Montana CLE requirements

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!

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.

Domestic violence and sexual violence allegations against professional sports players have appeared frequently in the headlines in the last several years – as have accusations that player’s governing organizations have failed to address or prevent these incidents. This course will explore the various legal systems and mechanisms that might be at play when a professional athlete is accused of domestic violence, the various approaches that the player’s organizations have taken to address and prevent domestic violence within player’s contracts and collective bargaining agreements, and takeaways for attorneys who might become involved in these cases.

Networking and client outreach are key at many points in a legal career, from strengthening current client relationships to getting jobs to building your professional community. Yet many lawyers shy away from networking or worry about running afoul of ethical rules when talking to prospective clients. This CLE addresses key professional rules lawyers should follow when engaging in practice management activities and walks participants through the creation of a personalized plan designed to help them communicate with current and prospective clients in an effective and ethical way.

This 60 minute course discusses a variety of Mediation Strategies from selection to preparing for and conducting the mediation. This course will provide an in-depth discussion of the mediation process in order to provide a better understanding for the effective use of mediation as a tool.

During this session entitled “Bystander Intervention in Legal Workplaces”, the facilitator will cover examples of explicit and implicit bias and discuss what lawyers can do to intervene and promote equity and inclusion where they work.

Large law firms are constantly fending off a variety of ever-evolving electronic threats. Some are sophisticated, some not so much. They include electronic attacks, misplaced and stolen devices, everyday mistakes and an endless assortment of tricks and scams. Any of these can lead to serious consequences. In this program, we’ll discuss those threats and the consequences that can come with them, as well as measures to reduce the risk to organizational assets and prepare for the inevitable next attack.

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.

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.

Enterprising craft distillery owners cannot afford to be absinthe-minded when it comes to the thicket of federal, state, and local laws regulating distilleries. In this introduction to distillery law, we cover some of the major hurdles to launching and operating a craft distillery, including federal licensing, state and municipal permitting, labeling, and trademark. We also introduce hot-button issues and distill some best practices for proactive protection of distillery owners who are navigating the whiskey business of producing craft spirits.

Lawyers generate tons of paper. Receiving, reviewing, producing, sharing, filing, and retrieving paper documents has a huge cost to a practice, whether it is a solo or small firm, a large firm, a corporate legal department, or a government or public interest office. Fortunately, lawyers can save time and money by transitioning to a paperless office. In fact, during the pandemic, lawyers quickly realized that if their offices were not digitized – that is, every document scanned and available for viewing online – they were not able to function. This course will take users through the basics of becoming paperless and highlight the benefits of a digitized workflow. You’ve put it off for years. It’s time to learn how reducing the amount of paper in your practice will increase your productivity.

Until very recently, the NCAA prohibited student-athletes receiving compensation due to their “amateur” status. In this course, we examine landmark cases review the NCAA actions for potential antitrust law violations. We also look ahead to the future of college athletics in the new name, image, and likeness (“NIL”) era.

Employers often begin planning and preparing for decisions concerning compensation for employees, including raises and bonuses, in the second half of the year. As attorneys, we provide guidance to our clients to ensure that these compensation decisions are made in accordance with federal and state laws. As part of this process, the time is also ripe to assist clients with reevaluating pay practices in hot spot areas such as misclassification of non-exempt employees and independent contractors, equalize any pay disparities, and ensure that pay plans and compensation practices are consistent with state law. In this presentation, we will guide you through these end of year compensation considerations and equip you with the tools you need to assist your clients to comply with federal and state wage and hour laws and avoid costly mistakes.

Solo and small firm attorneys often face the familiar challenge of handling work demands during peak times. How can a small firm continue to offer excellent client service when there are only so many hours in the day? Small firms often look outside to contract attorneys, co-counsel, or refer work out in order to ensure client needs are met. This program will discuss the ethical considerations involved when working with contract attorneys, co-counsel relationships, and referral relationships.

Young and old attorneys can always learn something about Trademark Law. In this introduction to Trademarks, attorneys learn the basics of Trademark Law from prosecution of a Trademark to obtain one through litigation when a Trademark is infringed. The presentation is broken down into three sections. First, the results of an interview with a Trademark Examiner from the United States Patent and Trademark Office about her prosecution pet peeves is addressed. Second, the basics of Trademarks is presented. Third, a sample case on Trademark infringement is thoroughly analyzed and discussed.

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.

The Corporate Transparency Act is going to change dramatically the way that founders and investors in privately-held companies interact with each other. The CTA, once implemented, will require roughly 25 million U.S. companies to file a beneficial ownership report with FinCEN, the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network of the U.S. Treasury. Each beneficial ownership report will contained personally-identifiable information (PII) about each of the company’s “company applicants” and “beneficial owners.” FinCEN will maintain a database of beneficial ownership information that will be confidential, but accessible by specific law enforcement agencies pursuant to regulations that FinCEN will adopt. Understanding how the CTA will change the interactions between founders and investors will allow attorneys to modify the contractual relations between those parties in anticipation of the CTA coming into effect.

This course will provide an overview of trademarks including how to select, register, and maintain. The course will then discuss a number of recent court decisions relating to trademarks in the food, energy, and water sectors.

We as a society cannot eliminate bias without having uncomfortable conversations. However, it is a topic that cannot be ignored. If you desire to understand why bias exists, ways to reduce bias, and how to create an inclusive environment in your law firm and within the legal profession, this course is for you. In this course, we will learn about implicit bias and how it manifests itself in the legal profession, including in pay inequity. We will also discuss intersectionality, the theory that the presence of more than one affinity status can negatively impact an employee when he or she is subjected to bias. Then, we will review the benefits of effective anti-bias training and policies. Finally, we will detail strategies that lawyers and law firms can implement to cultivate a culture of diversity and inclusion and to eliminate bias.

The New Jersey judiciary handles tens of thousands of landlord-tenant cases every year. These cases touch many facets of life and law. Despite the volume and complexity of these cases, the practice of landlordtenant remained largely the same since the 1970s. The COVID-19 pandemic changed this. In August 2021, the New Jersey Supreme Court ordered sweeping changes to the administration and adjudication of landlord-tenant cases. This discussion addresses these dramatic changes, the policy reasons underlying them and best practices for practitioners new to the field.