Each year, the National LGBT Bar Association’s Lavender Law® Conference provides a challenging and rewarding learning experience for our attendees and presenters. To cater to our highly diverse demographic of practitioners, legal scholars, members of the judiciary, and law students, the latter of whom make up half of the conference attendees, both introductory and advanced content will be presented.
Workshop Schedule
In addition to day-long seminars focused on family law and transgender issues (the LGBT Family Law Institute and the Transgender Law Institute), the 2016 Conference will feature workshops on cutting edge legal issues affecting LGBT individuals, families, and the community.
For a complete list of workshops offered in 2015, please click here.
Current Workshop List
General Attendance Session One
Session One
Session Two
Session Three
General Attendance Session Two
Session Four
Session Five
General Attendance Session Three
General Attendance Session One
Thursday, August 4 | 9:00am – 10:30am
Reality Check! Voting Rights Are LGBT Rights
Location: Grand Ballroom
For years, voter suppression measures have sought to silence many groups of committed citizens, but for much of the public, the breaking point came during the 2012 Presidential Election. LGBT people, especially those who do not come from the privileged classes, are increasingly threatened by laws that prevent them from exercising their civic duty. A growing number of states have found more legally sophisticated ways of adopting measures that tremendously impact voters who are transgender. Eliminating early or flexible voting, requiring IDs for all voters, and changing residency requirements are just a few examples of the dogged policies put in place solely intended to block those in small groups from having a voice against the tyrannical outcry of those who possess power.
Speakers: Pam Karlan, Atiba Ellis, Liz Kennedy
Concurrent Workshops Session One
Thursday, August 4 | 10:45am – 12:15pm
Litigating Access to Public and Private Insurance Coverage for Gender Dysphoria
Location: Meeting Room 15This panel will present on current lawsuits in NY, PA and MN brought on behalf of transgender individuals (youth and adults) fighting for insurance coverage, public and private, for medically necessary health care for gender dysphoria. Litigation teams, made up of pro bono lawyers, non-profit legal offices, and a solo practitioner, will discuss: why litigation was a necessary effort; their choice of claims including Section 1557 of Affordable Care Act; and obstacles faced during litigation.Speakers: Kimberly Forte, Mary Eaton, Belkys Garcia, Jill Gaulding, Julie ChovanesExpanding Sex Discrimination Laws to Protect LGBT People
Location: Meeting Room 16
A critical piece of the fight for full legal equality for LGBT people is to secure judicial decisions and executive guidance that discrimination because of sexual orientation is sex discrimination. In recent years, district courts and executive agencies have greatly expanded protections for LGBT people in crucial areas including employment, housing, and healthcare. This panel will assess the current legal landscape, discuss its impact on employers and LGBT employees, and highlight the work of advocates and executive agencies to expand sex discrimination protections.
Speakers: Ria Tabacco Mar, Omar Gonzalez-Pagan, Justin Mulaire, Maya Rupert, Cameron Smith
Why BlackLivesMatter Matters to Us All
Location: Renaissance Ballroom West-A
The BlackLivesMatter movement is misunderstood by many. While some insist “All Lives Matter” that diminishes the treatment of the black community by the police, including fatal shootings, stop and frisk, etc. The LGBT community should realize we need to support BlackLivesMatter because 1) we are supporting our fellow LBGT racial minority brothers and sisters; 2) basic humanity and empathy for the treatment of our fellow citizens; 3) we have suffered and continue to suffer injustice because of our sexual orientation and gender identity and should support and stand with others who also suffer injustice.
Speakers: Lawrence Felzer, Ian Thompson, Stacey Long, Pastor Mitchell Jones, Isaiah Wilson
Cybersecurity
Location: Meeting Room 10
Businesses of all types face an ever-increasing threat that personal information they process or maintain may be improperly disclosed as the result of a data leak or criminal cyber-attack. This diverse panel will begin with the ACC Foundation State of Cybersecurity Report. Panelists will then offer practical information for those who suffer such incidents, including the role of in-house counsel, timely updates on hot topics such as the extent of FTC’s authority to regulate cybersecurity, and the fast-developing law relating to data breach liabilities.
