Volunteers and Items Sought for 2009 Harvest for the Homeless, Nov. 14

The YLD is seeking volunteers for the annual "Harvest for the Homeless" program, Nov. 14 at Ballard Spahr. We'll be collecting and sorting donations of mens', womens' and childrens' clothing, as well as non-perishable items. Once the items are sorted, we'll deliver them to local homeless shelters.

To date, the following firms have agreed to participate:

Feldman Shepherd

Post and Schell

Senior Law Center

Stradley Ronon Stevens & Young

Ciardi Ciardi & Astin

Schnader Harrison Segal & Lewis

Ballard Spahr

Rawle & Henderson

Petrelli Law

Reger Rizzo & Darnall

Law Offices of Thomas J. Wagner

Spector Roseman Kodroff & Willis

Drinker Biddle & Reath

Kolsby Gordon

Margolis Edelstein

We're looking for volunteers to assist with managing and collecting donations at their firms. We'll also need volunteers on the day of the event to help with sorting and distributing the donated items.

If you are interested in volunteering, please contact Carey Chopko at cchopko@feldmanshepherd.com or Joe Guzzardo at jguzzardo@regerlaw.com.

THIS SATURDAY, Nov. 7: Volunteers Needed for Mock Trial Camp

The YLD and Temple University's Legal Education and Participation Program (LEAP) are seeking volunteer attorneys to coach high school students at their mock trial camp, this Saturday, November 7, at Temple University's Beasley School of Law, and to act as judges at the annual John S. Bradway High School Mock Trial Competition, held in Philadelphia in January and February 2010.

The intensive, all-day camp prepares students for the Mock Trial Competition. Students participate in training sessions facilitated by attorney volunteers that couple brief lectures and small group sessions on various aspects of trial advocacy. Volunteers can choose from two sessions, 7:45 to 10:45 a.m. or 11:30 a.m. to 3:45 p.m., or commit to the entire day. More than 100 students are expected at this year's camp.

Held each spring, the John S. Bradford High School Mock Trial Competition pits teams of high school students playing the roles of lawyers and witnesses against one another in simulated trials. Approximately fifty Philadelphia public and parochial high school teams enter each year. Volunteer judges will commit to judge a three-hour round of competition during a weekday, weeknight or weekend between January 25 and February 27, 2010. Volunteers can choose to judge as many rounds as their schedules permit and no trial experience is required. Topics of previous competitions have involved hate crimes, constitutional issues and civil forfeitures in a criminal context. The top two teams represent the city in the state championship, the winner of which will represent Pennsylvania in the national competition, being held for the first time ever in Philadelphia in May 2010.

Lawyers and law students of all ages are invited to volunteer as both coaches and judges. To sign up or for more details, contact YLD members Joshu Harris at jlh67@georgetown.edu, Paul Kaufman at paul.kaufman2@usdoj.gov or Kristina Littman at kristina.littman@dbr.com.

Litigating More Effectively Using Technology CLE, Nov. 16

On Nov. 16 from 12:30-1:30 p.m., the YLD will present Litigating More Effectively Using Technology, a 1 substantive credit CLE co-sponsored by the Technology Committee and featuring the President and Vice President of James DeCrescenzo Reporting LLC, Trial Technologies Inc.

The future of litigation is here, and it is firmly grounded in technology. This course will teach you how use it to win your cases:

-Maximize the use of deposition testimony by making clips from deposition transcripts with synchronized audio and video depositions synchronized with transcripts.

-Use SMART Boards and scanned documents while deposing witnesses allowing you to create SuperDepositionsTM with a picture-in-picture presentation.

-Use technology during your settlement negotiations to increase your odds of settling for a favorable amount.

-Win over juries using computer generated exhibits such as 3D animations, interactive timelines and Fetal Strip Presentations.

-Utilize mock juries and Perception Analyzer Technology to test your trial strategies and help you make needed adjustments to your presentation before the final run at trial.

Featured panelists are James DeCrescenzo, Founder and President, James DeCrescenzo Reporting, LLC, Trial Technologies, Inc. and Vice President Debra Aisenstein, Esq.

The program has been approved for 1.0 Substantive CLE credit. Participants wishing to receive the CLE credit will be required to pay a fee of $38.50 for members of the Philadelphia Bar Association admitted for more than five years, and $33.50 for members of the Philadelphia Bar Association admitted for less than five years. Tuition price includes lunch. If you wish to register in advance CLICK HERE or call 1-800-932-4637.

THIS THURS.: Money Management 101: How to be Ahead of the Game for the Rest of Your Financial Future

This Thursday, Nov. 5, the Bar Association's Women in the Profession Public Service Task Force will present the concluding program of the two-part "Money Management 101: How To Be Ahead of the Game for the Rest of Your Financial Future" educational series from 12:15-1:15 p.m.

