Minnesota bundle (2024)

Being a lawyer inevitably means experiencing a lot of stress. Stress is impossible to avoid, but it is not impossible to manage. You can learn how to handle stress for your own sake, the sake of your loved ones, and for your own career satisfaction and success. During this seminar, Cheyne Scott shares various techniques for addressing seven common stress points most lawyers share. As a litigation partner, Ms. Scott is walking in your shoes everyday. As a Certified Life Coach, she will show you to a different path for handling the stresses of practice so you can find balance amid chaos and uncertainty, and take personal satisfaction in work that you do.

"Self-care without team care is futile." This is the starting point of this talk. Many people have described the practice of law as toxic, but that toxicity is also how we feel we "have to get things done." What if you could change that? As a partner, law firm manager, or managing attorney, you can. Over the course of an hour, you will be introduced to agile project management techniques that you can implement, immediately, as well as principles and approaches to change the way you see firm management. We will cover the three pillars of the Livable Law legal project management method: tasks, time, and things. You will be able to implement scrum meetings, task lists, efficient calendaring, and document organization.

This talk should change your life. No small feat, but that's the goal. This program will help you understand where your sense of "overwhelm" is coming from, how the practice of the law makes it inevitable, and what you can do about it. The practice of law is toxic, but that toxicity is related to how we feel we have to "get things done." What if you could change that? As a solo or an associate, there are only so many resources around you, but understanding how to create new tools, how to shift your law practice paradigm, and how to protect yourself are key to avoiding burn out (or recognizing that you are burning out, and doing something about it). You will be introduced to some agile project management techniques that you can implement immediately, as well as principles and approaches to change the way you see the practice of law. We will also cover the three pillars of the Livable Law legal project management method: tasks, time, and things.

In this program, attorneys will learn how to prevent their firm from being used as a tool for money laundering and how to recognize the risks associated with specific types of transactions. We will take a deep dive into what constitutes money laundering, how to best protect attorney trust accounts, and how lawyers can be guided by the American Bar Association’s (ABA) Good Practices for Lawyers to Detect and Combat Money Laundering.

Preliminary injunctions and temporary restarting orders are extraordinary remedies whose use have recently been on the rise. Success in getting a court to grant requires passing rigid procedural hurdles and satisfying high standards of proof. In this one hour program, we will review various factors to consider when obtaining preliminary injunctions and temporary restraining orders as well as discuss issues that should be considered prior to filing for injunctive relief. Injunctions can be useful tools in protecting assets and halting wrongdoing but, injunctive relief means only as much as the ability to enforce it.

Artificial Intelligence (AI) is has unquestionably penetrated into the practice of law. In today’s hands-on course, attorneys will experience a detailed demonstration of what AI can do and how its use can be relevant to the practice of law. While AI can function as an aid to attorneys, there are limitations to AI that must be recognized. This course will help attorneys understand how to carefully use AI in their practice.

Professor Tim Chinaris, former Ethics Director of the Florida Bar, will explore how attorneys may find themselves facing ethical problems unknowingly and how to avoid these ethical traps. This course will discuss various ethics-related “technology traps” when getting, communicating with, and representing clients. The course will also analyze the various technological developments that are affecting the legal profession, including AI and technology-driven legal help websites.

As DEIA initiatives become more commonplace in law firms and organizations, it can be difficult for people unfamiliar with the topic to understand what it truly means and why it's needed in the first place. This course will take you through the basics of DEIA, as well as the legal framework and Federal level of involvement, before finally giving tips and tricks to handling the subject in a way that's both a boon to your practice and easy to handle.

In this program, Sean Smith will discuss how to avoid unforeseen consequences from using unnecessary and misunderstood boilerplate terms when drafting contracts. The clauses in a contract added from boilerplate language are often overlooked and infrequently negotiated. We will review the most common types of boilerplate clauses and what to consider when determining whether to use them in your clients’ contracts.

Plaintiffs’ lawyers now need to write more than ever – but they are faced with busy judges and need to compete with other litigants for the Court’s time. Join professional brief writer Jonathan Hilton as he explains how to fashion documents judges will look forward to reading. He explains his top ten tips: Five on how to help the judge spot your best arguments in less time, and five on how to make your clients more likable—and your clients’ stories more compelling. We round out the hour by looking at resources that will help you become a better brief writer moving forward.

This course will provide an in-depth overview of cannabis and substance abuse in worker’s compensation claims. By the end of this course, attorneys should understand the relevant considerations when advising their clients on worker’s compensation claims that involve cannabis or other substances. We will discuss the main areas of substance abuse that cause increased risk of injury and reduce productivity within an employment context. We will explore the various practical and legal strategies that can be utilized to prevent drugs and alcohol from entering the workplace.