Speakers: Jinna Bulava, Engels Tejeda, Kim Phan, Benjamin Williams, Jared Ho
State of the Legal Profession: “One More” On the Road to Redemption?
Location: Meeting Room 8
The panel will discuss the results of a recent national survey conducted by the Hazelden Betty Ford Foundation and the ABA Commission on Lawyer Assistance Programs on the prevalence of substance abuse, and depression and anxiety in the legal profession. Panelists will highlight how to initiate, inform and guide a systems approach to increasing attorney wellness, competence and ethical behavior. Of particular note, the speakers will also outline ways in which the LGBT community can help foster some of the necessary changes for a healthier and happier legal profession.
Speakers: Eduardo Juarez, Paula Kohut, Denise Perme
Junior Scholar Forum
Location: Meeting Room 5
(CLE Not Applicable for this Workshop)This panel will give junior, up-and-coming academic scholars the opportunity to present their work.
Speakers: Courtney Joslin, Andrew Gilden
Criminalization of Sex and Sexuality: Working with and Empowering Communities
Location: Meeting Room 4
The criminal system has attempted to restrain sex and sexuality for centuries. From sodomy to solicitation, these laws have been disproportionately enforced against LGBTQ people of color. The speakers will review data on the disproportionate impact of HIV and sex work criminalization. Speakers will also discuss the challenges in working with and empowering intersecting marginalized communities (LGBTQ, people of color, HIV-affected, immigrants, English language learners, sex workers, etc.) from the perspectives of lawyers, community organizers, researchers and activists.
Speakers: Amira Hasenbush, Richard Saenz, Isa Noyola, Kate D’Adamo
CLE Materials 1, CLE Materials 2, CLE Materials 3, CLE Materials 4
Realizing the Promise of Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis (PrEP) for Everyone
Location: Meeting Room 3
PrEP can virtually eliminate the risk of contracting HIV, without condom use, which is revolutionizing HIV prevention and opening the door to greater sexual freedom and empowerment. But there are many challenges to realizing this promise, particularly for young gay and bisexual men, transgender people, persons of color and sex workers. The workshop will explore issues of insurance coverage, potential discrimination, PrEP for minors, privacy safeguards for youth, and barriers posed by laws against sex work. We will discuss creative ways to work with or challenge existing laws.
Speakers: Daniel Bruner, Michelle Wetzel, Terrance Moore, Jason Burda
Transgender Law in Employment and Employee Benefits
Location: Meeting Room 2
The panel will address the impact the EEOC’s ruling in Macy v Holder is having on Federal Court jurisprudence on transgender discrimination claims. It will address the rapidly evolving employee benefits law of transgender individuals claiming transition related care under employer plans under both Title VII and the Affordable Care Act. The panel will also address, proactive steps employers have taken to model best practices in this arena, and the ability of state and federal religious freedom laws to act as an affirmative defense to discrimination claims.
Speakers: Samuel Schwartz-Fenwick, Jacob Richards, Julie Wilensky, Kylie Byron
Concurrent Workshops Session Two
Thursday, August 4 | 2:00pm – 3:30pm
Alternatives to Litigation: Working with Congress to Change the Law and Influence Regulators
Location: Meeting Room 7
The panel will be composed of present Congressional Hill staff and former staff who are now lobbyists. Panelists will provide examples of strategies to work with Congress to provide law firm clients with successful resolution of legal conflicts, from providing political cover to actual statutory changes in the law.
Speakers: Peter Leon, Shawn Chang, Kenneth DeGraff, Julie Tagen, Bill Murat
Opening Access to Transition Related Healthcare
Location: Meeting Room 16
This panel presents an overview of the evolving legal landscape of insurance coverage for transition-related care and general access to health care for transgender people throughout the United States. Panelists will explore the myriad medical needs of persons seeking medical treatment for gender dysphoria, and discuss the current regulatory developments as well as recent litigation strategies employed in federal courts. In addition to discussing the recently finalized Affordable Care Act 1557 regulations, panelists will also explore how employment nondiscrimination, disability and mental health parity, and public benefits laws can be used to break down barriers to access.
