure compliance with the Biden administration’s new labor policies, including non-compete agreements, pay transparency and minimum salary basis for exempt employees, and generative AI and the implications for employers. 1.00 Hrs CLE (TX)

The Corporate Transparency Act (CTA) will go into effect January 1, 2024. The CTA will require “reporting companies” to submit a report to the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) containing personal information about the reporting company’s “beneficial owners.” Unless your business is exempt, CTA will affect most businesses.  Many businesses and their advisors are behind the curve on preparation and compliance.

This program will be a fast paced, engaging overview of the CTA, providing answers to questions you didn’t know to ask. Compliance with the Act will be crucial for all companies that fall within the scope of the CTA, and noncompliance or inaccurate compliance could lead to punitive civil and criminal penalties. Join us to learn more about what this could mean for you and your clients' businesses.

Conversational Roundtable & Reception

Determining which metrics matter to your business and how your law department can track them is one of the most confounding tasks for which legal department leadership has to contend. Join us at this roundtable to exchange ideas on the metrics that your law department can track to measure your own success, and report back your value to the enterprise as a whole. Thomson Reuters will also present data that they have regarding how peers are currently measuring metrics.

Through this conversation, hear directly from your peers what metrics they track, what metrics they wish they could track, and their ideas on how to convey the value of your legal department. We will also discuss the potential role that generative AI can play in gathering and tracking these metrics for your law department, as well as other strategies for collecting key data points and how these can be used to advocate for your team’s success.

Stay after the event and enjoy a reception, overlooking State Street, while you network with your ACC Chicago colleagues. 

A pivotal conversation, at an important inflection point, for in-house counsel on leadership development and advancement strategies to C-Suite and corporate and NFP board roles.

Companies face a growing array of legal and regulatory challenges.  Boards of directors and the C-suite are increasing turning to in-house counsel to both spot issues and identify business opportunities.  In-house counsel must be skilled at addressing multiple complex issues within the limited time that company leadership has to understand and react.  Developing the unique skill-set needed to progress to chief legal officer, general counsel or senior in-house requires a command of risk controls, business objectives and board governance.  Most importantly, agile leadership, business acumen and executive presence skills will take in-house counsel to the next level – including to board positions at public and private companies and not-for-profit organizations.  

In this interactive session, a panel of seasoned in-house counsel who have served in the GC, CEO, CLO and on independent public and private company boards will share their insights, advice and practical tips on advising companies’ boards and C-suites and leading an organization at it addresses emerging legal challenges.  Attendees will leave with actionable strategies to reach that next-level in-house position.

Join us for a half-day MCLE program exploring some of the key legal and business issues facing corporations today.

Our international panel of attorneys will deliver a series of presentations to equip you with some of the tools you will need to navigate the rapidly evolving corporate landscape for the remainder of 2023, into 2024 and beyond.

12:00 – 1:00 p.m. | Registration, Lunch and Networking
1:00 – 4:40 p.m. | Panel Programs
4:40 – 5:30 p.m. l Networking Reception

Panel 1: Managing your workforce in 2024 and beyond (1:10 p.m.)

The COVID-19 pandemic had an enormous impact on businesses and their people with lockdowns forcing many employees to work remotely. As restrictions lifted businesses and workers have had to adjust to a new normal with a hybrid workforce which has led to businesses creating new policies and new regulations to be complied with.
 
In this session we will provide a comparative look at the long-term considerations and employment law challenges that businesses now face, including tax issues, trade secrets, regulatory issues and policies to help you and your business to manage your remote workforce in 2024 and beyond.

Panel 2: Emerging Class Action Risks from State Legislation (2:25 p.m.)

Over the last several years, companies doing business in Illinois have been barraged with class action complaints alleging violations of the Biometric Information Privacy Act (BIPA). Plaintiffs' lawyers, with help from legislatures in Illinois and elsewhere, have new tools at their disposal to file class action complaints that carry significant financial risk.
 
This session will provide an update on BIPA litigation and discuss two new recent class action trends, the Illinois Genetic Information Privacy Act (GIPA) and state "mini-TCPAs." These laws allow for recovery of statutory damages and are particularly attractive for plaintiffs' class action lawyers.

Panel 3: Navigating the AI landscape: Balancing innovation with compliance (3:40 p.m.)

AI is not a new concept however the emergence of generative AI has been, and continues to be, one of the biggest technological advances we have seen in a long time. Deployed appropriately, AI can give companies a competitive advantage by helping them better understand and engage with customers, improve efficiency and decision making, reduce costs, enhance security and accuracy, and drive innovation.
 
As much as there are significant opportunities, companies will also need to take action to ensure their systems are compliant with incoming laws and regulations.
 
In this session our panelists will discuss the impact of this transformational technology both in terms of how your business can adapt to it, as well as how it may impact the work of your legal teams and the changing regulatory and risk landscape.

