2008 Annual Meeting in New York City

This program will address need-to-know issues in the establishment of a law firm or practice including: choice of organizational form (Professional Corp, PLLC, Sole Proprietorship, etc.), setting up partnership and equity structure, valuing the practice, making or taking in new partners, retirement or withdrawal from the firm.  Other topics will include the law firm as an employer, and legal and managerial concerns arising from that relationship and setting up pension and profit sharing plan.
Moderator: Patrick Begos, Begos Horgan & Brown LLP
Panelists: Michele Aiken, Aiken & Aiken; Jeffrey F. Allen, CPA, MS Amper, Politziner & Mattia, CPA’s; and Arthur Greene, Boyer Greene, LLC
Solo Day Flyer

Staying connected is the key to developing new business.  This program will address how small firms and solo practitioners can position themselves to get more work from corporate and institutional clients.  Topics will include establishing relationships with prospective clients, understanding what situations make it desirable for large entities to engage smaller firms, communicating progress, and other ideas for building a successful practice.
Moderator: Stephen D. Williams, Law Office of Stephen D. Williams
Panelists:Silvia Coulter, Hildebrandt International; Juliana O’Reilly, E-Trade Bank; James Silkenat, Arent Fox LLP and Steven Weiss, Cannon Heyman & Weiss LLP
Solo Day Flyer

Marriott Marquis, New York, NY
Joint Sponsorship with YLD
Don't miss this exciting opportunity to attend a roundtable discussion with four in-house corporate attorneys, who will share their real life tales of life beyond the billable hour.  This presentation is geared for attorneys whose goal is to one day practice in an in-house environment, as well as those who currently find themselves in that role and the "out-side" law firm attorneys who represent them.  Some of the many topics to be addressed will include issues such as:  (i) how to best position yourself for an eventual in-house corporate counsel career; (ii) how to maintain that role once you have achieved it, by becoming an effective and successful member of your corporate employer; and (iii) where to go once you've become a key member of your company's team A.K.A. "Life after the Legal Department."   Special emphasis will be placed on the fundamental differences between practice in a law firm and a corporate (profit or non-profit) organization.
Speakers: Ingrid Busson, Calyon; Kevin Andrew Clunis, Colgate-Palmolive Company; Jennifer Hilsabeck, American Nevada Company and David Martinez, A&E Television Networks

Solo|Small Firm Practitioners must contemplate their own retirement and estate planning needs. Topics will include individual financial planning, corporate retirement planning, estate and succession planning for solo practitioners and small firms, tips on preparation for meeting with estate planning attorneys and financial planners, and learning how to select the best profit sharing plans and tips on how to avoid liability for the plans.
Moderator: Vicki Levy Eskin, Levy & Associates, P.A.
Panelists: Sheila Aiken, Aiken & Aiken; Michael Brodsky, The Brodsky-Paynter Group at Smith Barney; Joan Burda, Sole Practitioner and John Doyle, ABA Retirement Funds
Solo Day Flyer

Maximize your opportunities for using technology to the fullest. The panel will discuss issues in electronic discovery under the Federal Rules; use of technologists, what to ask for and how to use it, how to advise your clients concerning preservation of evidence, formulating proper requests, where to look and how to analyze what you find.
Moderator: Jon Swergold, Greenberg Traurig, P.A.
Panelists: Philip Cohen, Greenberg Traurig, P.A.;Jamie Moore, Bradley Arant Rose & White LLP;Paul Neale, DOAR Litigation Consulting; Hon. Shira Scheindlin, United States District Judge, Southern District of New York ;Toby Soli, Greenberg Traurig, P.A.; Hon. Ira Warshawsky, Justice of the Supreme Court of the State of New York, Nassau County Commercial Division
Solo Day Flyer

