Message from the Chair, Karl J. Ege

It's the first week of June, and General Motors has filed for reorganization in one of the the largest ever corporate bankruptcies, yet the financial markets have taken that in stride and appear to have stabilized. Nonetheless the economy has yet to send signals that the worst of our business challenges is over. For those of us counseling businesses, this has been a very challenging year. Not only have our clients been dramatically affected by the global financial crisis, our practices have also changed dramatically: from one focused on financing and acquiring for growth to one focused on restructuring and retrenchment. Throughout this dynamic and unprecedented period, the Business Law Section has endeavored to remain relevant as our practices have changed to adapt to our client's new demands.

The programs at the Section Spring Meeting in Vancouver, seven of which are featured in this issue, were, by and large, focused on the challenges arising from the financial crisis and subsequent economic decline, with particular emphasis on the cross-border aspects of financings, restructurings, bankruptcies, business litigation, and acquisitions. From all reports, the 1400 Section members who gathered in Vancouver were pleased by the scope and depth of the programs and have called for more. And more we will provide, this time from Friday, July 31st through Monday, August 3rd at the ABA Annual Meeting in Chicago. The Section will be sponsoring 48 continuing legal education programs at the ABA Annual Meeting, with the emphasis remaining on the economic crisis and the challenges the current business environment has created for our clients. In addition to formal CLE programs, most of our committees are planning meetings in Chicago to facilitate their continuing substantive work. For a review of the planned program offerings and committee schedules for the Chicago Annual Meeting, please click here. The Section headquarters at the Annual Meeting and the venue for all of our CLE programs and committee meetings will be the Sheraton Chicago Hotel & Towers, across the Chicago River and only a few blocks from the Hyatt Regency Chicago, the ABA Headquarters Hotel. I hope as many of our members as possible will be able to attend this very important Annual Meeting.

The ABA Business Law Section has a continuing commitment to the business law sections or committees of state and local bar associations. As part of that commitment, each year the Section hosts the leadership of state and local business bar groups to a one-day program in Chicago where the Section shares with these business bar leaders best practices in bar management and topical CLE programs particularly relevant to business bar leaders. We were delighted that more than 50 business bar leaders from 37 separate jurisdictions attended this year's Business Bar Leaders Conference. This was the best attendance ever at this annual Conference, further demonstrating the timeliness and relevance of the Section and its product and service offerings. I would like to take this opportunity to thank the Section's State and Local Bar Committee, ably chaired by Roland Brandel (Morrison & Foerster) for their efforts in making this year's Business Bar Leaders Conference an unqualified success.

As pleased as we were with the outpouring of support at the Spring Meeting and the Business Bar Leaders Conference, the year has not been without its disappointments. After considerable discussion and analysis, the Section's officers decided to postpone this year's Global Business Law Forum which was scheduled to be held June 10-12 in Hong Kong to a date to be determined in early 2010. In light of the continuing challenges facing many of our members and their companies or firms as a consequence of the global financial crisis, registrations were significantly fewer than needed for a viable program.

The Section remains committed to this event and to addressing the vital role that Asia plays in the global economy and the practice of business law. The Forum Planning Committee, program chairs and speakers remain committed to delivering the outstanding programs they have developed for this year's Global Business Law Forum, updated of course to address future developments. We regret that the current economic conditions and concerns over a possible pandemic virus have brought about this postponement, but as noted above, we remain committed to expanding our product and service offerings to Asia and look forward to sponsoring a vibrant and effective Global Business Law Forum in Hong Kong in the near future. Please watch the program website and your e-mail for updates.

As a final note, I encourage each of you to contact me at kege@perkinscoie.com with suggestions as to how we can continue to make the Business Law Section more relevant to your and your client's needs.