Speakers: Ezra Young, Omar Gonzalez-Pagan, Jamison Green, Ma’ayan Anafi, Krisztina Szabo, David Roman
We Just Need to Pee: Countering “Bathroom Panic” in Legislatures and Court
Location: Meeting Room 15
This workshop will discuss bills targeting the transgender and intersex communities that have dominated state legislatures and public discourse over the past year. Legislative lawyers and experts on legal issues impacting transgender and intersex individuals will discuss strategies for defeating these bills in the legislature and legal theories for challenging bills that become law. Legal statutes and constitutional provisions referenced: Equal Protection Clause; Title IX; Title; VII; and Section 1557 of ACA
Speakers: Chase Strangio, Alesdair Ittelson, Cathryn Oakley
The EEOC’s Impact on LGBT Workers Rights During the Obama Administration
Location: Meeting Room 10/11
As the federal agency authorized by Congress to enforce and interpret Title VII, the EEOC has recognized that Title VII’s sex discrimination prohibition covers discrimination based on sexual orientation (Baldwin 2015) and gender identity or expression (Macy 2012). This panel of top EEOC officials will discuss retrospectively and prospectively the agency’s coordinated efforts to stop and remedy LGBT-based employment discrimination: from the EEOC’s LGBT inclusive Strategic Plan, federal sector enforcement, conciliation and litigation, to training and outreach.
Speakers: Eduardo Juarez, Carlton Hadden, P. David Lopez, Chai Feldblum
A Practical Guide to Legal Clinics
Location: Meeting Room 8/9
(CLE Ethics Credit Applicable for this Workshop)Members of the LGBT community are much more likely than the general population to experience poverty, especially those who are bi and trans*, HIV-positive, and people of color. Many are also wary of being stigmatized when seeking legal help. Legal clinics specifically serving our communities are a crucial way to increase access to legal services. Panelists will provide insight into how they successfully set up legal clinics using a variety of models and partnerships, in different communities. Participants will learn how to create and sustain a legal clinic in their communities.
Speakers: Kerene Moore, Amy Nelson, Becky Moskowitz, Tyrone Hanley, Judge Mark Scurti
Polyamory and the Law
Location: Meeting Room 5
As the LGBTQ movement moves into the post-Obergefell era, new questions arise about legal conceptions of family and relationship recognition advocacy. Simultaneously, polyamory is gaining traction and visibility through a burgeoning movement and a vibrant community. This panel will introduce polyamory as an exciting forefront of the movement, including family law, civil rights and discrimination law, and criminal law perspectives, and personal testimony from attorneys who both work in the field of polyamorous legal advocacy and are themselves out and open as polyamorous.
Speakers: Diana Adams, Andy Izenson, Mat Dos Santos, William Singer
CLE Materials 1, CLE Materials 2, CLE Materials 3, CLE Materials 4, CLE Materials 5
Teaching Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity
Location: Meeting Room 4
(CLE Not Applicable for this Workshop)This workshop is intended for individuals who teach, have taught, or will teach Sexual Orientation/Gender Identity courses in law school or undergraduate settings. The workshop will be structured as a facilitated roundtable discussion, in which participants will share syllabi and course materials on a voluntary basis, and will discuss the challenges of building a syllabus for a course in a highly fluid area of law. The workshop welcomes faculty regardless of tenurial status, and especially invites adjuncts to join our discussion.
