Service dogs, assistance animals, emotional support animals, guide dogs, therapy animals, and ordinary pets—what’s the difference? Rules pertaining to assistance animals are complex, often puzzling, and ever shifting. In this introduction to the law of assistance animals, we unleash three foundational disability laws: the Americans with Disabilities Act, Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act, and the Fair Housing Act, and explore the making of an assistance animal under each of these acts.

Among the most important topics in immigration defense today is CRIMMIGRATION, that is, the consideration of how to contend with and explain criminal issues, including fraud, misrepresentation, illegal activity and crimes involving moral turpitude, for immigration clients. This seminar will consider how to tackle this extremely important issue separate and apart from proving hardship issues in 601-waiver petitions by using MITIGATION, just as criminal defense lawyers use mitigation to defend and explain their client’s criminal behavior with prosecutors or in court.

This class will explain the evolution of computer forensics into what is now known as digital forensics. As a part of this class, attorneys will learn about the foundations of digital forensics, including how digital evidence should be collected, forensically acquired (copied), preserved, examined, and analyzed. The class then uses numerous case examples to explain different forensic artifacts and how they can be used in cases. Evidence types include metadata, internet history, communication artifacts, searches, multimedia, location evidence, and much more. Actual case examples are utilized to illustrate the usefulness of these forensic artifacts in litigation. Attorneys will also learn the difference between an information technology expert and a digital forensics expert, with case examples illustrating the problematic outcomes of having information technology experts attempting to testify about digital forensics.

Opening your own law firm? Congratulations! You are officially an entrepreneur. As an entrepreneur you will face many challenges and you must operate your practice ethically and professionally. The law is a profession, but it is also a business and to maximize your chances of success you must have a plan. In the conclusion of this exciting two part presentation, hosted by a leading legal author, columnist and media personality who has operated a solo law practice out of his home for the past 25 years, you will learn best practices for dealing with clients and making sure your operations are profitable at all times.

With the increasing legal complexities in the live performance industry, lawyers, agencies, promoters, managers and talent buyers have had to re-examine their template agreements and legal protocols related to performers and entertainment. Learn more about the intricacies of the live performance industry, the primary clauses within the industry’s agreements, how the industry is evolving, and how you can protect your clients in the industry.

Public support for legalized cannabis is at an all-time high, and at least 33 states have legalized it in some fashion. In light of the booming cannabis industry and the significant regulatory challenges that cannabis-related businesses face, the need for legal advice is industry-wide. However, giving cannabis-related legal advice can raise some hazy ethical issues for attorneys, due in part to the continued illegality of cannabis at the federal level. In this presentation, we will examine both the ABA Model Rules of Professional Conduct and a selection of state rules and opinions as we work through the ethical implications for lawyers who don’t stay off the grass.

Whether it is the Yorkshire terrier in the carrier on the airplane or the emotional support rat on the shopper’s shoulder in the grocery store, one encounters people insisting on and resisting about the use of animals to assist them with a variety of activities in the world. What are the allowable options in that regard? What does the law permit, what does the law prohibit, and what does the law simply not pay attention to at all when it comes to the service animal, the assistance animal, or the emotional support animal in a public setting. This seminar examines both the sense and the nonsense of not just the players involved but the rules that are imposed on those players – which can include not simply the animal owner but the merchant, bystander, government agent, and affected consumer as well. We do so by ferreting out the scope of regulations across jurisdictions, by specifying the questions that can and cannot be asked of certain participants, and by trying to glean what rationalizations lay behind protections and penalties in the use and abuse of dogs, cats, rabbits, horses and other animals in the service of people.

Attorneys in firms of all sizes – from solo practitioners to lawyers are multinational Big Law firms - face a number of ethical issues relating to cybersecurity, and preserving the confidentiality and security of their clients’ data. Contrary to what some lawyers may believe, law firms are often a valuable target for hackers because they can hold vast collections of sensitive and highly valuable client-related data. These cybersecurity threats come from individual hackers, international cybercriminals, and even a firm’s own attorneys and other employees. This program provides a basic primer on attorneys’ ethical obligations to understand and address the cybersecurity risks they face, and provides practical advice for attorneys in addressing issues that arise will undoubtedly arise in their legal practice.

Representing both the husband and wife in estate planning? Assisting with the divorce of your favorite friends? Asked to represent co-defendants or multiple family members in a criminal, personal injury, or immigration case? New clients want to pay you with stock in their enterprise? From family law, trust and estates, and business law to criminal, personal injury, and immigration law, conflicts of interest exist as a fundamental concern in the practice of law. If ignored or misunderstood, fundamental concerns can create significant problems for the unwary lawyer. What’s a lawyer to do? Step one: assess whether there is a conflict of interest. Step two: analyze whether it is consent-able or impermissible. Step three: proceed accordingly. This course will explore these steps in the context of the conflict of interest rules and their applications in the everyday practice of law.

