Summit Panels

Thursday

June 4

8:30 am

–

9:15 am

PANEL 1 The MDL Roadmap: JPML Insights and Proposed Revisions to the Manual for Complex Litigation, Along with Introductory Remarks

Moderator: Hon. David Proctor (Ret.)

  1. Hon. Robert Dow, Jr., USDC Northern District of Illinois; Counselor to the Chief Justice US Supreme Court →
  2. Rebecca Bacon, Bartlit Beck →
  3. Fidelma Fitzpatrick, Motley Rice →
  4. Mark Cheffo, Dechert LLP →
  5. Sharon Desh, Winston & Strawn →
  6. Hon. M. Casey Rodgers, USDC Northern District of Florida →

9:15 am

–

9:50 am

PANEL 2 Guardians of the Gate: Daubert and the Impact of Rule 702 Amendments

Moderator: Hon. J. Philip Calabrese

  1. Erin Copeland, Fibich Leebron Copeland & Briggs →
  2. David Stellings, Lieff Cabraser Heimann & Bernstein →
  3. Kristen Fournier, Kirkland & Ellis →
  4. Shawn Ledingham, Proskauer →
  5. James Murdica, Barnes & Thornburg →

9:50 am

–

10:25 am

PANEL 3 The Evolution of Special Masters in an AI-Driven Landscape

Moderator: Fouad Kurdi

  1. Hon. Eldon Fallon, USDC Eastern District of Louisiana →
  2. Hon. Carl Barbier, USDC Eastern District of Louisiana →
  3. Hon. Glenn Norton (Ret.), Norton Dispute Resolution LLC →
  4. David Cohen, David R. Cohen Special Master →
  5. Hon. Roger Benitez, JPML Panel; USDC Southern District of California →
  6. Albinas Prizgintas, Wilmer Hale →

10:25 am

–

10:40 am

Break

10:40 am

–

11:15 am

PANEL 4  The State as a Super-Plaintiff: Navigating Parallel AG Actions Within the Civil Litigation Complex

Moderator: Mark Lanier

  1. Tom Perrelli, Jenner & Block →
  2. Jessica Wilson, DLA Piper →
  3. Paul Geller, Robbins Geller Rudman & Dowd LLP →

11:15 am

–

12:15 pm

PANEL 5 Litigation Funding: Private Equity, Litigants, and the Judiciary. Who’s In Control?

Moderator: Prof. Arthur Miller

  1. Hon. Dan Polster, USDC Northern District of Ohio →
  2. Hon. Sofia Adrogué, Eleventh Business Court Division, Texas →
  3. Hon. Amy St. Eve, US Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit, USDC Northern District of Illinois →
  4. Shannon Pennock, Morgan & Morgan →
  5. Heidi Levine, Sidley Austin LLP →
  6. Stephen McConnell , Partner at Reed Smith →
  7. Katie Insogna, DLA Piper →
  8. Caleb Cunningham, Levin Law →
  9. Francesca Castagnola, Senior Managing Director, Western Alliance Bank →
  10. Jonathan Orent, Motley Rice →
  11. Mark Lanier, Lanier Law Firm →
  12. Shawn Reed, →
  13. Prof. Lynn Baker, University of Texas School of Law →

12:15 pm

–

1:15 pm

Lunch

1:15 pm

–

1:45 pm

PANEL 6   Judicial Intimidation: Recusals, Mandamus, and Impeachment. Recognizing, Addressing, and Responding

Moderator: Hon. Matthew Kennelly

  1. Hon. Richard Gergel, USDC District of South Carolina →
  2. Hon. Donovan Frank, USDC District of Minnesota →
  3. Hon. Richard Licht, Associate Justice, Rhode Island Superior Court →
  4. Hunter Shkolnik, Napoli Shkolnik PLLC →
  5. James Murdica, Barnes & Thornburg →

1:45 pm

–

2:30 pm

PANEL 7 Managing Mega-MDLs: Organization, Innovation, and Chemistry. Multi Plan Anti-Trust, A Masterclass in Modern MDL Management

Moderator: Christopher Seeger

  1. Hon. Beth W. Jantz, USDC Northern District of Illinois →
  2. Jayne Conroy, Simmons Hanly Conroy →
  3. Sean Fahey, Troutman Pepper Locke →
  4. Andrew Bayman, King & Spalding →
  5. Peter Kraus, Founding Partner Waters Kraus Paul →
  6. Nicole Hamann, President, Epiq Global →

2:30 pm

–

3:00 pm

PANEL 8  States’ Rights Vs. Federal Might: The Evolving Preemption Map

Moderator: Hon. Leigh Martin May

  1. Nicholas J. Drakulich, The Drakulich Firm →
  2. Dan Ring, Jenner & Block →
  3. Paul Pennock, Morgan & Morgan →
  4. Kyle Cutts, Partner, Baker Hostetler →

3:00 pm

–

3:45 pm

PANEL 9 Federal/State Coordination, Domination, or Peacefully Coexist in Parallel Universes