Speakers: Leonore Carpenter
And Justice For All: LGBT Immigrants’ Rights Workshop
Location: Renaissance Ballroom West-A
Recent landmark Supreme Court decisions uniquely impact on the lives of LGBT immigrants. Despite attention to cases from Windsor to Obergefell, and most recently U.S. v. Texas, many LGBT immigrants and their advocates remain perplexed by the practical effects of these decisions on immigration law and policy. The workshop surveys the state of rights for LGBT asylum seekers, family-based immigrants, those seeking deferred action from deportation, and bias in LGBT-related relief and enforcement. Speakers will also forecast LGBT immigrants’ rights into the next Administration.
Speakers: Cori Alonso-Yoder, Nishan Bhaumik, Sharita Gruberg, Glenn Magpantay, Congresswoman Grace Meng, Cindi Reyes
Enforcing Federal Civil Rights of LGBT People in the Criminal Justice Context
Location: Meeting Room 2
Enforcing the rights of LGBT individuals in the criminal justice context is a top priority of Civil Rights Division of the Department of Justice. The Division’s recent efforts have focused on reforming institutions like law enforcement agencies, prisons, jails, and juvenile justice agencies, as well as prosecuting hate crimes committed against LGBT people. This workshop will highlight these efforts and the legal authorities under which the Division acts. Panelists include current Division attorneys and members of the Division’s LGBTI Working Group who have worked on these issues.
Speakers: Alyssa Lareau, Julie Abbate, Paul Killebrew, Nicholas Durham
CLE Materials 1, CLE Materials 2, CLE Materials 3, CLE Materials 4, CLE Materials 5, CLE Materials 6, CLE Materials 7
Concurrent Workshops Session Three
Thursday, August 4 | 3:45pm – 5:15pm
LGBTQ Families Beyond Marriage Equality!
Location: Meeting Room 16
(CLE Not Applicable for this Workshop)LGBTQ families continue to evolve and defy traditional relationship stereotypes, and have created their own normal, whether by their physical living arrangements or through contractual agreements. Our community continues to test the definitions of what is normal for contemporary families. We will explore how our practices are changing and evolving. More and more, we are advising clients through the transitioning of a partner or child, multi-parent arrangements and agreements, adoptions, estate planning, and even polyamorous partners living together and raising children.
Speakers: Wendy Hartmann, William Singer, Diana Adams, Jodi Argentino, Darren Spedale, Andy Izenson
Estate Planning Tools and Strategies for Low-Income LGBT Elders
Location: Meeting Room 15
This session will review the standard forms for estate planning and how they can be utilized and modified to serve the specific needs of LGBT elders. The session will review: a clinic program offered by Whitman Walker Health Legal Services for securing Healthcare Power of Attorney. It will also discuss a strategy for elders who have no one to appoint as their agent for power of attorney. The session will review alternatives (such as joint accounts and pooled trusts) to managing a client’s limited resources at end of life and simplify resolution of their estate after death.
Speakers: Murray Scheel, Allison Dowling, Joan Burda, Paula Kohut
CLE Materials 1, CLE Materials 2, CLE Materials 3, CLE Materials 4, CLE Materials 5
Healthcare Equality for LGBTI People: Recent Victories & Future Directions
Location: Meeting Room 10/11
This panel explores the state of LGBTI healthcare equality, recent victories, and the challenges that remain. We will discuss developments under Section 1557 of the ACA, including the new HHS regulations and pending court cases. We will also discuss a creative approach in the District of Columbia to lack of clinical and cultural competency of healthcare providers. The panel also will explore the need for new frameworks for addressing gender and medicine – and how advocates for transgender and intersex communities can craft language and arguments that are beneficial for all.
Speakers: Daniel Bruner, Shannon Minter, Hector Vargas, Katherine Barrett Wiik, Alesdair Ittelson, M. Dru Levasseur, Sunu Chandy
The Overcriminalization of LGBT/HIV People
Location: Meeting Room 8/9
The workshop will examine how overcriminalization of LGBT/HIV people adversely affect our community including: How incarceration disproportionality impacts our community and the long term impact of being “formerly incarcerated”, How criminalizing drug use/syringe access impacts the risk of transferring the HIV virus in our community, How sex offender registries and notification laws harm our community, including our youth. It will include an overview of the work of the LGBT/HIV Federal Criminal Justice Working Group.
