Fall Breakfast Program
Thursday, November 3, 2016
Boston College Club, 100 Federal Street
Boston, Massachusetts

Reassessing Arbitration in 2016: Making It Work for Business

About the Program:

Criticisms of consumer pre-dispute arbitration agreements have recently garnered much attention due to concerns about lack of true consent and unequal bargaining power. However, even in a business-to-business setting where such issues are not of significant concern, arbitration has often gotten a bad rap, a view often based on an anecdotal impression or a personal experience that perhaps should be revised in light of data comparing the time and expense of litigation versus arbitration. Moreover, a negative view of arbitration may also be based on a lack of familiarity with the important procedural and substantive developments and reforms in the field over the past several years. Our panelists will include experienced arbitrators, advocates and inside counsel who will lead a comprehensive discussion of arbitration in 2016, focusing on (a) real world experience and data regarding litigation and arbitration time tables and costs; (b) when arbitration makes sense and when it might not; and (c) a detailed overview of the most important tools available to business users to get the business-focused, speedy, efficient and economical arbitration that they want.

Moderator and Panelist:

• Conna A. Weiner, Esq., Mediator and Arbitrator, Conna Weiner ADR

Panelists:

• David L. Evans, Esq., Shareholder, Murphy & King; member of the Board of the American Arbitration Association
• Steven M. Greenspan, Esq., Vice President and Chief Litigation Counsel, United Technologies Corporation
• John S. Kiernan, Esq., Partner, Debevoise & Plimpton; Board Chair for the International Institute of Conflict Prevention and Resolution

Attendees at our 2013 fall breakfast program were treated to an engaging discussion of the most significant business decisions by the United States Supreme Court during its 2012-2013 term, including decisions on arbitration, employment law, and intellectual property. 

Moderator:
Traci L. Lovitt, Esquire, Partner-in-Charge Boston, Jones Day

Panelists: Mark C. Fleming, Esquire, Partner, WilmerHale
Maura T. Healey, Esquire, Chief of the Public Protection and Business and Labor Bureaus, Office of the Massachusetts Attorney General
John A. Shope, Esquire, Partner, Foley Hoag LLP
 Jeffrey F. Webb, Esquire, Partner, Ropes & Gray LLP

Our fall 2012 program dealt with the ever expanding universe of whistleblower statutes and what every business and business lawyer should know if confronted with a whistleblower claim.

Moderator:
Lynda H. Schwartz, CPA, CFF, CGMA, Founder, Upland Advisory 

Panelists: 
Peter M. Acton, Jr., Esquire, Director and Senior Counsel, Global Compliance, EMC Corporation 
Brent R. Austin, Esquire, Partner, Edwards Wildman Palmer LLP
Suzanne E. Durrell, Esquire, Principal, Durrell Law Office
Robert L. Ullmann, Esquire, Partner, Nutter McClennen & Fish LLP

In October 2011 NELF presented its fall breakfast seminar, bringing together a panel from the worlds of law, business, and the academy to discuss the economic and legal impacts of the rapid expansion of social media usage by businesses and individuals. The panelists discussed some of the new issues raised by the use of social media as well as strategies and policies for the successful management of social media by businesses.

Moderator:
Sara Jane Shanahan, Esquire, Partner, Sherin and Lodgen LLP

Panelists: 
Kristin Caplice, Esquire, Assistant General Counsel, Analog Devices, Inc.
Professor John Deighton, Harold M. Brierley Professor of Business Administration, Harvard Business School
David J. Goldstone, Esquire, Partner, Goodwin Procter LLP
Lori L. Roeser, Esquire, Associate General Counsel, Seyfarth Shaw LLP
C. Forbes Sargent III, Esquire, Partner, Sherin and Lodgen LLP

Moderator: 
John A. Shope, Esquire, Partner, Foley Hoag LLP

Panelists: 
S. Elaine McChesney, Esquire, Partner, Bingham McCutchen LLP
William W. Park, Esquire, Professor of Law, Boston University School of Law, President, The London Court of International Arbitration
Ben Robbins, Esquire, Senior Staff Attorney, New England Legal Foundation
Ellen J. Zucker, Esquire, Partner, Burns & Levinson LLP

Moderator: 
Brent L. Henry, Vice President and General Counsel, Partners HealthCare System, Inc. 

Panelists: 
Richard C. Lord, President and CEO, Associated Industries of Massachusetts  
Laura S. Peabody, Sr. Vice President, General Counsel, Harvard Pilgrim Health Care Inc.
Laurel Sweeney, Senior Director, Global Reimbursement Policy, Philips Healthcare
Stephen M. Weiner, Chair, National Health Law Practice, Mintz Levin Cohn Ferris Glovsky and Popeo, PC

The seminar, which was organized with the help of Terry Segal from Duane Morris, who served as moderator, addressed current trends in white-collar crime prosecution. 

Panelists:
David Bergers, who heads Boston’s SEC office
Michael Loucks, the acting U.S. Attorney in Boston 
Bob Popeo of Mintz Levin Cohn Ferris Glovsky & Popeo PC
Tom Dougherty of Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP
Diana K. Lloyd, at Choate, Hall & Stewart LLP

The panel discussion was moderated by Paul R. Gupta, Esq., Partner, Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe LLP of New York. The panelists were: Ian Craig, Esq., Partner, Field Fisher Waterhouse LLP of the United Kingdom; Mark Bentley, Esq., Vice President, Strategic Services, Iron Mountain, Inc.; Martha Mazzone, Esq., Vice President and Associate General Counsel, Fidelity Investments; Andrea Aptowitz, Esq., Associate General Counsel, PerkinElmer, Inc. and David W. Wetmore, Executive Director, Fraud Investigative & Dispute Services/Legal Services, Ernst & Young LLP.