The purpose of this course is to introduce listeners to the various kinds of litigation that arise under Title VII. We will discuss the background of Title VII and legal developments that have shaped the law into what it is today. We will also discuss the various kinds of claims and the general elements of each claim. Listeners will be left with an understanding of the general framework for Title VII Litigation.

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.

This CLE explores the Federal Rules of Evidence applicable to digital evidence. Attendees will learn about relevant case law and how to authenticate or challenge the admission of digital evidence at trial. We will explain how to use digital evidence effectively at trial and how to incorporate it into an overarching story or theory of a case. In Section 1, attorneys will be introduced to the topic and the types of evidence that will be covered in the presentation. Section 2 covers the applicable rules of evidence in the Federal system, particularly rules 901, 801, 803, and 703. Section 3 explores ideas in how to present digital evidence effectively to a judge or jury.

This program, taught by Russo & Gould LLP Partner Florina Altshiler, an experienced trial lawyer, will address key concepts in the psychology of jury selection. The course will review the social science behind selecting a jury in civil and criminal matters, helping attorneys learn to identify and eliminate jurors who will be problematic to their theory of the case, while also establishing the rapport necessary to engage them with their narrative of events. The program offers practical guidance on voir dire tactics, including best practices in interviewing jurors, introducing the case during jury selection, and avoiding objections during the selection process. It also addresses how to effectively use peremptory challenges. In addition to strategy, the course also covers the statutes, and procedures that govern jury selection. Finally, the presenter will discuss COVID-19 implications for jury trials, the latest updates to court procedures, and strategy.

Bias can influence decision-making and behavior in profound ways, and bias against the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, intersex, and asexual (“LGBTQIA”) communities is pervasive. LGBTQIA clients need attorneys who are both competent in the law, and competent in LGBTQIA experiences. This presentation divides LGBTQIA cultural competence into five distinct areas: understanding the terminology around gender, sex, and sexual orientation, calling out the messaging that can influence our beliefs and behaviors, appreciating the specific challenges facing members of these communities, cultivating inclusive spaces that helps LGBTQIA clients feel comfortable expressing their needs, and being an ally by committing to a reflective practice. The presentation contains a number of helpful practice tips about representing LGBTQIA clients.

The entrepreneurial cannabis industry requires legal assistance like any other growing, innovative business sector. However, the cannabis industry does not necessarily resemble other evolving start-up business areas. Unlike most other industries, cannabis continues to be a federally designated illegal controlled substance, while various states have legalized cannabis and planted a patchwork garden of cannabis statutes, regulations, and ethics advisory opinions. What’s a lawyer to do? Legal ethics questions abound! What type of legal assistance may a lawyer provide to a client involved in the cannabis industry? May a lawyer accept product or an interest in a cannabis business in lieu of fees? Will a lawyer who participates in a medical marijuana program or indulges in recreational cannabis face ethical repercussions? This course will explore the historical context of the cannabis debate, the legal ethics implications for lawyers seeking to represent cannabis clients, and the current state of the legal profession’s response to legal ethics questions posed by lawyers traipsing through the patchwork garden of state regulations.

Once a company agrees to do business with the United States federal government, with that promise comes agreement to assume a slate of obligations, most of which are foreign to commercial practices. This precept could not be more accurate when it comes to the labor and employment obligations that apply to federal contractors. From prevailing wage obligations to affirmative action to federal sick leave, it is critically important that a federal contractor understand the scope of obligations applicable to the type of federal government contractor work it undertakes to perform. In this course, we will highlight key federal labor and employment obligations and suggest strategies for how to ensure compliance and mitigate risk, particularly given the potentially debilitating sanctions associated with non-compliance with some of these statutes, regulations,and executive orders.

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.

This six-credit course is designed to help Illinois newly-admitted attorneys meet their first year MCLE requirement and impart fundamental skills paramount to the practice of law. Taught by expert faculty, the six sessions range from professionalism to time management. They are: Session 1: Strive to Thrive: Not Only Succeeding but Flourishing as a Junior Lawyer Session 2: Leveling the Playing Field Session 3: Conflict Conundrums — An Introduction to Legal Ethics & Conflicts of Interest Session 4: Professionalism: It’s More than Being Ethical Session 5: An Introduction to Legal Malpractice Claims and Related Ethical Issues Session 6: Doing More in Less Time For Lawyers.

