Eastern Daylight Time

ACC Northeast and Bowditch & Dewey LLP are pleased to open registration for these important "bite-sized" webinars that will include small group networking.

AGENDA:

• 3:00 p.m. to 3:40 p.m. — Contract Review: Identifying Weaknesses, Strengths and Gray Areas to Get Ahead of Future Disruptions

• 3:40 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. — Small Group Virtual Networking

Many companies and businesses have been challenged with the implications of the current COVID-19 crisis upon contractual obligations. During this big picture discussion, panelists will discuss best practices for the review of current contracts and key considerations for entering into new contracts. Further, panelists will discuss contract audit and review strategies, provisions and clauses that call for review, how companies responded to the pandemic from a contract perspective, and the anticipated changes to a business contract process.

Register below.

Cybersecurity incidents reported in Canada and across the globe have increased in frequency, sophistication, and magnitude with the COVID-19 global pandemic and our new virtual reality. Whether it's about protecting your organization's critical infrastructure and operations, personal information, or both, the risks and impacts of cyber-attacks should not be underestimated. Few businesses have updated internal cybersecurity policies and plans in light of our new reality that are crucial to effectively mitigating the impacts of cyber-attacks.

Blakes has developed a Canadian Cybersecurity Trends Study, the first of its kind annual study in Canada, which details how Canadian businesses are dealing with cyber threats. Our panel will discuss study findings and real-world examples, including the latest cyber-threats affecting Canadian businesses in the post-pandemic era. We will also explore how you can best protect your organization from ever-increasing threats and provide you with governance considerations and the steps you should take in the event of a breach.

This program contains 45 minutes of Professionalism content and 45 minutes of Substantive content for the Law Society of Ontario's CPD requirements.

This event is free of charge and open only to in-house counsel who are practicing lawyers who are current members of a provincial law society; however, you must RSVP to attend. Please RSVP by no later than Tuesday, October 6, 2020.

ACC Ontario reserves the right to review all registrations for eligibility. In-house counsel must be ACC members or meet ACC membership eligibility. Please click here for further details.

Note: Login details for the webinar will be sent by email in advance of the program.

Questions? Please email us.

Across the globe, contracting parties are experiencing performance-related concerns resulting from unprecedented orders to shelter-in-place, closures of non-essential businesses, global travel restrictions, and social distancing/isolation policies that have been implemented in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. As a result, parties may be reviewing their existing contracts, especially the force majeure provisions, to determine whether performance obligations can be modified or cancelled in light of COVID-19. This program will provide
an overview of force majeure provisions and how they may be utilized, as well as current force majeure litigation trends and cases to watch.

Register below.

This is what you've been waiting for!!!  Don’t miss this opportunity to be together at last with your ACC colleagues and friends while enjoying camaraderie, hors d'oeuvres and cocktails in a beautiful OUTDOOR setting on the banks of the Cooper River.

All current SOCIAL DISTANCING and MASK-WEARING protocols (when not eating or drinking) will be in place.

Click below to RSVP and join the fun.  We can’t wait to actually see you!

AGENDA:

MON, Oct. 5 - 11:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. — Diversity in Trial Teams: It's 2020, and Expectations Have Changed (Baker & Hostetler LLP)

The need for greater diversity in our institutions has been at the forefront of public discourse recently. In addition to discussing why having diverse outside counsel is not just expected but also good for business, this presentation will focus on how in-house counsel can make the goal of creating diverse teams a reality. It will include practical tips for identifying diverse talent, developing a pipeline of diverse lawyers for future matters and ensuring teams provide meaningful opportunities to diverse lawyers. It will also focus on having diverse litigation teams all the way through trial and what that means for judges and juries.

Follow this link to join the session - https://accinhouse.zoom.us/j/93420877195

TUE, Oct. 6 -  10:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m. — How To Limit the Possibility That Your Contract Ends Up Under the Litigation Microscope (Blank Rome LLP)

Most of the litigation companies deal with concern the default and interpretation of contracts. Is your company doing all it can to utilize contracts that are clear, unambitious, consistent, and up to date on case law and legal interpretations so as to avoid unnecessary claims and litigation disputes?  And with Covid-19 increasing online contracts, do your agreements have adequate protections for your company and are they enforceable.  Two senior Litigation partners from Blank Rome and the Chief Legal Officer from Public Health Management Corporation will walk you through some of these issues to help you reduce potential disputes and disrupting litigation, saving you time and costly headaches.

Follow this link to join the session - https://accinhouse.zoom.us/j/93420877195

WED, Oct. 7 - 12:00 p.m. to 1:00 p.m. — Out of the Shadows: Strategies for Addressing Common, But Seldom Discussed, Mass Tort Litigation Irritants (Reed Smith LLP)

Discovery abuse abounds in mass tort litigation.  We discuss two aspects that often fly under the radar.  Expert depositions are routine in high-stakes litigation, but the process is disrupted by exorbitant fee demands by opposing experts, often exceeding $1,000 per hour.  This session will teach how to resist and overcome such demands.  Third parties are also targets of discovery abuse in complex litigation, receiving extravagant document subpoenas, compliance with which would disrupt their document retention policies.  This session will also address how non-parties can quash or narrow such fishing expeditions. Third Party Payor litigation also follows mass tort litigation as night follows day, and we will discuss recent trends and developments.

