On June 21, 2018, the NRLD Board had yet another successful board meeting at the State Bar of Wisconsin 2018 Annual Meeting & Conference (AMC) in Lake Geneva, Wisconsin.
Board member attendance was excellent. The aroma of coffee and pastries filled the room. Our outgoing NRLD President, David Werwie, was commended for the exceptional job he did over the past year, and the incoming NRLD President, Kathryn Bullon, was warmly welcomed.
There was robust discussion about progress made over the past year, including that the NRLD Facebook page is in full operation once again. Be sure to like and follow our page to keep up-to-date with NRLD activities around the country.
The upcoming year’s agenda was also discussed, including next year’s AMC, on June 13-14, 2019, in Green Bay, Wisconsin (Go Pack Go). Speaking of which, we would love to see our fellow NRLD members in Green Bay and invite you all to attend.
The AMC is a fantastic opportunity to make new connections, reconnect with old friends, attend CLEs of your choice (there are often three simultaneous CLEs ongoing at any given time), eat a smorgasbord of snacks and treats, and party the night away with many low-pressure, high-fun social events with great company, adult beverages, and an (over)abundance of food.
Following our board meeting, NRLD board members enjoyed a presentation by political satirist and journalist P.J. O’Rourke over lunch. After, two board members, Erik Guenther and Paul Conrad, as well as Paul’s colleague at Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), Maureen Cunningham, presented a CLE entitled Acts of God: Legal Issues & Disaster Preparation. The CLE encompassed various topics and practice pointers for lawyers/law firms regarding planning for the worst case scenario: i.e., floods, tornadoes, acts of terrorism, including from an ethics standpoint. The speakers gave an overview of FEMA programs and disaster operations.
Rather poetically during the disaster preparation presentation, the fire alarm sounded, abruptly ending the CLE and causing the mass exodus of hundreds of participants and sponsoring vendors. The ice cream buffet had just been set up, resulting in many lawyers stopping to line up for heaps of ice cream, gooey syrups, and other toppings as they were exiting the building. Disaster fail!
The endings of the interrupted CLEs were video recorded later; attendees can access webcast replays through the State Bar of Wisconsin and claim full CLE credit.
The NRLD will once again be presenting a CLE at the AMC in Green Bay in 2019. Email your ideas for next year’s CLE topic to NRLD CLE committee chair and NRLD president, Kathryn Bullon. We look forward to seeing you in Green Bay.