On June 25, 1906, Stanford White, the celebrated architect of Madison Square Garden, was shot to death in his famous building by Pittsburgh millionaire Harry Thaw in front of the entire audience of a musical premiere.  Both men had reputations for debauchery, and Thaw was reputed to accompany romance with dog whips.  Thaw’s wife, Evelyn Nesbitt Thaw, a former chorus girl, had once been White’s teenage mistress, and the court proceedings were quickly dubbed “The Trial of the Century.”  Thaw’s first trial ended in a hung jury, but a second jury found Harry Thaw not guilty by reason of insanity.   Was Thaw really insane, or did he simply get away with murder?  You be the jury as this notorious case is retried using contemporary science and technology by litigators Carlin Phillips and Shain Khoshbin, psychologist Darlene Shelton, forensics expert and law professor Jim Starrs, and trial consultant David Weinberg.

A bankruptcy court order may normally be appealed either to the U.S. District Court or the Bankruptcy Appellate Panel (in certain circuits). Under the new BAPCPA, in some instances an order may now be appealed directly to the circuit’s Court of Appeals.  This seminar will discuss the advantages and disadvantages of these three options, the process and procedure to get to your court of choice, and strategies for tailoring your briefs and arguments for that particular court.  Our panelists include a bankruptcy appeals practitioner who has argued seven bankruptcy appeals to the United States Supreme Court and well as numerous other bankruptcy appeals, and the former law clerk to the former Chief Judge of the U.S. Bankruptcy Appellate Panel of the Ninth Circuit.  This will be a behind the scenes seminar on practice, procedure, and the elements of a successful appeal from the appellate courts’ perspective, with sample appeal forms and briefs.
Speakers: G. Eric Brunstad Jr., Bingham McCutchen; Larry Feinstein, Vortman & Feinstein and Deirdre Glynn Levin

A clerkship is the most prestigious job available after graduation and is considered to be the capstone of a legal education.  It is the method by which many notable legal professionals and scholars have embarked on their careers.  Very few other achievements or accomplishments are as noteworthy as a judicial clerkship.  In recent years, the federal judiciary has implemented a revised hiring process to assess judicial clerkship candidates.  What do law students need to know about application timing, the use of OSCAR, and how to enhance their application?  Additionally, for those students who have obtained clerkships, what skills should they continue to develop or acquire prior to commencing their service at the court?
Speakers: Honorable Thomas L. Ambro, U.S. Court of Appeals; Arthur F. Fergenson, DLA Piper US LLP and Vicki Huebner, Santa Clara University School of Law

Interactive and dynamic panel of real estate and business law attorneys will discuss issues that arise when advising small business clients in commercial real estate deals. Topics include: general representation and ethical issues, reviewing and negotiating the client’s commercial lease, understanding issues involving commercial real estate financing from the borrower’s perspective, due diligence and zoning issues, and what to do when things go wrong.
Speakers: Aurora Abella-Austriaco, Peck Bloom; Youshea Berry, Law Office of Youshea A. Berry, PLLC; Kyrus Freeman, Holland & Knight LLP and Maria Ann Milano, Riddell Williams PS

Elder Law may be the biggest practice area of your career. There are 50,000 baby boomers/ day turning 60 and soon to be on Medicaid and will need legal advise. Elder Law is one of the biggest growth fields. Substantial changes in Medicaid law requires attorneys to learn ideas to avoid Medicaid/ nursing home liens. Topics will include: Medicaid Law changes in 2006-2007-Protect yourself from inaccurate advice and malpractice, Getting referrals from other professionals, The aftermath of the Terry Schiavo case and Living Wills., Forms you can use, Email newsletters, How to get more referrals and repeat business, How to manage telephone conversations with your clients, Marketing with written fee agreements, Ethics and marketing without violating the Rules of Professional Conduct.
Speakers: Joan Burda, Sole Practitioner; Jay Foonberg, Sole Practitioner; Parag Patel, Parag P. Patel Esq. P.C.; Charles Sabatino, American Bar Association and Kenneth Vercammen, Kenneth Vercammen & Associates