The Seventh Annual TIPS Section Conference was held in Baltimore, Maryland on April 27th-30th. This was the first in-person conference since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, and it was loaded with engaging CLEs, workshops, and networking events. TIPS Chair John McMeekin kicked off the conference Wednesday afternoon with opening remarks, which were immediately followed by the high-speed CLE “Nextgen Privacy—Going Beyond PHI and PII Cybersecurity and Data Privacy.” The esteemed panel addressed, among other things, the basics of biometric data, routine collection methods, and the associated legal and ethical implications. Wednesday’s CLEs also included a robust discussion on ethics in the course of mediation and an in-depth legal writing seminar led by Tenth Circuit Judge Robert Bachrach.
August 17, 2022 What's New at TIPS
Meeting Round-Up: TIPS Section Conference in Baltimore
By Jordan D. Howlette
TIPS hosted its Welcome Reception on Wednesday evening for all attendees, and Baltimore Judge Pamila Brown received the 2022 Liberty Achievement Award, which TIPS co-sponsors with Thomson Reuters. The Liberty Achievement Award honors lawyers and judges who take a leadership role in actively promoting diversity, equity, and inclusion in the legal profession through choices made in their careers and work performed in their public or private sector positions.
Thursday and Friday offered a wide range of fantastic CLEs. Thursday’s sessions included the “Tulsa Race Massacre Fire Insurance Claims—A Mini Trial Experience,” which covered the 1921 destruction of Black homes and businesses in the Greenwood District of Tulsa, Oklahoma, and invited attendees to serve as jurors in a mini-trial dispute over novel insurance coverage issues. Friday’s sessions began with “Ethical, Moral, and Legal Ways to Deal with Abusive Clients,” where panelists detailed abusive client behavior and the best ways to handle and address such behavior. Other CLE program topics included (i) temporary restraining orders and preliminary injunctions, (ii) emerging issues with autonomous transport claims, (iii) cutting edge regulatory issues with medical and recreational cannabis, (iv) recent developments concerning molestation claims, (v) the impacts on performance and provision of professional services in the remote environment, (vi) handling employment law issues and workers’ compensation claims for remote employees, (vii) trials in the age of COVID-19, (viii) corporate legal spending effect on diversity, (ix) teaching insurance law in law school, and (x) national animal law developments.
On Thursday evening, attendees enjoyed a gala event at the Maryland Science Center, which overlooks the Inner Harbor. The evening was filled with laughter and cheer as many TIPS members—new and old—reunited for the first time in person since the pandemic. On Friday evening, TIPS hosted a social dinner for members of the Leadership Academy and Council to network and break bread. Dinners and CLEs aside, conference attendees were also able to enjoy the amazing shopping, restaurants, sights, and attractions that the Baltimore Inner Harbor area offers.
If you were not able to travel to Baltimore for the 2022 Section Conference, we welcome you to start planning now to join us for the 2023 Section Conference in New York, which kicks off on May 3, 2023.