Expert panelist will be Daniel P. Foley from Delaware Valley Financial Group Companies will lecture on building wealth, investing and planning for retirement. Lunch is complimentary.

A question and answer session will follow the presentation.

There is no cost to the program and no CLE credits are available. Attendees can bring their own lunch or purchase from the Bar Association for $8.00. Interested parties can RSVP or learn more details by contacting Emily Marks, Co-Chair of the Task Force, at 215-851-9700 or emarks@kolsbygordon.com. Registration is also available online HERE.

THIS FRIDAY: Discovery: Where Most Cases are Won or Lost; the Rules, Tools and Practical Info You Need to Know

This Friday, Nov. 6, the Pennsylvania Bar Institute will present "Discovery: Where Most Cases are Won or Lost; the Rules, Tools and Practical Info You Need to Know" from 9 a.m. to 1:15 p.m. at the CLE Conference Center.

This intermediate level program will address discovery in general civil litigation using personal injury and class action cases as examples contrasting and comparing strategy from both the plaintiff and defense perspective. The panel of plaintiff and defense counsel and a judge will address Federal, State and local rules and customs as well as point out special issues that arise in different types of cases.

The course planner is John C. Grugan of Ballard Spahr LLP. Faculty consists of: Honorable Jacqueline F. Allen, Judicial Team Leader, 2009 Day Forward Major Jury Program, Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas; Paul D. Brandes, Villari Brandes & Kline PC; Peter J. Divon, Manager, Discovery Court, Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas; Kelly D. Eckel, Duane Morris LLP; Jennifer Diesing Falcey, Duane Morris LLP; Jason A. Leckerman, Ballard Spahr LLP; Ira Neil Richards, Trujillo Rodriguez & Richards, LLC; Maureen Rowan, Gallagher & Rowan, P.C.; and Burt M. Rublin, Ballard Spahr LLP.

Register HERE.

THIS FRIDAY: The Pursuit of Justice: 
the Murder of Vincent Chin and the Origins of a Civil Rights Movement

This Friday, Nov. 6, from 12-1:30 p.m., the Bar Association Office of Diversity and the Asian Pacific American Bar Association of PA will be sponsoring "The Pursuit of Justice: 
the Murder of Vincent Chin and the Origins of a Civil Rights Movement", a lunchtime CLE seminar delving into the murder of Vincent Chin in 1982 and its legal aftermath.

Vincent Chin's death marked a watershed in the civil rights movement in America and is considered the genesis of the Asian Pacific American civil rights movement. Chin, a Chinese American, was beaten to death in Detroit, Michigan with a baseball bat by a Chrysler plant superintendent and his stepson. The lenient sentencing of the two men generated public outrage, as the attack possessed many attributes consistent with hate crimes.

Through the reenactment of specific portions of the actual transcripts of the state and federal criminal trials, attorneys will observe and discuss the actual criminal trial, including direct and cross-examination of witnesses, witness preparation, and the interactions between lawyers, judges, parties and non-party witnesses. In addition, the reenactment will reveal how the lack of resources and possible prejudices might have led to lenient sentences for this brutal homicide. Also addressed will be the practical challenges and limitations faced by attorneys in developing a case and substantiating legal theories. Furthermore, the reenactment and subsequent dialogue will address the perceived limitations of criminal justice system and the civil rights laws, how this miscarriage of justice galvanized the Asian-American community, the numerous attempts to enact hate crimes legislation, and the unfinished business of this civil rights movement.

The following topics will be highlighted, among others:

-The legacy of the Vincent Chin case with respect to American jurisprudence with regarding its impact on both the administration of justice, in general and on the Asian-American community.

-The Vincent Chin case demonstrated the importance of prosecutorial participation in sentencing, as well as providing notice to victims and their families of court proceedings. In the years following the case, federal and state laws - including in Michigan - were enacted giving victims greater rights.

-The Vincent Chin case sparked discussions leading to the passage of hate crime laws, often citing the Chin case.

-The need for reform in sentencing and plea-bargaining. Within a month after the sentencing in the Chin case, the Wayne County Prosecutor announced a ban on manslaughter plea bargains in murder prosecutions. On the federal level, the Sentencing Reform Act was passed in 1984 in an effort to reduce disparities in sentencing.

Course Planners and Speakers are: John D. Huh, DLA Piper LLP; Y. Jae Kim,Panitch Schwarze Belisario & Nadel LLP; May Mon Post, The Post Law Firm, Attorneys at Law; and Stella M. Tsai, Archer & Greiner, P.C.