Speakers: Tyrone Hanley, Richard Saenz, Meghan Maury
CLE Materials 1, CLE Materials 2, CLE Materials 3, CLE Materials 4
Constitutional Rights in US Territories
Location: Meeting Room 5
Over 4 million people live in America’s territories. Yet, for over a century, the Supreme Court has not fully answered one question: What are the constitutional rights of the people living in the US territories? Recent legal battles have cast a spotlight on how unsettled the rights of people living in the territories continue to be. Panelists in this workshop, all counsel for parties or amici in territorial cases, will discuss these legal battles and share some insight on the legal framework affecting the rights of people in the U.S. territories.
Speakers: Omar Gonzalez-Pagan, Adriel Cepeda Derieux, Neil Weare
LGBTQ and Disabled: The Intersection and Issues of LGBTQ and Disability Law
Location: Meeting Room 4
This workshop aims to discuss legal issues affecting LGBTQ people with disabilities. These include barriers faced by LGBTQ people with disabilities, including intersectional discrimination; barriers to self-determination, employment, reasonable accommodations; and lack of access to services and representation. It will also discuss the question of whether disability discrimination laws, such as the ADA, should apply to people diagnosed with gender dysphoria. The panel will also discuss the effects and impact of current disability laws and policies on the LGBTQ community.
Speakers: Victoria Rodriguez-Roldan, Samantha Crane, Ma’ayan Anafi
LGBTQ Domestic Violence: Out of the Closets and Building a Movement
Location: Meeting Room 3
Domestic violence (DV) in LGBTQ Communities is as common as or more common than among non-LGBT individuals. However, bias and misconceptions about LGBTQ survivors result in an invisibility of the issue and victimization by the legal process. This training will examine ABA advocacy to provide enhanced training to attorneys across the country, the mobilization of DV providers to address anti-LGBT bias, the implementation of the landmark legislation the VAWA, as well as the direct legal representation of LGBTQ survivors across the multitude of related issues.
Speakers: Terra Russell Slavin, Debra Murphy, Anya Lynn-Alesker, Mieko Failey, Hon. Christopher Bowen
LGBTQ Information Privacy
Location: Meeting Room 2
This workshop will debate the importance of the right to privacy to LGBTQ individuals and the many ways in which the privacy of queer individuals is invaded by government and private action. Such intrusions include anti-transgender bathroom bills, restrictive requirements for changing gender markers on identification documents, restrictive prison policies, as well as ad hoc outings. After outlining the privacy problems faced by many queer individuals, the workshop will discuss legal efforts to change the law including statutory revisions and constitutional challenges.
Speakers: Scott Skinner-Thompson, Chase Strangio, Chinyere Ezie, Craig Konnoth
General Attendance Session Two
Friday, August 5 | 9:00am – 10:30am
Separate, Not Equal: Bathrooms and Bigots
Location: Grand Ballroom
The honeymoon is over. While we paused to celebrate a tremendous victory in 2015, those who oppose equal rights for all citizens went after our most vulnerable population – transgender children. The swift and dangerous action of states like North Carolina, Mississippi, and Tennessee stunned the nation; while corporations, celebrities, professional sports teams, and political leaders on both sides of the aisle speak out against the vilification of the LGBT community, these bills merely scratch the surface. There are many other pending cases across the country involving claims to state and federal laws that parallel the speech used against civil rights in the 1950s and 60s.
Speakers: M. Dru Levasseur, Jennifer Levi, Kylar Broadus, Hon. Phyllis Frye
Concurrent Workshops Session Four
Friday, August 5 | 10:45am – 12:15pm
The Legal Eco-System at Work – “How” is the New “What”
Location: Meeting Room 4
The legal industry is changing rapidly, with clients demanding more for less. This panel addresses the fundamental shift resulting in increased segmentation caused by market pressures, technical innovation, change management for attorneys and how to adapt to the evolving legal ecosystem affecting the delivery of legal services. Seasoned professionals and new lawyers alike will be affected by changes in our profession over the next decade. Join us for a lively discussion of cutting-edge developments in the industry and how you can ethically make them benefit your practice.