Want to learn about civility and attorney professionalism? Then, this course is right for you! This course will discuss and define attorney civility and discuss discrimination/bias in the context of the Rules of Professional Conduct. We will focus on Rules of Professional Conduct 8.4(d) and 8.4(g), citing real-life case examples of how attorneys have been disciplined for their conduct. Additionally, this course will discuss potential discrimination/bias that can occur in just running a law firm and how to avoid those pitfalls.

In this course, we will analyze the historical context of civil RICO claims and explore how relevant case law affects a RICO case plaintiff, including the particularity required of a claim (time, place, etc), details of the mental state, and pattern of activity.

Since 2015, there has been a significant increase in class actions addressing total loss auto insurance, starting in Florida and now expanding into numerous other states. It is now perhaps the most litigated issue in the class action insurance area of law. This course addresses the three major theories under which these cases are brought, along with the major issues, both as to the merits and class certification, particularly from the plaintiff's perspective.

This course will discuss in-depth class litigation and the expansion of telemarketing Regulations, including the rent increase in state mini-TCPA’s and/or adding private causes of actions. We will then take a deep dive into the First Amendment “Commercial Speech” Doctrine discussing its outright exceptions and developing regulations, noting the difference between viewpoint and content based restrictions. Lastly, we will analyze a trio of recent cases that have raised the possibility that Central Hudson is becoming “Zombie precedent.”

This course will provide an overview of copyright law following the U.S. Supreme Court’s landmark decisions in Google v. Oracle and Warhol Foundation v. Goldsmith. In this one-hour course, we will discuss what is and is not protectable by copyright, analyze exclusive copyright rights, as well as fair use. This course will provide an in-depth overview of both Google v. Oracle and Warhol Foundation v. Goldsmith, as well as address several cases that have been or may be implicated following these decisions, and then cover issues that remain to be resolved.

Many litigators joke that they “hate math” and chose law to avoid it. But in fact, data, and the use of analysis to process and present data, is critical to modern litigation. Data allows attorneys to scale up from individual to societal in scope, to claims encompassing entire financial markets and public-health epidemics. This new and insightful course explains why data is important and how to use it effectively in litigation. While class is a must for seasoned litigators who handle matters involving data sets for proving their case, others may find the topic of interest.

Using examples from his personal experience of using data in litigation involving securities, antitrust, and litigation finance, our experienced and knowledgeable presenter will discuss how the data were used, how courts judged the data, and the outcome of those cases. This course includes practical recommendations for using data in working up cases, drafting pleadings, proving a case in discovery, and presenting data at trial.

Cybersecurity risk management and the potential for enforcement actions is not diminishing. An area of increasing interest by the Federal Trade Commission, the United States Department of Justice, and Congress is third parties benefiting financially from taking sensitive data, including protected health information, without obtaining affirmative patient/consumer consent (especially from social media and search engine giants). The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, the agency tasked with enforcing HIPAA, also plays a critical role here. The purpose of this presentation is to address different federal government initiatives, recent enforcement actions and incidents, and risk mitigation.

This course examines legal analyses of data privacy and cybersecurity incidents from a response perspective. The course will spotlight three primary components of the incident response lifecycle: (1) investigation and verification of a breach; (2) breach notification; and (3) post-breach remediation. With a focus on state data breach notification statutes, the course explores core questions involving events impacting protected information. This course will also consider what happens when a “breach” is declared, including breach notification to impacted individuals. Finally, the course explores common avenues organizations may consider to prevent a breach from happening again in the future, including the development and implementation of cybersecurity training and awareness programs.

Unfortunately, the uniqueness of social security disability law scares many new and curious legal practitioners away. A non-adversarial process lacking in both rules of evidence and rules of procedure, and with a unique government-regulated fee process, it can be both intimidating and confusing for newbies. This program, presented by national industry leader Michael Liner, will provide an overview of the medical and non-medical eligibility requirements of the Social Security Disability (SSD) and Supplemental Security Income (SSI) programs. The nonmedical criteria covered for will include quarters of coverage, insured status, as well as income and resource rules. The medical criteria to be covered includes the sequential evaluation, exertional categories, and common non-exertional limitations. The appeals/claims process will also be covered and explored.

As the student debt crisis grows, more bankruptcy filers are seeking discharge of their student loan debt. Be prepared to assist clients burdened by student loan debt get the fresh start they deserve. Discharging Student Loan Debt in Bankruptcy will explore the treatment of student loans in bankruptcy including determining a client’s eligibility for discharge. This program will guide you through the process of litigating student loans in bankruptcy court from case evaluation and intake to trial and discuss the recent policy change designed to provide a more expeditious process for discharging student loan debt.