Speakers and Cast are: Nadeem Bezar, Kolsby, Gordon, Robin, Shore & Bezar; DaLesia Boyd, Woodcock Washburn; Melanie Bunker, Student (1L) at Villanova University School of Law; Wendella P. Fox, Director, U.S. Dept of Education, Office of Civil Rights; Carol A. Fritz, Discovery Consultant and Public Adjuster; Yanni Guo, Temple University James E. Beasley School of Law; Joyce K. Hackenbrach, Pepper Hamilton LLP; Nilmini Klur; Marisa H. Lattimore; Sayde J. Ladov, Chancellor, Philadelphia Bar Association; Sarah R. Lavelle, Pietragallo Gordon Alfano Bosick & Raspanti, LLP; Tsiwen Law, Law & Zaslow, LLC; Sophia Lee, Senior Counsel, Sunoco, Inc.; 

Maureen Rowley; John Savoth, Saltz Mongeluzzi Barrett & Bendesky

; Brian Sims, Staff Counsel, Philadelphia Bar Association; Divya Wallace, Pietragallo Gordon Alfano Bosick & Raspanti, LLP; and 
Su Ming Yeh, Pennsylvania Institutional Law Project.

The program has been approved for 1.5 Substantive CLE credit. Participants wishing to receive the CLE credit will be charged $48.50 for members of the Bar Association admitted for more than five years, and $43.50 for members of the Philadelphia Bar Association admitted for less than five years. Tuition fees include lunch. Register in advance HERE or call PBI at 1-800-932-4637.

SABA-Philadelphia 2009 Fall Reception, Nov. 19

On Thursday, Nov. 19, from 6:30-9 p.m., YLD members are invited to SABA-Philadelphia's 2009 Fall Reception at the Twelve Gates Gallery, 305 Cherry St.

Prof. Jamal J. Elias, Class of 1965 Term Professor, 
Department of Religious Studies, University of Pennsylvania, is the event's guest speaker. Light refreshments will be served.

Specializing in contemporary South Asian art, Twelve Gates Gallery is the first of its kind in the Philadelphia area. With a strong focus on art from the Indian Subcontinent, the gallery owners are dedicated to exhibiting artists with a reputation for unique work that follows in, as well as expands on, the rich history and culture of this area. Much more than just an art gallery, by hosting these discussions, poetry readings, film screenings and musical events, Twelve Gates aims to become a unique cultural center for the arts in Old City.

For planning purposes, those who plan to attend please RSVP to Mir Masud-Elias at mmasudelias@duanemorris.com by Monday, Nov. 16.

NEXT MONDAY: Selecting and Reducing the Cost of Health Insurance

Next Monday, Nov. 9, the Law Practice Management Division will present "Selecting and Reducing the Cost of Health Insurance," a lunchtime panel discussion on how to structure your health insurance program.

The program features: Manny D. Pokotilow. Managing Partner, Caesar, Rivise, Bernstein, Cohen & Pokotilow, Ltd.; Brian McLaughlin, Vice President of Employee Benefits at U.S.I. Affinity, Inc.; and Ray Keough, Vice President of Employee Benefits at U.S.I. Affinity, Inc. Panelists will discuss high deductible programs and employee funding options, among other health insurance-related topics.

CLICK HERE to register.

Four-Session Training Program for Attorneys Who Need to Develop New Business Begins Nov. 13

A four-session Training Program for Attorneys Who Need to Develop New Business will be presented by the Training Resource Group in conjunction with the Bar Association on Nov. 13, Nov. 20, Dec. 4 and Dec. 11.

Developing new business and retaining existing clients during these very challenging times will require you to tap into skill sets for which you have not been trained. Have you, or the attorneys in your firm, been spending so much time servicing existing clients, that there has not been time to learn business development skills? Have you or the attorneys in your firm ever taken a class on how to become a rainmaker?

After completing the Program, participants will have the mindset, skills, and confidence to create an individual business development plan, successfully network and create strategic partnerships, better cross sell current clients and build account relationships at a higher level. The program will focus on teaching tactics and techniques that will help participants develop new opportunities, and turn those opportunities into new clients.

The program is designed for attorneys who are now expected to develop business for themselves or their firms. You or members from your firm should attend if you are concerned about producing new rainmakers for your firm, increasing your own practice, and developing an essential skill set that was never taught in law school.

To register for this course, contact 215-320-4650. Registration is $795 and includes attendance at all four sessions as well as an individual coaching session and materials. The first, Nov. 13, session will be an introduction to building a network for business development and designing a business plan.

ABA Law Firm Marketing Strategies Conference, Nov. 12-13

On Nov. 12 and 13, at the Four Seasons Hotel in Philadelphia, the American Bar Association Law Practice Management Section will present the "ABA Law Firm Marketing Strategies Conference 2009", the nation’s most comprehensive two-day law firm marketing education program.

Attorneys, marketers and executives will hear from ABA's faculty of attorneys on how to differentiate themselves and their firms, including two keynote addresses from David Lat, Founding Editor of "Above the Law," speaking on image control, and John Osborn, President and CEO of BBDO, speaking on strategic branding.

Rates range from $795 to $995. Click here for more information and to register.