Speakers: Kenneth Sanchez, Jen Olmsted, William Lopez, Laura Maechtlen, Jacquie Champagne, Kimberly Stein
Legal Services Caucus
Location: Meeting Room 16
(CLE Not Applicable for this Workshop)This session will discuss how we can use community lawyering to serve LGBT people living in poverty. There will be an interactive discussion about different models such as medical-legal partnerships serving transgender patients and joint clinics with LGBT Centers or other community organizations.
Speakers: Lisa Cisneros
Pathways to the Judiciary
Location: Meeting Room 15
(CLE Ethics Credit Applicable for this Workshop)Each year, members of the judiciary come together to discuss their career trajectory and provide advice to young professionals interested in ascending the bench. Panelists represent a diverse array of judges. Panelists will discuss both the appointed and elected processes for judges in different jurisdictions as well as ethical guidelines or standards associated with panelists’ paths to becoming judges or retaining their positions. Additionally, challenges of being an openly LGBT judge, arising especially out of judicial ethics codes, will be a focus as well. Members of the International Association of LGBT Judges will be available during and afer the session to talk further with attendees.
Speakers: Hon. Victoria Kolakowski, Hon. Gary Cohen, Hon. Alexander Fernandez, Hon. Linda Giles, Hon. Mark Scurti, Hon. Phyllis Frye
Protecting LGBT Workers: The Growing Importance of Title VII
Location: Meeting Room 10/11
Same-sex couples now have the freedom to marry in all states, but discrimination against LGBT workers continues. While the EEOC and increasing numbers of federal courts have recognized that Title VII protects workers from discrimination based on gender identity and sexual orientation, state and local laws are uneven (and some even mandate discrimination against LGBT workers). Join experienced practitioners to discuss recent developments in Title VII law in the EEOC and the courts, the rights of LGBT people in the workplace, and employee benefits issues affecting LGBT employees.
Speakers: Christopher Stoll, Julie Wilensky, Justin Mulaire, Greg Nevin
Papers Please! Advocacy in Complex Transgender Identity Document Cases
Location: Meeting Room 8/9
In the last several years we have seen substantial improvement in policies for correcting gender markers on state and federal identity documents, but for a variety of policy, legal, and bureaucratic reasons many trans individuals still lack identification that matches their gender identity. Presenters include practitioners and policy advocates who will provide an update and survey of the current policy landscape for identity documents, advocacy in complex name and gender marker cases, and potential ramifications on federal identity document policies from the 2016 elections.
Speakers: Olivia Hunt, Katie Fletcher, Alex Weaver, Arli Christian
Leaning Into the Backlash with Allies
Location: Renaissance Ballroom West A
An ally is not just a sympathetic listener who supports from behind the scenes, but is someone who proactively advocates for change to improve the quality of life for LGBT people within their organization, their profession, and their lives. It is critical for allies to find/enlist other allies. The brave HR champions in many organizations very much need the help of straight people to keep the organization competitive and progressing on protections that are important to LGBT people. Progress towards more equal protections benefits not only LGBT people, but makes the entire organization more inclusive. Straight allies are more likely to find where resistance to such progress exists, and typically realize that lack of knowledge is a primary problem. Straight allies armed with advocacy and some-self education can reduce resistance, and importantly can identify and enlist new allies.
Speakers: Theodore Furman, Kylie Byron, Katrina Quicker, Michelle Waites, Walter Sutton, Leah Lorber
LGBT Aging and the Law: Take Charge of Aging!
Location: Meeting Room 3
Aging presents challenges for LGBT individuals, not least of which are the legal challenges they may have face regarding public benefits: Medicare Parts A, B and D; Social Security benefits (disability, retirement); Medicaid; Qualified Medicare Beneficiary; Low Income Subsidy for Medicare Part D; long term care (nursing home); and veterans benefits. This program will provide participants with an overview of the federal and state programs regarding these matters, and recent legal developments regarding benefits for same-sex spouses.
