Jump to Navigation | Jump to Content
 
  |  Join ABA  |  Media  |  Contact
Advanced Search
Topics A-Z
 
Print This  | Page Feedback

ABA Section of Business Law


Annual Meeting

  2007 Annual Meeting
    San Francisco, CA  August 10 - 14, 2007

Programs and Events About Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender (LGBT) Issues


LGBT Programs and Events
The ABA is pleased to sponsor programming and events of particular interest to the LGBT community and others at the 2007 Annual Meeting. Several ABA entities will offer a combination of cutting-edge, substantive CLE programming and networking opportunities designed for LGBT lawyers and those who work on LGBT issues. LGBT issues cut across all areas of the law, from business to litigation, to real estate and family law. Attend this series of programs to learn the latest legal developments impacting LGBT individuals. Then, attend the networking events to meet and socialize with lawyers living and working in the LGBT community. All programs are being cosponsored by the National Lesbian and Gay Law Association.





Section of Business Law

Friday, August 10, 10:30 AM - 12:30 PM

CLE Program: "Altared" States: Effective Strategies for Business Counsel in the Changing Legal Landscape of Same-Sex Couples

In a constantly evolving landscape domestic partnership, civil union, and marriage laws for same-sex couples, it is increasingly difficult for business attorneys to know how to identify issues and provide advice regarding the legal needs of lesbian and gay employees, clients and customers. Complying with these changing laws can be a troubling source of erroneous advice and, in some instances, malpractice.

This program will briefly review the new laws for same-sex couples, both nationally and internationally.The panel also will provide practical advice to business attorneys on how to spot critical issues, provide meaningful counsel in an era of legal and tax uncertainty, avoid malpractice liability when advising clients, and implement the new laws on a company-wide basis.

Topics will include identifying business and real estate transactions where the "marital" status of the lesbian or gay client is relevant, ascertaining the legal status of lesbian and gay clients, partners and employees in an appropriate manner, advising clients on business transactions in light of the federal tax uncertainties, implementing domestic partnership/civil union laws in employment policies, addressing the legal rights of same-sex couples in consumer transaction requirements, including discrimination in credit issues, and developing appropriate policies in lending and other commercial transactions for same-sex couples.

  • Program Chair:
    • Smeeta Rishi, Pacific West Law Group LLP, Belmont, CA
    Speakers:
    • Frederick Hertz, Law Offices of Frederick Hertz, Oakland, CA
    • Deb L. Kinney, DLK Law Group, San Francisco, CA
    • Catherine Brennan, Hudson Cook LLP, Hanover, MD

View Site


The National Lesbian & Gay Law Association's Allies for Justice Reception (Cosponsored with the Section of Individual Rights and Responsibilities)

Friday, August 10 5:00 - 7:00 PM
Westin St. Francis Hotel
Tower Salon A, Lobby Level





Section of Litigation

Saturday, August 11, 8:30 - 10:00 AM

CLE Program: Same-Sex, Same Rights?

Is achieving equality for all families the civil rights issue of our generation?

The 2000 Census shows that same-sex couples live in over 99% of counties in the United States - gay people are "everywhere" - yet their treatment under the law varies considerably from jurisdiction to jurisdiction.

In recent years, Congress and 45 states have enacted laws denying same-sex couples access to marriage, refusing to respect marriages they have entered, and, in some instances, denying them access to any benefits predicated on their relationship. At the same time, same-sex couples now can: marry in Massachusetts, obtain all of the state law rights of marriage in California, New Jersey, Vermont (and soon in New Hampshire and Oregon), have many rights as couples in the District of Columbia, Hawaii, Maine, and Washington, and receive domestic partner benefits from a growing number of corporate and state and local government employers.

Moreover, although no federal law prohibits employment discrimination based on sexual orientation, 20 states, the District of Columbia, and more than 100 local governments have enacted sexual-orientation employment discrimination laws.

Litigation over these breaking developments is changing the public's understanding of who lesbians, gay men, and bisexuals are and how these friends, neighbors, and colleagues deserve to be treated equally. This panel will explore these developments, forecast where the nation is headed, and identify winning litigation strategies to achieve equality for all families.

  • Program Chair:
    • Kathleen Ewins, Long & Levit, San Francisco, CA
    • George Kryder, Vinson & Elkins LLP, Dallas, TX
    Speakers:
    • Jon E. Davidson, Lambda Legal, New York, NY
    • Deb Price, The Detroit News, Washington, DC
    • D. Jean Veta, Covington & Burling LLP, Washington, DC
    • Bobbie J. Wilson, Howard Rice Nemerovski Canady Falk & Rabkin, P.C., San Francisco, CA

View Site



Tort, Trial and Insurance Practice Section

Saturday, August 11, 2:00 - 3:00 PM

CLE Program: Domestic Partner Benefits, Rights and Responsibilities: What Every Lawyer Needs to Know