Defamation Law has its origins in church doctrine and has undergone various significant changes over the last nearly 1,000 years. Because the action in the United States is based on state law, the elements one will need to prove may differ depending on the jurisdiction. In this Overview of Defamation Law, attorneys he presentation discusses both recent articles and cases addressing various aspects of a Defamation claim, including jurisdiction, venue, the requisite elements, and what is need to have success at summary judgment.

Mr. Blitz will focus on civil cases brought by a plaintiff's attorney to trial. This course is intended as an introduction to trying a civil case to verdict and a refresher course for seasoned attorneys. The course will begin with jury selection and proceed through opening statements, direct and cross exam of the plaintiff, defendant and defendant’s experts and continue through summation. We will discuss issues on how best to prepare for trial as well as maximizing jury selection, effective openings, techniques for cross examination and evidence presentation, and other related topics. Mr. Blitz will also discuss those items that trial attorneys face during a trial that require fast and strategic thinking. Mr. Blitz will provide tips and strategies for trial preparation for cases involving devastating injury and wrongful death claims, including how to implement technology and demonstrative evidence to show the devastation the injury caused at trial.

Addiction is a great equalizer. Among attorneys, substance use is particularly concerning; it is pervasive and covert. Approximately 50-75% of lawyer discipline problems involve substance use. Paradoxically, the qualities that can propel a lawyer to success can also put a lawyer at risk. In this presentation, we introduce ten things that every attorney should know about substance use. Topics include the incidence of substance use disorders, contributing factors, the ethics of impaired lawyering, strategies for addressing substance use, and practical tips for increasing resiliency.

In this IP analysis for transactional lawyers in due diligence or representing small/medium businesses, we look at the major areas of IP law to understand what the IP assets are exactly, how to make sure they are valuable assets and scheduled properly, how to assess if there is potential value that is being missed, and registration regimes for different IP classes to guarantee the most protection. Along the way we offer lots of practice pointers for issue spotting so you do not make mistakes interacting with IP assets, which in many respects differ in basal assumptions about ownership compared to real property assets.

Learn what it takes to develop and litigate citizen suits to enforce our country’s landmark environmental laws! This course will cover the basic purposes of citizen suits; the remedies available to successful litigants; the key steps involved in developing and filing citizen suits; and trends that affect the value and viability of citizen suits as a tool.

Discovery can be one of the more challenging parts of a federal civil case. With so many rules, procedures, and opportunities for conflict, it’s no wonder that discovery makes some lawyers worry. This presentation will put your mind at ease with a step-by-step guide to the concepts and tools you need to navigate – and love— federal discovery.

Negotiation is the bread and butter of lawyering. In this introductory presentation, we give you the bottom line on negotiation skills. First, we explore the various theories of negotiation, including adversarial and problem-solving models, negotiation styles, and ethical considerations. Second, we review the preparation process and phases of negotiation. Finally, we introduce the hot topic of negotiating remotely with videoconferencing technology.

In August 2021, The Washington Post released a transcript of a February 2018 interview in which Rudy Giuliani told federal agents it was permissible to “throw a fake” during an electoral campaign. Just weeks before that transcript became public, Giuliani was suspended from the practice of law in New York for baselessly asserting that thousands of felons and dead people voted during the 2020 presidential election and that Georgia voting machines had been manipulated. This program will examine the ethics rules implicated by Giuliani’s recent conduct—ABA Rules 3.3, 4.1, and 8.4—and provide guidance on how to avoid suffering Rudy’s fate.

This course is designed to address the various evidentiary issues that arise with electronic evidence. For example, the presentation will cover the use of social media as evidence and how it is obtained and introduced into evidence. There will be a discussion of some of the preliminary evidence rules that are sometimes overlooked that can apply to social media and other electronic evidence. Issues with juries using social media during trial will also be covered. There will be a general discussion of the application of the hearsay rule to electronic evidence, and how to lay the proper foundation. Rules regarding spoliation of electronic evidence and the effect will be examined. The presentation will also deal with statutory provisions regarding discovery electronic information from third party providers. With the increased use of e-signatures, there will be coverage of issues that arise when introducing a document that has been electronically signed.

Transactional attorneys need to understand, appreciate, and actively assess their risks to prevent ethical violations and malpractice suits. In this presentation, we will address a broad range of ethical issues relevant to transactional practice. Particular emphasis will be on ethical perils in the M&A context, including mistakes, conflicts of interest, attorney-client privilege, candor in negotiations, and cybersecurity and technological competence. Each peril will be paired with a helpful list of pointers to help the M&A attorney prevent it.

Survivors of human trafficking have a wide range of individual legal needs. In this introduction to human trafficking, we first address the nature and extent of human trafficking in the United States. Then, we introduce a selection of legal remedies available to survivors of trafficking, homing in on the civil cause of action available to survivors of forced labor, involuntary servitude, and sex trafficking under the Victims of Trafficking and Violence Protection Reauthorization Act of 2003. Finally, we offer a few tips on working with survivors of human trafficking.