Message from the Chair, Karl J. Ege

In less than two weeks, approximately 1500 of our Section members, many with spouses, family members, significant others, and guests, will be gathering in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada for the Section's first-ever Spring Meeting outside the United States. Recently, I attended a meeting in Vancouver with members of our Vancouver Planning Committee, ably chaired by the Hon. Roger Simmons (Gowling Lafleur Henderson LLP), to wrap up the final details for our forthcoming meeting. The Planning Committee was formed three years ago to make this year's event a signature moment in our Section's 70 year history. Its members have been working steadily through four separate subcommittees: Sponsorship (Chair: Sean Weir (Borden Ladner Gervais LLP)); Marketing (Chair: Karl Gustafson, Q.C. (Lang Michener LLP)); Activities (Chair: Albert Hudec (Farris, Vaughn, Wills & Murphy LLP)); and Programs (Chair: Stephen Pike (Gowling Lafleur Henderson LLP)) and their efforts will be evident to all who attend.

Following the meeting, the Planning Committee toured the new Vancouver Exhibition & Convention Centre, a magnificent facility that was dedicated on Friday, April 3rd. Our Section Spring Meeting will be the first major event to be held in this extraordinary facility, which next February will serve as the media headquarters for the Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympics. All of our Section programs, committee meetings, the Section Luncheon and Dinner, and many of our receptions will be held in this beautiful new structure built over the waters of Burrard Inlet, with sweeping views of Vancouver's waterfront and snow-capped mountains. The new Convention Centre incorporates award-winning "green" architecture, technology and operating systems and is generally regarded as the state-of-the art meeting facility in North America. Those of us who visited the new facility last week were impressed; I am confident you too will enjoy this unique meeting venue.

The importance of our Spring Meeting, however, is not the venue, but rather the substance of the educational programs and committee meetings that are presented by our members. This year is no exception. The Vancouver Meeting will include more than 70 continuing legal education programs, with many focused on the challenges arising from the current financial crisis with a particular emphasis on cross-border financing, transactional and regulatory issues. As in years past, the Section Spring Meeting enables business lawyers to fulfill an entire year's worth of continuing legal education requirements through three days of high-quality programs focused on topics relevant to the practitioner's day-to-day counseling activities. For those of our members who are unable to attend in person, several of our committees are arranging for teleconference access. You should receive a message shortly from your committee chair with instructions for dial-in access.

This year's meeting will have a true Canadian "look and feel." In addition to leading Canadian lawyers, jurists and academics who will be participating in our educational programs and committee meetings, we are delighted to have John Furlong, Chief Executive Officer of the Organizing Committee for the Vancouver 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games, as our featured speaker at the Section Luncheon on Friday, April 17, and Julie Dickson, Superintendent of Financial Institutions Canada, as our keynote speaker at the Federal Regulation of Securities Luncheon, co-sponsored by the Committee on Banking Law, on Saturday, April 18. Both will bring a unique Canadian perspective to the meeting, and we are honored they have agreed to address our members.

There is much myth about the weather in the Pacific Northwest. Yes, it does rain, but annual rainfall in Vancouver is less than that of any city in either the United States or Canada east of the Mississippi River. When it does rain it is usually in the form of showers. In mid-April one can expect daytime temperatures in the high 50s to low 60s and nighttime temperatures in the low 40s, with occasional showers and sun breaks. It is highly unlikely that there will be heavy rain and virtually no possibility of snow. I've had several inquiries regarding appropriate attire for this year's meeting. In general, the dress code for the meeting will be business casual, with "smart casual" the order of the day for evening events.

The following is a link to the program materials that are now on-line and the meeting guide that describes the many events that will be held during our meeting in Vancouver. I hope that you will be able to find time in your busy and demanding schedule to attend what is sure to be an extraordinary gathering of leading business lawyers.

In closing, I am pleased to report that our Section remains vibrant and fiscally sound. Our membership continues to increase steadily notwithstanding the challenges of the current economic environment. It is clear that our members are finding that, now more than ever, the high quality products and services offered by the Business Law Section represent a value proposition that supports continuing membership. Rest assured that your Section's leadership is doing its best to make the Section even more valuable and meaningful to our more than 60,000 members. Please feel free to contact me at kege@perkinscoie.com with your suggestions as to how we can better serve your needs.