This program is designed to help attorneys understand the role of medical reports in litigation. We will take a deep dive into the benefits of understanding medical records, how to increase your vocabulary of “medical jargon" as an attorney, and explore the relationship between facts and the medical reports.

This course is designed for counsel representing a franchisee in evaluating their decision to purchase a franchise business. We will discuss the role of franchisee counsel, practical considerations for deciding whether to acquire a franchise and how to prepare for reviewing a franchise opportunity. We will also cover how to determine which laws apply and why this matters to the review, the top 13 risk analysis issues, key tips for negotiating an addendum, and additional resources for franchisee counsel.

Managed properly, the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) can assist employers and employees alike with respect to providing predictability and with handling the issues that arise when employees are on leave. But there are traps along the way, and Human Resources Departments and employment lawyers must be mindful of how to identify and avoid these traps. This intermediate-level class is for practitioners who have a working knowledge of the FMLA and now want to understand tactics and strategies, as well as best practices, so that they can avoid violating the law.

Recently, there have been questions regarding income inequality that have fueled trends in questioning the wisdom and fairness of today’s executive compensation practice. In this course, we will dive into the latest ESG updates and review significant litigation highlights and case law, as well as examine recent compliance obligations and best practices.

This course is designed as a basic course for counsel with limited knowledge of franchise law and will introduce the basic legal considerations in franchising, whether you are representing a franchisor or a franchisee. We will cover the legal definition of a franchise and review the federal and state laws governing the franchise relationship. We will also explore where to find information regarding franchise brands, the dangers of becoming an accidental franchise, and some other legal considerations, beyond contract law, to keep in mind when representing the franchisor or the franchisee.

Contracting with the Federal Government is not like a business deal between two companies or a contract between a consumer and a commercial contractor. Thus, advising a Government contractor is not like advising another business client. This course will explore those differences. Among other topics, we will discuss the unique rights that the Government gives itself, what a contractor needs to know to protect itself, and what the risks are for a contractor that does not understand its legal obligations.

Estate planning and administration can be full of twists and turns.  Circumstances are further complicated by the emotions and grief over the loss of a loved one that family members and fiduciaries simultaneously experience. This course will help attorneys learn the key rules they need to know to ethically navigate the estate planning and administration process. After watching this course, attorneys will be able to competently assist their clients, protect themselves and minimize their chances of a malpractice claim, and navigate the complexities of estate planning and administration to ensure they ethically represent clients in this area of the law.

The courtroom may seem like a scary place, but it does not have to be. This course will discuss the evidentiary and admissibility rules that every attorney needs to know and will guide you through what to do during trial so that you have the best chance of getting your evidence admitted into the record. The goal of this course is to untangle the complicated world of evidence and admissibility rules and procedures, so that no matter how inexperienced you may be, you will feel at home in the courtroom.

With legal practice reforms enabling law firms to build their tech stacks, coupled with the accelerating rate of innovation, now more than ever, embracing technology is necessary for litigators to stay afloat in the era of digitalization. This 1-hour long CLE will explore how innovation is the reshaping litigation practice. We will identify the pain points and risks that litigators face and how legal technology solutions can streamline workflows throughout the lifecycle of a civil action.

Culture and religion are at the forefront of the United States’ diverse population. Individuals hold true to their personal religious and cultural belief systems, even during the times of separation and divorce. Oftentimes, these individuals feel marginalized through the legal separation and divorce proceedings because their religious and cultural identities are not recognized. How do we give voice to these cultural and religious identities, so that our clients’ needs, and desires are heard and met in the divorce process? How do we make a legal divorce work for them, when their marriage is not? This program will provide an overview of the mediation process, and how it serves as a tool when approaching gray areas of diversity in religion, tradition, and customs that courts may not address in separation or divorce. These gray areas cover the topics of parenting, family dynamics in assets and debts, custody, and support.

Social media is an ever-growing area that affects the practice of law, through attorney advertising, social networking, evidence collection, and monitoring. According to the Rules of Professional Conduct, attorneys must stay knowledgeable about anything that affects the practice of law, including social media. This course will touch on some of the basics of social media through various platforms. This course will also discuss the applicable rules of professional conduct that can be violated if attorneys are not careful regarding activity online. This course will address real-life case scenarios and examples of “what not to do”.

The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) has committed to moving forward with the process of establishing final regulations for governing the valuation of companies for employee stock ownership plan (ESOP) transactions. In this one-hour course we will provide an in-depth case study on a landmark trial victory that has had a direct impact on this new development. This course will focus on the ongoing efforts for recovering attorney’s fees and costs in the U.S. Court of Appeals. We will analyze how this effort to recover attorneys' fees and expenses increased pressure on the DOL to clarify ESOP valuations and related transactions for companies and fiduciaries.