Speakers: Murray Scheel, Karen Loewy, Aaron Tax, Hon. Rosalyn Richter
The Immigration Cage: The Detention Crisis Facing LGBTQ/H Immigrants
Location: Meeting Room 2
The U.S. detains thousands of immigrants daily including LGBT asylum seekers. Many are detained for minor crimes or because they lack identity documents. The Administration has acknowledged their vulnerabilities by creating policies to address them. This panel will describe the reality facing LGBT detainees, including physical abuse, prolonged use of solitary confinement, and daily harassment. We will also examine the ways that a poor medical care exacerbates the other problems. Finally, we will evaluate the Administration’s efforts and make recommendations for the future.
Speakers: Keren Zwick, Sharita Gruberg, Aaron Morris, Isa Noyola
BiLaws: Regulatory Advocacy for Disparities Facing Bisexual People
Location: Meeting Room 5
Bisexual communities face disparities in numerous areas including physical and mental health, domestic and intimate partner violence, immigration, employment, and education. This panel will address recent and future regulatory advocacy addressing these disparities.
Speakers: Heron Greenesmith, Meghan Maury, Stacey Long Simmons, Lauren Beach
CLE Materials 1, CLE Materials 2, CLE Materials 3, CLE Materials 4, CLE Materials 5, CLE Materials 6, CLE Materials 7, CLE Materials 8
Concurrent Workshops Session Five
Friday, August 5 | 2:00pm – 3:30pm
Creating Successful LGBT Affinity Groups
Location: Meeting Room 15
The importance of safe spaces in the work environment for LGBTQ individuals cannot be overstated, especially in light of the current environment. Please join us for a discussion panel that will focus on creating successful affinity groups within organizations.
Speakers: Dale Noll, Jesse Loffler, Noah Kressler, John Owen, Richard Milstein, Michelle Brand
Managing Partners
Location: Meeting Room 16
Managing partners are often among the most senior and well-respected attorneys in law firms. Along with the title comes diverse and intricate responsibilities ranging from overseeing the firm’s finances to managing committees and developing goals and strategies for employees. Managing partners from some of the largest firms in the United States will discuss their role within the organization as well as the professional path they took to achieve their current title.
Speakers: Richard Segal, Keith Watts, David Wochner
Ending Conversion Therapy: Life Stories & Legal Strategies
Location: Renaissance Ballroom West A
Few practices hurt LGBT people more than attempts to change their sexual orientation or gender identity. But professionals continue to subject LGBT people to conversion therapy, even though these practices have been condemned by every major medical and mental health organization in the country. This panel of experts in the movement to end conversion therapy, including a law student who will share his story of survival, will discuss strategies to end these practices, including the historic federal consumer fraud complaint recently filed against a major conversion therapy provider.
Speakers: Carolyn Reyes, Sarah Swain, David Dinielli, Ryan Kendall, Xavier Persad
New Frontiers in Adoption & Fostering Agreements
Location: Meeting Room 10/11
LGBT parents are on the vanguard of cobbling together agreements in foster care and adoption. Promises about visitation are legally binding in many states, and ones that support children’s ethnic or racial identity are not. Social media allow communication regardless of what’s in a Post Adoption Contact Agreement. This panel explores how lawyers can counsel their clients and negotiate agreements that work socially, emotionally and legally over the years, addressing theory, best practices and specific terms of both cutting edge and common agreements in adoption and foster care.
Speakers: Martha Ertman, Marla Allisan, Michelle Klass McDonald
Diversity & Inclusion: How Corporate Social Responsibility is Changing the Game
Location: Meeting Room 8/9
(CLE Not Applicable for this Workshop)CSR encompasses so many different approaches to “doing good while doing well”, including goals related to sustainability, community engagement, philanthropy, ethical sourcing, and diversity and inclusion. Attendees will explore how businesses can and are using CSR to take D&I deeper and higher, including exploring how the CSR platform can reframe discussions about transgender rights, LGBT health benefits, pro bono work targeting transgender or LGBT legal battles, and leveraging Employee Resource Networks (ERNs) (or Affinity Groups) to drive the processes.
