CLE Credit: Six hours of general CLE credit and one hour of Attorney Professional Conduct credit approved by the Ohio Commission on Continuing Legal Education.
Day 1 – June 29, 2021 - Eastern Time
10:50am
Welcome and Introductions
Welcome and Introductions
- Jeff Klenk, Director, BRG
- Christopher Ritchie, Executive Managing Director, Huntington Bank
- Award Presentation
Champion of Class Action Justice
John Rabiej - Partnering with the James F. Humphreys Complex Litigation Center, George Washington University Law School
11:00am – 12:00pm
Keynote Session
The panel will address the status of judicial appointments of diverse lawyers to leadership positions in MDLs and class actions and the impact of the GW Inclusivity and Diversity Guidelines and Best Practices for Judges Appointing Lawyers to Leadership Positions. Three prominent and well experienced lawyers will relate their personal stories about obstacles they encountered over their long professional careers in seeking leadership roles. The panel will discuss progress made to date, where more improvement is required, and what measures need to be taken to ensure steady progress.
Keynote Session
The panel will address the status of judicial appointments of diverse lawyers to leadership positions in MDLs and class actions and the impact of the GW Inclusivity and Diversity Guidelines and Best Practices for Judges Appointing Lawyers to Leadership Positions. Three prominent and well experienced lawyers will relate their personal stories about obstacles they encountered over their long professional careers in seeking leadership roles. The panel will discuss progress made to date, where more improvement is required, and what measures need to be taken to ensure steady progress.
- John Rabiej, Partnering with the James F. Humphreys Complex Litigation Center, George Washington University Law School (Moderator)
- Ellen Relkin, Practice Group Chair, Weitz & Luxenberg, P.C.
- Rosemary Rivas, Partner, Gibbs Law Group, LLP
- Navan Ward, Jr., Principal, Beasley, Allen, Crow, Methvin, Portis and Miles, P.C.
12:00pm – 12:15pm
Break
Break
12:15pm – 1:15pm
Ethics: Fee-Sharing, Litigation Funding, and Class Actions
Rule 5.4 of the ABA Model Rules of Professional Conduct generally precludes lawyers from sharing fees with non-lawyers. How does this rule affect the ability of lawyers to utilize different methods of financing class actions and other cases, and how are some jurisdictions amending their rules to allow greater flexibility and innovation? What is the role of courts, including in class actions, to review or approve litigation funding arrangements? This panel will discuss these issues and explore recent developments.
Ethics: Fee-Sharing, Litigation Funding, and Class Actions
Rule 5.4 of the ABA Model Rules of Professional Conduct generally precludes lawyers from sharing fees with non-lawyers. How does this rule affect the ability of lawyers to utilize different methods of financing class actions and other cases, and how are some jurisdictions amending their rules to allow greater flexibility and innovation? What is the role of courts, including in class actions, to review or approve litigation funding arrangements? This panel will discuss these issues and explore recent developments.
- Liz Lambert, Senior Managing Director, Huntington Bank (Moderator)
- Dai Wai Chin Feman, Corporate Counsel, Parabellum Capital LLC
- Brent Landau, Global Managing Partner, Hausfeld, and Adjunct Professor of Law, University of Pennsylvania Carey Law School
- Ann Scott Timmer, Vice Chief Justice, Arizona Supreme Court
1:15pm – 2:15pm
Easily Found and Hard to Forget: Class Action and Forever Chemicals
Man-made per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances or “PFAS” are used in many industrial and consumer products. PFAS are increasingly regarded as a potential tort liability in part due to their behavior as “forever chemicals” with long-lived persistence in the environment and human body. Adding to the controversy, potential health hazards linked to PFAS are acknowledged, and PFAS are the source of diverse government and private approaches to address their remediation. Environmental groups claim that the industrial discharge of PFAS occurs at more than 2,000 sites throughout the US and PFAS are readily detectable at low levels in drinking water sources. Not surprisingly, PFAS are receiving growing regulatory and class action interest. The panel will discuss current issues affecting class actions in PFAS litigation including the shifts in federal and state regulation, capacity to detect contamination and exposure, and the expanding types of class claims related to PFAS exposures including the medical monitoring class.
Easily Found and Hard to Forget: Class Action and Forever Chemicals
Man-made per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances or “PFAS” are used in many industrial and consumer products. PFAS are increasingly regarded as a potential tort liability in part due to their behavior as “forever chemicals” with long-lived persistence in the environment and human body. Adding to the controversy, potential health hazards linked to PFAS are acknowledged, and PFAS are the source of diverse government and private approaches to address their remediation. Environmental groups claim that the industrial discharge of PFAS occurs at more than 2,000 sites throughout the US and PFAS are readily detectable at low levels in drinking water sources. Not surprisingly, PFAS are receiving growing regulatory and class action interest. The panel will discuss current issues affecting class actions in PFAS litigation including the shifts in federal and state regulation, capacity to detect contamination and exposure, and the expanding types of class claims related to PFAS exposures including the medical monitoring class.
- Robin Cantor, Managing Director, BRG (Moderator)
- Kate Campbell, Partner, Manko, Gold, Katcher & Fox
- Alexandra Dapolito Dunn, Partner, Baker Botts LLP and former Assistant Administrator for EPA's Office of Chemical Safety and Pollution Prevention
- Scott Summy, Head, Environmental Litigation Group, Baron & Budd, P.C.