Americans owe more than $1.75 trillion in student loan debt. The Supreme Court struck down the Biden Administration’s student loan relief plan on June 30, 2023. With repayments set to resume in a few short months, millions of student loan borrowers will be seeking legal advice about their options.This course will cover trending topics in student debt relief including the Biden Administration’s new actions to provide debt relief for student loan borrowers. Designed for consumer and debt relief attorneys, the program will explore repayment options, loan forgiveness programs and new guidelines on the discharge of student loan debt in bankruptcy.

This one hour presentation will help lawyers regain control of their email inboxes and enhance their communication practices to adhere with ethical standards through the utilization of available technologies. We will discuss various legal ethical standards that apply to controlling your email inbox, while discussing ways to organize and sort your inbox. This course will also provide demonstrations of different software programs for both intra-office and client communications.

Taking effective depositions is a crucial skill for litigators and trial lawyers, a skill that can be taught and learned. But how should deposition skills be taught? A lot goes into taking effective, powerful depositions and a lot goes into defending depositions. Effective depositions can be reduced to mastering certain skills, including conducting thorough due diligence before a deposition, thinking through and relying on your case theme during the deposition, securing all relevant information the witness has to offer, and directing the witness the provide you the information in the manner that you want it. This course will focus on strategies and exercises for teaching deposition skills that win cases.

Attorney Aaron Solomon and MBA and chaplain Meredith Parfet discuss the critical role of storytelling in communications, whether as a persuasive tool for lawyers, or as a component of crisis management for their clients. This course covers the cultural and cognitive role that storytelling plays, as well as ways it has been incorporated into legal pleadings, its excision from complaints under the Federal Rules, and its slow return. It then addresses the centrality of storytelling for clients, including such issues as the importance of controlling a public narrative, communicating with friends and family, and the danger of trying to stay totally silent. It presents concrete tools for finding and telling a story, such as a message map, stakeholder analysis, and message funnel. Finally, the course includes a case study of a high profile employment discrimination case and the role effective storytelling played in the outcome.

The art of jury selection, commonly known as voir dire, plays a pivotal role in shaping trial outcomes. This course delves into the essential do's and don'ts of voir dire, equipping legal professionals with the knowledge and skills to conduct effective jury selection.
The course begins by examining the foundations of voir dire under state and federal law, providing a thorough understanding of the legal framework that governs the process. Participants will explore key concepts, such as the constitutional rights of potential jurors, challenges for cause, and peremptory challenges, enabling them to navigate the complexities of voir dire with confidence.
This course will also address how to craft compelling questions, establish rapport with prospective jurors, and identify potential biases and prejudices. Additionally, techniques for active listening and non-verbal communication will be explored to enhance the effectiveness of voir dire. Whether you are a seasoned litigator or a budding attorney, this course will empower you to select the most favorable jury for your client's case and enhance your overall trial advocacy skills.

Whether you are a seasoned attorney, or just starting out, networking and growing your book of business is crucial in the private practice of law. In this presentation, we will discuss strategies for developing, growing, and utilizing a network of professionals while ensuring compliance with ethics rules. We will also discuss how to turn that network into trusted referral partners. We will discuss how to network to grow that book and avoid ethical lapses.

From FTX to NFTs, it seems like cryptocurrency and blockchain technology are at the top of news and culture. But which laws apply to this technology, and which government entities regulate this space? And what do businesses, investors, and consumers need to know to avoid legal pitfalls?

In this course, Andrew Lieb will discuss the emergence of restrictions on speech in public schools and whether those restrictions constitute actionable viewpoint discrimination. Can the government regulate what teachers and students wear and display in our public schools? When are time, place, and manner restrictions permissible and when are they discriminatory? Do policies like the “Don't Say Gay” rule, violate the First Amendment? This course will teach you how to analyze a viewpoint discrimination case and prepare you to fight to protect your clients' constitutional rights.

This presentation will discuss the causes of the current supply chain logjams, put them into historical context, and discuss some of the ways forward to help attendees better deal with supply chain partners, solve problems expeditiously, and be knowledgeable about commercial rights and responsibilities.

This one-hour course will provide attendees with a solid foundation for producing compelling written argument for oral argument that is backed by solid research. The course will also provide tips and tricks for producing clear and concise briefs and avoiding common pitfalls that often lead to losing a motion before setting foot in the courtroom.

This course explores the concept of civility and what that looks like in daily legal practice and times of crisis. We will use recent events to define and set the context for upholding civility in the legal profession. We will also review the ABA Model Rules of Professional Conduct relating to civility and sanctions for failure to uphold it, as well as relevant caselaw.