This course is an introduction to the nonprofit practice area. Specifically, we will review the process for forming a nonprofit and seeking tax exemption under section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code. Attorneys will learn the compliance requirements for nonprofits as well as the unique tax issues nonprofits face. Attorneys will feel empowered to expand their practice area to include nonprofit law. This course will also explore fiduciary duties of nonprofit board members. For attorneys interested in volunteering as a board member for a nonprofit, this course will examine the best practices to protect yourself from potential liability.

Legal writing is perhaps the most important tool of the legal profession. Nonetheless, attorneys regularly violate ethical duties in their writing, and those violations go undetected. Systemic unethical legal writing impacts the entire legal profession, as well as those we serve and the community in which we practice. In this presentation, we examine seven common ethical issues in legal research, writing, and advocacy in the context of litigation. We examine the ethical duties of competence, diligence, and candor as embodied in the ABA Model Rules of Professional Conduct. And how do tacos factor in? Well, you’ll just have to see—it just might guac your world!

This course is designed to give the participant an insight into the reasons behind athlete activism and taking stances on political and social stances in the sports world, as well as how to advise sports-clients on the legal and practical implications involved in choosing to take a stance – no matter the type of statement to be made.

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.

Beginning in Ancient Rome and journeying to modern bankruptcy law in the United States, this presentation offers an overview of the history and current substantive law of so-called straight consumer bankruptcy in the United States under chapter 7 of the United States Bankruptcy Code. In this course, we’ll walk through a typical chapter 7 case with Debbie Debtor, recently unemployed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. We’ll learn about the filing of the petition, the creation of the bankruptcy estate and automatic stay, the § 341 meeting of creditors, discharge, postdischarge issues, and more!

In the COVID-19 pandemic environment and perhaps its aftermath, lawyers must operate in a virtual world that requires extensive use of technology. The pillars of professionalism – competence, civility, public and community service, and pro bono work to ensure access to justice – are always relevant. This era’s needs and concerns accentuate the tenets of professionalism, as the legal profession adopts and adapts to virtual practice and communicating professionally.

This program provides a basic overview of business bankruptcy, from both the troubled business’s perspective and the creditors’ perspective. We will discuss common reasons why businesses file bankruptcy, and the objectives that businesses seek to achieve through bankruptcy. We will also discuss the basic “nuts and bolts” of bankruptcy, including the automatic stay, the treatment of executory contracts and unexpired leases, Chapter 11 plan confirmation requirements, and preference and fraudulent transfer actions.

Reopening physical workspaces will require both employers and employees to confront new realities and to address both physical and operational changes required by the lingering effects of Covid-19 on the workplace. This program will offer a guideline for assisting both employers and employees to navigate the new post-Covid-19 workplace.

Mental health issues and substance use disorders can impact any law student, attorney or judge regardless of ethnicity, gender, age, orientation of socioeconomic status. But no matter the background, the legal profession seems to suffer in silence. Why? Stigma – the cultural prejudice and discrimination that labels an individual as defective or weak has the power to create a reluctance to speak about the issues and be a barrier to seeking treatment. This program will define the stigma, explain the reasons why stigma is so pervasive in the legal profession, and why it is critical to overcome these beliefs and identify effective means to ameliorate stigma and identify affirming aHtudes for recovery. Throughout the presentation, the speaker will focus on several different “life stages” of an attorney and how stigma affects each group and identify best practices to conquer stigma in the legal community.

An effective oral advocate balances control and flexibility, directly responding to questions while continuing to emphasize a core theory. An effective oral advocate addresses any lingering doubts, demonstrates their knowledge and abilities, and serves as a problem-solver to the bench. Being an effective oral advocate takes significant preparation—battle plans. This oral argument boot camp walks you through the rigorous process of preparing for an appellate oral argument. Topics include techniques for conquering nerves, distilling a core theory, developing a dedicated process to practice answering questions, getting mooted, and more.

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.