Speakers: Joe Vallo, Joey White, Theodore Furman, Jose Rivera Alers, Michelle Peak
When Equality Principles Intersect: The Convergence of LGBT & Repro Rights
Location: Meeting Room 5
This panel will discuss recent major cases,such as Obergefell, Whole Woman’s Health, and Zubik, and how advocates from the LGBT and reproductive rights movements have participated in them. We will examine emerging issues in which these interests converge, such as the provision of health care for LGBT persons in reproductive clinics. We will see how an intersectional approach that literally brings our two movements together in the same clinical spaces can strengthen both communities.
Speakers: Caroline Sacerdote, Omar Gonzalez-Pagan, Julianna Gonen, Ma’ayan Anafi, Janelle Yamarick
Update on Transgender Service
Location: Meeting Room 4
This workshop will discuss the procedures for requesting a name change to a veteran’s DD-214 and legal arguments supporting such a request. It will also discuss recent developments on this issue.
Speakers: Steve Lessard, Scott Thompson, Evan Young
The Next Frontier: Presumptions and Parentage – Don’t Assume Anything!
Location: Meeting Room 3
While Obergefell opened the door to marriage equality, it left many questions unanswered. Marriage doesn’t change everything, and navigating family law issues for LGBT families remains very complex. Many courts are refusing to apply some of the presumptions of marriage to same-sex couples. What additional steps should LGBT clients take to protect parent-child relationships? What alternative legal doctrines are available to LGBT parents requesting custody or parenting time? What can practitioners do to ensure equitable distribution of property in a same-sex divorce? This roundtable discussion will address these issues and more: Partnership Agreements;v re and Post Nuptials; Equitable Parent Doctrine & Defacto Parentage; Issues – Parentage Judgments; Stepparent and Second Parent Adoptions; Donor Agreements and Assisted Reproductive Technology (ART); Divorce Equality – Property Distribution – What counts as Marital Property? Can Separate Property be Invaded? Equitable tacking?; and Custody & Standing – Unmarried Couples with children.
Speakers: Kerene Moore, Karen Langsley, Angie Martell
Can We Count of Elected Judges to Protect Our Rights?
Location: Meeting Room 2
Most states elect at least some judges, but can judges be fair and impartial when faced with the prospect of campaign ads calling them soft on crime or against traditional values? Grounded in research on how judicial selection method relates to outcomes of cases involving LGBT rights and studies showing the impact of judicial elections on criminal defendants, participants will consider whether judicial elections threaten the due process of rights of some parties. Advocates will be joined by a judge, who can speak to her experience in judicial elections and related political pressures.
Speakers: Eric Lesh, Liz Seaton, Michele Jawando
General Attendance Session Three
Friday, August 5 | 3:45pm – 5:15pm
Protected Discrimination: The Dangerous Results of the Religious Freedom Restoration Act
Location: Grand Ballroom South/Central
The Bar has for years addressed the Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA) and its effects on the LGBT community. Passed by Congress and signed into law during the Clinton Administration, RFRA has kicked up a firestorm in recent years as anti-LGBT rhetoric continues to grow. The fight for equality, like most social justice issues, has thus far faced a certain life cycle: first you are ignored, then you fight to be taken seriously, and finally the opposition pushes back, but you carry on until you win. Do recent victories such as marriage equality explain the current over-saturation of RFRA use? We will also discuss prediction on when the next religious freedom case will make its way to the Supreme Court.
Speakers: Tobias Barrington Wolff, James Esseks, Jennifer Pizer, Bill Eskridge, Shannon Minter, Chai Feldblum
CLE Materials 1, CLE Materials 2, CLE Materials 3, CLE Materials 4