2:15pm – 2:30pm
Closing Remarks
Closing Remarks
- Dubravka Tosic, Director, BRG
- Robyn Griffin, Senior Managing Director, Huntington Bank
Day 2 – June 30, 2021 - Eastern Time
10:50am
Welcome and Introductions
Welcome and Introductions
- Shireen Meer, Director, BRG
- Rose Kohles, Vice President, Huntington Bank
11:00am – 12:00pm
Class Actions in the UK
Class Actions are beginning to gain traction in the U.K. With the recent favorable decisions on Merricks v MasterCard from the Supreme Court, and Lloyd v Google from the Court of Appeals, it is no surprise that more class actions are being filed in the U.K. Our discussion will consider what these decisions mean for class actions in the U.K. This panel will also explore how these cases differ from the opt-out style class actions commonly found in the US, including an earlier class certification phase, the requirement of a notice and administration plan upon filing, and third party funding.
Class Actions in the UK
Class Actions are beginning to gain traction in the U.K. With the recent favorable decisions on Merricks v MasterCard from the Supreme Court, and Lloyd v Google from the Court of Appeals, it is no surprise that more class actions are being filed in the U.K. Our discussion will consider what these decisions mean for class actions in the U.K. This panel will also explore how these cases differ from the opt-out style class actions commonly found in the US, including an earlier class certification phase, the requirement of a notice and administration plan upon filing, and third party funding.
- Robyn Griffin, Senior Managing Director, Huntington Bank (Moderator)
- Nicola Chesaites, Partner, Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan, LLP
- David Kaplan, Executive Director & Vice Chairman, BRG
- Lauren McGeever, Director, Epiq Systems
- Lucy Rigby, Partner, Hausfeld
12:00pm – 12:15pm
Break
Break
12:15pm – 1:15pm
Drilling in the Data Oil Fields: What's New and Trending in Data Privacy Class Actions
Many scholars have argued that data, not oil, is the world’s most valuable resource, and like oil, it needs to be refined in order to make use of it as a resource. And consumer data is arguably the 21st century’s most lucrative product and resource. Unlike oil, consumer data is associated with human beings and the use of their personal information is safeguarded in a rapidly evolving regulatory landscape. This panel will discuss recent trends in class actions arising out the collection, use and sale of consumer data and the laws that protect consumers whose personal data is being drilled, refined and sold.
Drilling in the Data Oil Fields: What's New and Trending in Data Privacy Class Actions
Many scholars have argued that data, not oil, is the world’s most valuable resource, and like oil, it needs to be refined in order to make use of it as a resource. And consumer data is arguably the 21st century’s most lucrative product and resource. Unlike oil, consumer data is associated with human beings and the use of their personal information is safeguarded in a rapidly evolving regulatory landscape. This panel will discuss recent trends in class actions arising out the collection, use and sale of consumer data and the laws that protect consumers whose personal data is being drilled, refined and sold.
- Peggy Daley, Managing Director, BRG (Moderator)
- Kate M. Baxter-Kauf, Partner, Lockridge Grindal Nauen PLLP
- Eric J. Troutman, Partner, Squire Patton Boggs LLP
1:15pm – 2:15pm
"Pay-for-Delay" and Other Generic Pharmaceutical Antitrust Cases
This panel will review the landscape in “pay-for-delay” and other antitrust cases that allege anticompetitive conduct by pharmaceutical companies that delays entry of generic drugs to the market.
"Pay-for-Delay" and Other Generic Pharmaceutical Antitrust Cases
This panel will review the landscape in “pay-for-delay” and other antitrust cases that allege anticompetitive conduct by pharmaceutical companies that delays entry of generic drugs to the market.
- Rose Kohles, Vice President, Huntington Bank (Moderator)
- Justin Bernick, Partner, Hogan Lovells US LLP
- Scott Grzenczyk, Partner, Girard Sharp LLP
- Jeff Klenk, Director, Berkeley Research Group
2:15pm – 3:15pm
Interactive Session: Education During the COVID-19 Pandemic and Beyond – Impact on Schools, Students, Parents, Teachers, and Staff
This interactive discussion will address the profound impact COVID-19 has had on the U.S. educational system, and explore potential areas of future class action litigation. Ms. Castrey will draw from her first-hand experience as a Mediator and Arbitrator and a Board of Trustees member to explore the complex impact of COVID-19 on every facet of the U.S educational system, including schools and their students, teachers, and staff, and on working parents. We will discuss class action topics such as PPE and vaccination mandates, the particular impact on groups of students such as special education students, substitution of virtual coursework for in-class instruction, and insurance coverage for business interruption and event cancellations. Participants will be able to ask questions and share their views and experiences during this closing session.
Interactive Session: Education During the COVID-19 Pandemic and Beyond – Impact on Schools, Students, Parents, Teachers, and Staff
This interactive discussion will address the profound impact COVID-19 has had on the U.S. educational system, and explore potential areas of future class action litigation. Ms. Castrey will draw from her first-hand experience as a Mediator and Arbitrator and a Board of Trustees member to explore the complex impact of COVID-19 on every facet of the U.S educational system, including schools and their students, teachers, and staff, and on working parents. We will discuss class action topics such as PPE and vaccination mandates, the particular impact on groups of students such as special education students, substitution of virtual coursework for in-class instruction, and insurance coverage for business interruption and event cancellations. Participants will be able to ask questions and share their views and experiences during this closing session.
- Dubravka Tosic, Director, BRG (Moderator)
- Featured Speaker: Bonnie Castrey, Expert in Dispute Resolution and Vice President of the Board of Trustees of the Huntington Beach Union High School District
3:15pm – 3:30pm
Closing Remarks
Closing Remarks
- Robin Cantor, Managing Director, BRG
- Christopher Ritchie, Executive Managing Director, Huntington Bank