ACC Houston Women In The House (WITH) Holiday Market
Thursday, November 16, 2023 | 5:30 pm - 9:00 pm
The Houstonian Hotel - Juniper Room | 111 N. Post Oak Lane | Houston, TX 77024

Shop small, women-owned businesses for your gifting needs!

Each attendee will receive a $25 gift card to spend at the event!

Join us!

Sell-side transactions, including business line divestitures, are a key tool for sophisticated business and legal leaders to deploy in times of economic uncertainty and a key, but complex, opportunity for those considering acquisitions. Reviewing non-core assets, evaluating debt and streamlining operations are top of mind for many multinationals as challenging conditions persist.

Hear from our panel of dealmakers and advisors with hands-on experience evaluating, planning and executing complex, multi-jurisdictional divestitures, carve-outs and spins. We'll cover prevailing and emerging market trends, including the evolving global geopolitical landscape and the factors to consider when deciding on business opportunities to pursue. Panelists will also focus on the key issues likely to arise from a corporate, employment, tax and privacy perspective, and strategies for forward-thinking sellers to unlock value from both the technical and practical perspective with key recent market data and hands on experience.

We invite guests to unpack the content of the program and continue the discussion with their peers at a networking reception, featuring a sampling of internationally-themed bites and beverages and overlooking the city skyline and Lake Michigan from the 50th floor of Baker McKenzie's magnificent space.

Please join Mr. Neerav Merchant, Partner at Majmudar & Partners, for this one-hour ACC MN CLE webinar beginning at 8:30 AM on Wednesday, September 13.

This session attempts to create an awareness about managing and handling court disputes in India, across prominent categories. The speaker will talk about achieving solutions by foreign litigants, should they ever need to address contentious matters in India. Lastly, the program will highlight a few practical examples and discuss effective strategies to be used in analyzing an Indian dispute on hand.
 
The webinar is free and open to ACC members and in-house counsel guests. 1 Standard CLE credit is pending in Minnesota.
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Thanks to our sponsor, Mujmudar & Partners!

Artificial intelligence (AI) is revolutionizing the legal profession as it has done in finance, healthcare, and manufacturing. This has some lawyers and technologists worried. During this one-hour CLE, you will learn what we mean when we talk about using AI in the law, what’s driving AI innovation, and how the changing data landscape in corporations is impacting dispute resolution. Not to mention how leveraging augmented intelligence in ediscovery can find evidence faster, increase efficiency, and decrease errors while reducing the overall cost exponentially and how that plays into your professional responsibility and ethical duty to your clients.

Topics:

● Level set: ediscovery & technology

● What is AI, and how does it impact the law?

● What’s driving the explosion of legal tech and AI?

● The duty of technical competence

● What the law and model ABA Rules say

● Real-life examples

Speaker Jenny Schroeder, Solutions Architect, DISCO, has two decades of experience in the legal industry. Prior to joining DISCO, Jenny built the litigation support department at an Am Law 200 firm and managed all aspects of e-discovery, including complex collections, document review, and productions. Jenny is an ABA-certified Paralegal who has handled all types of cases, from IP to construction to complex civil litigation. Jenny has also assisted with trials across the country as the hot seat operator in the courtroom, as well as maintaining responsibility for trial logistics, witness preparation, and managing the trial team.

Program registration is free and open to ACC members and in-house counsel guests.

Thanks to our sponsor, DISCO!

Ethical conundrums are problems that cause one to make a decision based on their personal values or to question an individual's beliefs of what is right and wrong. Ethical conundrums can range from simple everyday problems to serious illegal infractions. Simply stated another way, it could be a case of Do The Right Thing! This session will cover the ABA Model rules as they pertain to honesty and integrity in business matters.

Learning Objectives/Outcomes

1.  Understand the meaning and importance of integrity, ethics in general, and honesty

2.  Reflect on the importance of being honest about intentions and motives toward others

3.  Understand why it is important that statements align with actions

4.  Become aware of consequences of employment dishonesty with unethical behaviors  

5.  Demonstrate ethical awareness, the ability to do ethical reflection, and the ability to apply the ABA model rules in decision-making

6.  Recognize global ethics conundrums

An open discussion will introduce a new perspective of common moral values and cultural principles shared by all faiths and nations. Case studies covered include violations of federal law with respect to payments to foreign officials by Avon and Walmart. Companies face conundrums when payoffs are culturally accepted in other parts of the world and failure to do so would prevent companies from doing business in these countries.

Presenter

Allison McLeod, LL.M., JD, CPA, and Senior Lecturer at the University of North Texas

Program admission is free and open to ACC members and in-house counsel guests.

1.0 Ethics CLE credit is pending in Minnesota.

Thanks to our sponsor, Robert Half!