Asia Through the Looking Glass:

Program Description

This program will provide an introduction to Asian labor and employment law from the viewpoint of union and management practitioners. Although the program is not intended to analyze the law of any single Asian country in detail, it will illustrate the obstacles that non-Asian practitioners face, how to identify them before they arise, and the practical steps to take to resolve them.

The panel will focus on the primary differences between Asian, U.S., and EU law and practice, keying in on certain countries. The discussion will range from the complex variety of sources of law, the forms of employment contact, and the labor union and employee perspectives of these matters, to cultural expectations and standards.

Program Faculty

Alan Berkowitz (Moderator) practices with Bingham and McCutchen in San Francisco, focusing on the representation of employers in domestic and international labor and employment law and unfair competition. He has practiced labor and employment law for more than 35 years, representing clients before the NLRB and EEOC. He has served as regional attorney of the Oakland Regional Office of the NLRB. He is also a Fellow of the American College of Labor and Employment Lawyers and a frequent speaker on labor and employment matters.

Earl Brown serves as labor/employment law counsel and China program director at the AFL-CIO’s Solidarity Center in Washington, D.C. Mr. Brown is active in the development of human and worker rights programs for the Center and its offices worldwide. He directs the Center’s China Rule of Law and worker rights program. He is a Fellow of the American College of Labor and Employment Lawyers. Among other topics, his presentation will consider the relationship between trade unions, management and the state in certain parts of Asia, the nature of collective bargaining, internal representation, and work councils.

Joseph W. Deng is special counsel at Baker & McKenzie LLP in Beijing. He represents multinational employers in all aspects of PRC labor and employment law, including: executive compensation and employee benefits; employment contracts and advice; international executive mobility; harassment and discrimination counseling and advice; employee intellectual property rights protections; and labor relations and union counseling.

Manishi Pathak is a partner with Kochar & Co. in New Delhi, where he handles matters pertaining to labor and employment law, foreign investment, foreign exchange control regulations, joint ventures, foreign collaborations, transfer of technology, company law matters, contract of all types, banking, non-banking financial transactions, and immigration laws. He will address many of the misconceptions and pitfalls that U.S. and European employers and practitioners can fall into with local law and practice from the viewpoint of a local practitioner.

Timothy L. Porter is a senior counsel in the Labor and Employment Law Department of Proskauer Rose LLP’s New York office. Prior to joining Proskauer, he spent 30 years at AT&T, where he gained extensive labor and regulatory experience. At AT&T, he oversaw AT&T’s domestic and international labor relations, employment, employee benefits, and executive compensation legal matters. Mr. Porter also has substantial experience in international labor law. While at AT&T, he devised strategies to counter union and political opposition to outsourcing. He also counseled on a range of individual employment issues that arose in Europe, Russia, Canada, Mexico, South America, the Caribbean, and Australia. Mr. Porter is a former adjunct law professor, a frequent speaker on domestic and international law topics, the former U.S. Chair of the British-American Project, and the U.S. Employer Representative to the International Labor Organization (ILO) Conference on Breaking Through the Glass Ceiling in Geneva, Switzerland.

CLE Credit*

1.5 hours of CLE credit in 60-minute states/1.8 hours of CLE credit in 50-minute states have been requested in states accrediting ABA teleconferences and live audio webcasts.*

NY-licensed attorneys: This non-transitional CLE program has been approved for experienced NY-licensed attorneys in accordance with the requirements of the New York State CLE Board for 1.5 total NY CLE credits.

The following states accept ABA teleconferences for mandatory CLE credit:
AL, AR, AZ, CA, CO, FL, GA, IA, ID, IL, KY, LA, ME, MN, MO, MS, MT, NC, ND, NH, NM, NV, NY, OK, OR, RI, SC, TN, TX, UT, VA, VT, WA, WI, WV, WY.

*States currently not accrediting ABA Teleconferences: DE, IN, PA, KS, OH