The ABA 2024 Annual Meeting in Chicago July 31-Aug. 6 includes a full agenda of programming, networking opportunities and a diverse slate of CLEs focused on hot topics and professional development.
July 22, 2024 Top Legal News of the Week
Annual 2024: Democracy and legal icons take center stage
A first-ever Democracy Summit on Aug. 2 will be led by former U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security Jeh Johnson and former federal judge J. Michael Luttig, co-chairs of the ABA Task Force for American Democracy, which will release its new research on the state of U.S. democracy as well as tactical plans for those in the legal profession to defend it in their local areas. The summit was developed by ABA President Mary Smith as a centerpiece of her term. Notables also taking part include former Merck CEO Ken Frazier, former Hewlett-Packard CEO Carly Fiorina, Director-Counsel Emeritus Sherrilyn Ifill of the NAACP Legal Defense Fund, PBS senior correspondent Judy Woodruff, former Detroit Mayor Dennis Archer and former Monsanto general counsel Bill Ide.
Among the meeting headliners will be Judge Michelle Childs from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia, who will speak on July 31 at the Reception Honoring the Judiciary. U.S. Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco, the second-highest official of the Department of Justice, will be the keynote speaker at the General Assembly on Aug. 2. She will address challenges to the rule of law and pressing concerns facing the nation and the legal profession. Also at that event, civil rights pioneer Emmet Bondurant will receive the ABA Medal, the association’s highest honor.
Aug. 1 provides a taste of CLE offerings, with seven CLE in the City sessions held throughout the city on topics including legal ethics, the evolving gambling industry and artificial intelligence. More CLEs are on tap for Aug. 2 and 3, featuring other practice-related offerings and programs on safeguarding public officials, rediscovering state constitutional protections, a review of the recently completed Supreme Court term and more.
Additionally of note, the ABA will host an In-House Counsel Program on Aug. 2 that will feature seven general counsels from Fortune 500 corporations who will provide practical advice to outside lawyers seeking engagement as corporate clients. The esteemed panel will include Eleanor P. Cabrere, senior vice president, general counsel and corporate secretary, Navistar, Inc.; Regina Bynote Jones, senior vice president, general counsel and secretary, Archer-Daniels-Midland Company; Rick J. Kulevich, senior vice president, general counsel and corporate secretary, CDW Corporation; Gayle E. Littleton, executive vice president, chief legal officer and corporate secretary, Exelon Corporation; Robert S. Rivkin, senior vice president and chief legal officer, United Airlines, Inc.; Angela K. Steele, senior vice president and general counsel, McDonald’s Corporation; and Laura Stein, executive vice president of corporate & legal affairs, general counsel and corporate secretary, Mondelez International, Inc.
On the afternoon of Aug. 3, the Silver Gavel Awards for the Media and Arts will honor outstanding work in media and arts that in 2023 best advanced the public’s understanding of law. The first-place winners in nine categories include the Martin Scorsese film, “Killers of the Flower Moon.” That evening, the annual Thurgood Marshall Dinner will honor Eva Paterson, co-founder and former president of the Equal Justice Society. And on Aug. 4, five trailblazing female attorneys will be recognized with the 2024 Margaret Brent Award.
To cap off the conference, the House of Delegates will meet Aug. 5-6 to consider more than 40 policy proposals.