Message from the Chair, Karl J. Ege

Last spring the leadership of the Section of Business Law adopted a Strategic Plan that emphasized the need for the Section to remain relevant to its members. A major goal of your Section's leadership is to focus on improving relevance in new and innovative ways. We recognize that many of our members are unable, for a variety of reasons, to attend our Section's continuing education programs in person; nor are they able to participate actively in the important work of our substantive committees. The current economic crisis and its impact on our clients and the practice of law, demand that we, your professional organization, find ways to meet your needs in an efficient and cost effective manner.

For the last several months the Section's talented staff has been experimenting with new technologies that will enable you, our members, to participate in committee meetings and continuing education programs using remote learning tools. I am pleased to report that the initial programs have been successful, and we are planning to increase our commitment to "remote learning" so that each of you may benefit from the extraordinary richness of intellectual product produced in our programs.

For example, at the November 2008 Section Fall Meeting in Washington D.C. working on a trial basis with ALI-ABA, a joint venture of the American Law Institute and the American Bar Association, the Section broadcasted four programs using web-based technology tools. One program was a presentation by the ABA Presidential Task Force on Financial Markets Regulatory Reform on the recent financial meltdown; another program featured a dialogue with the SEC Director of Enforcement; a third, captioned "Bankruptcy for Breakfast", offered an update on bankruptcy issues; and a fourth focused on the sensitive topic of attorney-client privilege in the context of an SEC examination. A number of our members who could not attend the Fall Meeting were able to enjoy the benefit of these webcasts, demonstrating the value of distant learning tools to connect with and to maintain relevance for our members. Each broadcast remains available from ALI-ABA and may be accessed here.

Based on the success at the Fall Meeting, the Section has expanded its collaboration with ALI-ABA to make distant learning a feature at each of its major meetings. Under our arrangement, ALI-ABA will produce and distribute web-based learning programs developed by the Section and its committees and the Section and ALI-ABA will share in the revenues generated from the modest "click charge" paid by those who purchase these services. The next live "webinar" will be broadcast from the Committee on Consumer Financial Services Winter Meeting in Scottsdale, Arizona, which will be held from January 10-13. On January 12, the Section will broadcast live from the meeting, a program captioned "New Directions in Consumer Financial Services: Housing Finance, Collection Practices, and Ethics." Section members who are unable to attend the meeting in Scottsdale can participate in this program. Click here for registration details. We are excited about the prospects for future webcasts and will be committing an increasing portion of our Section resources to reach out to all members with tools such as those provided by ALI-ABA.

The Section remains committed to its global business initiative and has finalized arrangements for a second Global Business Law Forum, which this year will be held in Hong Kong from June 10-12, 2009. We are delighted that the Inter-Pacific Bar Association has agreed to co-sponsor the Hong Kong Forum. Representatives of the IPBA have been regularly involved in the planning of the programs, and we are confident that business lawyers from throughout the Pacific Rim will find the Hong Kong Forum to be an excellent opportunity to gain insight into the key legal issues facing clients in today's dynamic and challenging global business environment. The Web site is regularly updated and can be found here.

Our Section 2009 Spring Meeting will be held in Vancouver, Canada from April 16-18 at the newly completed Vancouver Convention & Exhibition Center. This superb facility is capable of accommodating all of our meeting activities, and is adjacent to our three meeting hotels, the Fairmont Waterfront, the Pan Pacific, and the Marriott Pinnacle. In organizing the Vancouver meeting we have enjoyed the assistance of a Planning Committee of more than 40 Canadian and U.S. lawyers, chaired by the Honorable Roger Simmons of Vancouver. The Planning Committee has been instrumental in preparing for this first-ever Section Spring Meeting in Canada. I urge each of you to attend what will be a truly memorable meeting in Vancouver. Visit the Web site for full information.

I have mentioned several times this year that it is my goal to enhance the Section's relevance to its members, particularly those of you who cannot participate in our programs and activities in person. I welcome your suggestions for enhancing relevance. Please feel free to contact me with your suggestions at kege@perkinscoie.com.

We enter the New Year with economic uncertainty and a challenging business environment for our clients and our firms. Rest assured that your Section's leadership and our capable Section staff remain committed to bringing you, our valuable members, timely and relevant products and services.