TIPS Committee main sponsor:
  • Employment Law and Litigation
TIPS Committee co-sponsors:
  • Employee Benefits, Corporate Counsel, Insurance Regulation, Health and Disability Insurance Law, Life Insurance Law, Workers' Compensation and Employers' Liability Law, Self-Insurers and Risk Managers
Sections, Divisions, Forums, Special Standing Committees and Commissions co-sponsor:
  • The Joint Committees on Employees Benefits (JCEB) for Business, Health, Labor & Employment Law, Real Property Probate & Trust Law, Tax and Health Law
The legal issues surrounding domestic partnerships and same sex marriages have become increasingly significant and complex. The landmark decision by the Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts in Goodridge v. Department of Public Health, 440 Mass. 309 (2003) opened the door for same sex residents of Massachusetts to marry. Several other states and local jurisdictions have passed legislation which recognizes domestic partners through Civil Unions and Domestic Partner Registries. Additionally, a growing number of Fortune 500 companies now offer health care benefits to domestic partners. While these state and local laws give numerous rights to domestic partners, none of them confer rights to pension and related benefits regulated by federal laws. This growing divide between federal laws, such as ERISA, and state laws granting domestic partners benefits, creates increasing legal challenges. This expert panel of employment and employee benefit lawyers will address these current legal issues surrounding the benefits, rights and responsibilities of domestic partners.

  • Program Chair:
    • Marlene K. Heyser, Workplace Law Strategies, Newport Beach, CA
    Moderator:
    • Sandra R. McCandless, Sonnenschein, Nath & Rosenthal LLP, San Francisco, CA
    Speakers:
    • Kate Kendell, National Center for Lesbian Rights, San Francisco, CA
    • Michael Clarkson, Morgan Brown LLP, Boston, MA
    • Julie Burbank, Trucker Huss, San Francisco, CA
    • Richard Milstein, Akerman Senterfitt, Miami, FL
    • Bobbie Wilson, Howard Rice, San Francisco, CA

View Site



ABA AIDS Coordinating Committee

Saturday, August 11, 3:45 - 5:30 PM
Moscone, Room 3024, 3rd Floor

CLE Program: Sex, Drugs and the Law: The ABA's Response to the HIV/AIDS Pandemic

Marking the Committee's 20th anniversary, current and former Committee Chairs will discuss the legal and policy issues present in the early years of HIV/AIDS, how they have evolved, new issues that have emerged, and the ABA's response to them. The program also will honor the Committee's founders and early supporters, including former ABA President Robert MacCrate, former IRR Chair William L. Robinson, and Alexander Forger and Abby R. Rubenfeld.

  • Speakers:
    • Hon. Richard T. Andrias, New York Supreme Court (App. Div., First Dept.), New York, NY
    • Shelley D. Hayes, S&H Consulting LLC, Washington, D.C.
    • Barry Sullivan, Jenner & Block LLP, Chicago, Ill.
    • Robert E. Stein, Law Offices of Robert E. Stein, Washington, D.C.

View Site


Section of Business Law Welcome Reception

Saturday, August 11, 6:00 - 7:30 PM

The Section Welcome Reception will be held on Saturday, August 11, from 6:00 p.m. until 7:30 p.m. at the beautifully appointed Fairmont San Francisco Hotel. Join familiar Section of Business Law colleagues and meet new ones at this wonderful event. Relax and revitalize as you unwind from the events of the day at this elegant event. Cocktails and entertainment will be provided. Admission is free to registered attendees and their guests.



Section of Individual Rights and Responsibilities

Sunday, August 12, 3:45 - 5:15 PM
Moscone, Room 2002, 2nd Floor

CLE Program: Respect for Same-Sex Couples and their Relationships: Navigating the Hurdles Posed by Lack of Federal and State Recognition

While the growing availability of marriage, domestic partnerships, and civil unions for same-sex couples represents an important advancement in the struggle for full equality for lesbian, gay, and bisexual people, these developments also pose new and complicated legal problems for these couples and for the attorneys who are advising them. Increasing numbers of states have enacted statutory and constitutional provisions purporting to deny recognition of marriages between same-sex couples and, in some states, even purporting to deny recognition of domestic partnerships, civil unions, and other forms of relationships between same-sex couples. And, of course, the federal Defense of Marriage Act purports to provide that the federal government will not extend to same-sex couples the rights and protections provided to married heterosexual spouses. As a result of this patchwork, same-sex couples often have little guidance with regard to how they will be treated by the federal government and by other states as they move about the country. This panel will examine some of these difficulties. In particular, panelists will discuss issues related to interstate recognition of parent-child relationships, difficulties that same-sex couples face in the area of taxation and property because of the lack of federal recognition of their legal relationship with their partners, as well as the challenges that binational same-sex couples face.

  • Speakers:
    • Nikki Dryden, Staff Attorney, Immigration Equality (immigration)
    • Patricia Cain, Inez Mabie Distinguished Professor of Law, Santa Clara University (taxation)
    • Connie Hiatt, Partner, Hanson Bridgett LLP, Chair, Employee Benefits Practice Group (employment benefits)
    • Courtney Joslin, Acting Professor, UC Davis School of Law (parentage)

View Site


Section of Business Law Business Card Diversity Networking Reception

Sunday, August 12, 6:00 - 7:30 PM

The Committee on Diversity is proud to host a complimentary reception for all Annual Meeting attendees on Sunday, August 12, from 6:00 p.m. - 7:30 p.m. We welcome all attendees who share our vision and are interested in recruiting and retaining lawyers of color, women lawyers, lawyers with disabilities, gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender lawyers, young lawyers, and law students for active involvement in the Section. Learn how to navigate the vast array of the Section's resources and meet experts in your field. Or, just come to network and reacquaint with old friends and colleagues. We look forward to seeing you there.



 


Back to Top

Copyright American Bar Association. http://www.abanet.org