Moderator: Prof. Theodore “Teddy” Rave

  1. Hon. Somnath Raj Chatterjee, Superior Court of Alameda County, California →
  2. Hon. Lawrence Riff, Los Angeles Superior Court →
  3. Brent Wisner, Wisner Baum →
  4. Hon. William Highberger, Superior Court of California, Los Angeles →
  5. Joe Petrosinelli, Chairman of Williams & Connolly →
  6. Hon. Donovan Frank, USDC District of Minnesota →

Friday

June 5

8:30 am

–

9:15 am

PANEL 10  The Rule 16.1 Blueprint: Structuring the Modern MDL

Moderator: Hon. Richard Story

  1. Hon. Sean Jordan, USDC, Eastern District of Texas →
  2. Hon. Mary Rowland, USDC Northern District of Illinois →
  3. Hon. Zahid Quraishi, USDC District of New Jersey →
  4. Hon. David Proctor (Ret.), Former JPML Member; USDC Northern District of Alabama (Ret.) →

9:15 am

–

10:00 am

PANEL 11 Shields Up: The Modern MDL Defense

Moderator: Hon. David Proctor (Ret.)

  1. Tanya Rolo, Assistant General Counsel, Litigation (Product Liability), Johnson & Johnson →
  2. Larissa Eustice, Vice President and Assistant General Counsel (Head of U.S. Litigation), Bayer →
  3. Don Massey, SMS Dispute Resolution →
  4. Jonathan Pedersen, SMS Dispute Resolution →

10:00 am

–

10:15 am

Break

10:15 am

–

10:45 am

PANEL 12 Digital Triage: Early Vetting with AI Enabled Technology

Moderator: David Dukes

  1. Hon. M. Casey Rodgers, USDC Northern District of Florida →
  2. Jennifer Saulino, Sidley Austin LLP →
  3. Seth Katz, Burg Simpson →
  4. Scott DeNardo,Esq.,, Executive Vice President, Mass Torts; ARCHER →

10:45 am

–

11:30 am

PANEL 13 Mastering the Art of the Mass Tort Resolution

Moderator: Richard Arsenault

  1. John Hooper, King & Spalding →
  2. Joe Rice, Motley Rice →
  3. Michael London, Founding Partner Douglas London →
  4. Dee Miles, Beasley Allen →
  5. Eric Holland, Holland Law Firm →
  6. Sean Fahey, Troutman Pepper Locke →
  7. Joe Petrosinelli, Chairman of Williams & Connolly →

11:30 am

–

12:00 pm

PANEL 14 Bankruptcy: Its Current Role in Mass Tort Resolution

Moderator: Richard Arsenault

  1. Hon. Michael Kaplan, US Bankruptcy Court District of New Jersey →
  2. Hon. Brenda Rhoades, US Bankruptcy Court, Eastern District of Texas →
  3. Hon. Meredith Grabill, United States Bankruptcy Judge, Eastern District of Louisiana →
  4. Rhon Jones, Beasley Allen →
  5. John Beisner, Skadden Arps Slate Meagher & Flom LLP →

12:00 pm

–

1:00 pm

Luncheon Keynote By Mark Lanier

1:00 pm

–

1:45 pm

PANEL 15 The Fragile Shield: Emerging Professional Liabilities for Counsel and Experts in Complex Litigation

Moderator: Hon. Jerry Blackwell

  1. Hon. Darrin Gayles, USDC Southern District of Florida →
  2. Hon. James Cain, Jr., USDC Western District of Louisiana →
  3. Hon. Mia Roberts Perez, USDC Eastern District of Pennsylvania →
  4. Hon. Scott Coogler, Ret., USDC Northern District of Alabama; Chief Judge →
  5. Tony Clayton, District Attorney, West Baton Rouge, LA →

1:45 pm

–

2:15 pm

PANEL 16 The Weakest Link: Data Breaches/Cybersecurity

Moderator: Richard Arsenault

  1. Robert J Drakulich, The Drakulich Firm →
  2. Yvonne Flaherty, Yvonne Flaherty, Attorney at Law →
  3. John Koehl, Koehl Consulting →

2:15 pm

–

3:00 pm

Panel 17 The AI Driven Future of Mass Tort Litigation

Moderator: Prof. Lynn Baker

  1. Hon. Christine O'Hearn, USDC District of New Jersey →
  2. Lori Cohen, Greenberg Traurig →
  3. Hon Karen M. Williams, USDC New Jersey →
  4. Hon. Darrel Papillion, USDC Eastern District of Louisiana →
  5. Lola Velazquez-Aguilu, Medtronic →

3:00 pm

–

3:45 pm

PANEL 18 Aligning Federal Rules With Digital Age Technology

Moderator: Prof. Andrew Bradt

  1. Hon. Rodney Gilstrap, USDC Eastern District of Texas →
  2. Elizabeth Cabraser, Lieff Cabraser Heimann & Bernstein →
  3. Adam Gomez, Grant Eisenhoffer →
  4. Amanda Kitts, Nelson Mullins →

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