The American Bar Association Business Law Section Virtual Annual Meeting will be conducted Wednesday through Friday, Sept. 22-24, bringing together U.S. government officials and 4,500 business law professionals from around the world for three days.
More than 25 countries will be represented at the conference, which will offer more than 50 CLE programs and 140 practice-specific sessions. Government agencies represented will be from the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, Federal Reserve System, Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network.
This year’s online conference will feature a daily showcase program from 1 to 2:30 p.m. Showcase programs include:
• Wednesday
“Who is the Client? Ethics Issues in Structuring Startups and Representing Early-Stage Companies” — When founders retain a lawyer to form a business, who is the client: the founders themselves, the new entity or some combination of both? This program will explore the following ethical issues when working with a startup: lawyers receiving equity ownership in connection with representing a startup; advising growth companies on equity financings and other transactions; keeping the duties and interests of board members, shareholders and investors separate and distinct from the duties, obligations and interests of the company as the client; conflicts of interest and possible duties to third parties; and advising the private company preparing for sale.
• Thursday
“Supreme Court Business Review: Significant Business Cases and Trends in the United States Supreme Court, October Terms 2019 and 2020” —The U.S. Supreme Court decides several cases each year that have significant impact on businesses both in the United States and abroad. This program will look at some of the most important business-related cases and notable trends of the last two Supreme Court terms.
• Friday
“Advising Clients in Wind-Downs, Separations and ‘Business Divorce’: How to Use ADR and Other Tools to Steer Business Owners Through a Breakup of a Closely-Held Business” — This program will consist of a panel discussion on how to advise clients going through a breakup or wind-down of a closely-held company. Panelists will discuss pertinent process and substantive issues, including how to draft settlement documents to select alternative dispute resolution (ADR) as the sole or initial method of dispute resolution to avoid litigation arising from the settlement; which settlement agreement negotiation disputes might be more suited for mediation or arbitration; whether an independent subject matter expert, on substantive nonlegal issues, such as valuation or operations, as an adviser to the mediator might be helpful; winding down the business during the pandemic due to material adverse change; diverse earn-out and valuation date disputes; and how to enforce or challenge the outcome of the ADR process through judicial proceedings.
To register, visit www.americanbar.org/groups/business_law.
