(Aug. 15) – The Texas Lawbook is pleased to be the official news media sponsor of the Fifth Annual University of Texas Government Enforcement Institute set for Sept. 20 in Dallas. Texas Lawbook subscribers get a $50 registration discount.
The daylong CLE program features an extraordinary line up of speakers, including a handful of corporate general counsel, federal prosecutors and senior officials at the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.
Morgan Lewis partner Steve Korotash, who is a founding co-chair of the Institute, and Chesapeake Energy Chief Compliance Officer Patrick Craine, who serves on the conference’s planning committee, discuss this year’s program and the issues that will be addressed.
Question: Congratulations on your fifth annual conference. What’s the focus of this year’s program?
Korotash: Thanks very much. While the subject of our presentations change from year-to-year, our focus is always the same: keeping in-house counsel current with developments in the civil and criminal enforcement space. I think what makes our conference special is our faculty. First, they are experts at what they do; second there’s a great mix of practitioners and in-house counsel; and third, the panelists don’t talk theory; they offer valuable insights for addressing real world problems. The entire program is all about pragmatic assistance to in-house counsel and compliance personnel
Question: Who is this year’s keynote?
Korotash: Stephanie Avakian, the SEC’s co-director of enforcement. This is the second time that we’ve been privileged to have an SEC enforcement director as our keynote. Three years ago, SEC Director of Enforcement Andrew Ceresney delivered the keynote address that turned out to be a policy message of national import.
Question: What topics are important to in-house counsel this year?
Craine: Well, since the panel that I’m moderating is going to discuss in-house counsel’s management of internal investigations, I’d have to say that this topic is of particular importance. Actually, the first panel of the conference is going to very interesting because four in-house counsel are going to share their perceptions of recent changes in the enforcement space as a result of shifting administration priorities.
Korotash: The international enforcement and investigations panel is going to be particularly relevant, in that we’ve seen a considerable uptick in actions by foreign regulators, implicating complex issues of foreign law implications for regulation, privilege, data protection, employment law, and investigation protocol,” The panel will be led by Chuck Duross, the former head of the Justice Department’s FCPA unit. Also, Danny Ashby’s FCA panel features two Justice Department FCA experts and is particularly relevant this year in light of a major development in DOJ FCA policy.
Craine: I think that the panel dealing with data management is going to offer very practical and helpful insights into problems that every company is facing. Also, I’m looking forward to hearing from Sean McKessy, the attorney who started and ran the SEC’s whistleblower office for many years.
Question: If you weren’t a panelist, would you be attending?
Craine: Well, I’m not just a panelist; I’ve been on the planning committee for a number of years, and it’s not an exaggeration to say that any decent-size company that doesn’t have a representative at this conference is missing the boat. The material presented is simply critical to any company subject to government regulation and possible investigation. A particular bonus is the fact that the subject matter is not just important, it’s interesting, and the panelists make it entertaining.
Korotash: I’ll mention some of the in-house counsel and current and former government speakers: Audrey Andrews, General Counsel, Tenet Healthcare; Richard Vint, Assistant General Counsel, Exxon Mobil; Kurt Drake, Chief, Ethics and Compliance, Kimberly-Clarke; Casey Kaplan, Assistant General Counsel, Nike; Erin Nealy Cox, U.S. Attorney, Northern District of Texas; Brian Kidd, Assistant Chief, Securities and Financial Fraud Unit, Department of Justice, Washington, D.C.; Jason Flemmons, former Deputy Chief Accountant, Enforcement Division, Securities and Exchange Commission; Eric Werner, Associate Director, Enforcement, Securities and Exchange Commission; Susan Strawn, Assistant U.S. Attorney, Western District of Texas; Miguel Clarke, Special Agent, Federal Bureau of Investigation; Sean McKessey, former head of the SEC’s Whistleblower Office; Kit Addleman, former SEC regional director; Chad Pinson, Executive Vice President, Stroz Friedberg.
Question: The conference dates and location?
Korotash: The conference will be held at the downtown Westin Hotel, September 20th and a half day on the 21st.
For more information and to register, see www.utcle.org/conferences/GE18. Use promo code “LAWBOOK50” and save $50.