Follow this link to join the session - https://accinhouse.zoom.us/j/93420877195

THU, Oct. 8 - 10:00 a.m to 11:00 a.m. — How to Avoid a 30(b)(6) Disaster: Smart Strategies for Witness Selection and Education (Obermayer Rebmann Maxwell & Hippel LLP)

During this presentation, we will discuss how to select the appropriate 30(b)(6) witness to best represent the entity at deposition and avoid consequences for failure to present and/or prepare a corporate representative.

Follow this link to join the session - https://accinhouse.zoom.us/j/93420877195

FRI, Oct. 9 - 10:00 a.m. - 11:00 a.m. — Who Can Bind the Company? Litigating Authority Issues (Hangley Aronchick Segal Pudlin & Schiller)

As businesses become larger and more decentralized, and as the use of senior-sounding employee titles becomes more prevalent (e.g., Senior Vice President; Managing Director), it is increasingly important to monitor how employees’ authority to act on behalf of the business is presented to third parties.  This presentation will provide an overview of the doctrines of (1) apparent authority of agents and (2) ratification of agents’ conduct.  It will then describe how businesses can minimize the risk that an agent without actual authority can bind the business, and it will detail litigation strategies on how to prevail on this fact-intensive issue before trial.

Follow this link to join the session - https://accinhouse.zoom.us/j/93420877195

Click the button below to preregister for this unique event!  Your registration entitles you to attend all sessions, or just one or two if that's what works for you!  One Zoom link will get you into all sessions, and will be provided to each registrant prior to the beginning of the Litigation Week.

AGENDA:

MON, Oct. 5 - 11:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. — Diversity in Trial Teams: It's 2020, and Expectations Have Changed (Baker & Hostetler LLP)

The need for greater diversity in our institutions has been at the forefront of public discourse recently. In addition to discussing why having diverse outside counsel is not just expected but also good for business, this presentation will focus on how in-house counsel can make the goal of creating diverse teams a reality. It will include practical tips for identifying diverse talent, developing a pipeline of diverse lawyers for future matters and ensuring teams provide meaningful opportunities to diverse lawyers. It will also focus on having diverse litigation teams all the way through trial and what that means for judges and juries.

Follow this link to join the session - https://accinhouse.zoom.us/j/93420877195

TUE, Oct. 6 -  10:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m. — How To Limit the Possibility That Your Contract Ends Up Under the Litigation Microscope (Blank Rome LLP)

Most of the litigation companies deal with concern the default and interpretation of contracts. Is your company doing all it can to utilize contracts that are clear, unambitious, consistent, and up to date on case law and legal interpretations so as to avoid unnecessary claims and litigation disputes?  And with Covid-19 increasing online contracts, do your agreements have adequate protections for your company and are they enforceable.  Two senior Litigation partners from Blank Rome and the Chief Legal Officer from Public Health Management Corporation will walk you through some of these issues to help you reduce potential disputes and disrupting litigation, saving you time and costly headaches.

Follow this link to join the session - https://accinhouse.zoom.us/j/93420877195

WED, Oct. 7 - 12:00 p.m. to 1:00 p.m. — Out of the Shadows: Strategies for Addressing Common, But Seldom Discussed, Mass Tort Litigation Irritants (Reed Smith LLP)

Discovery abuse abounds in mass tort litigation.  We discuss two aspects that often fly under the radar.  Expert depositions are routine in high-stakes litigation, but the process is disrupted by exorbitant fee demands by opposing experts, often exceeding $1,000 per hour.  This session will teach how to resist and overcome such demands.  Third parties are also targets of discovery abuse in complex litigation, receiving extravagant document subpoenas, compliance with which would disrupt their document retention policies.  This session will also address how non-parties can quash or narrow such fishing expeditions. Third Party Payor litigation also follows mass tort litigation as night follows day, and we will discuss recent trends and developments.

Follow this link to join the session - https://accinhouse.zoom.us/j/93420877195

THU, Oct. 8 - 10:00 a.m to 11:00 a.m. — How to Avoid a 30(b)(6) Disaster: Smart Strategies for Witness Selection and Education (Obermayer Rebmann Maxwell & Hippel LLP)

During this presentation, we will discuss how to select the appropriate 30(b)(6) witness to best represent the entity at deposition and avoid consequences for failure to present and/or prepare a corporate representative.

Follow this link to join the session - https://accinhouse.zoom.us/j/93420877195

FRI, Oct. 9 - 10:00 a.m. - 11:00 a.m. — Who Can Bind the Company? Litigating Authority Issues (Hangley Aronchick Segal Pudlin & Schiller)

As businesses become larger and more decentralized, and as the use of senior-sounding employee titles becomes more prevalent (e.g., Senior Vice President; Managing Director), it is increasingly important to monitor how employees’ authority to act on behalf of the business is presented to third parties.  This presentation will provide an overview of the doctrines of (1) apparent authority of agents and (2) ratification of agents’ conduct.  It will then describe how businesses can minimize the risk that an agent without actual authority can bind the business, and it will detail litigation strategies on how to prevail on this fact-intensive issue before trial.

Follow this link to join the session - https://accinhouse.zoom.us/j/93420877195

Click the button below to preregister for this unique event!  Your registration entitles you to attend all sessions, or just one or two if that's what works for you!  One Zoom link will get you into all sessions, and will be provided to each registrant prior to the beginning of the Litigation Week.