Virginia Live CLE Bundle 2021

Attorneys who encounter legal ethics problems can use this course to learn a methodology for solving them. Although no methodology is perfect, there is a methodology known by the acronym "MORALS" for solving legal-ethics problems or dilemmas. This seminar focuses on such methodology. 

The format of this course is a blend of the lecture method with the Socratic method, extensively involving a high degree of interactive participation and critical analyses of a wide range of issues relevant to the subject of the seminar in a manner not limited to mere chronological description of particular topics and sub-topics. Depending on the number of participants in a particular seminar, the format usually results in most, if not all, participants verbally engaging in conversational-styled interactive discussion and/or analysis of particular topics in the seminar and also permits interruptions, questions, challenges, etc. throughout the seminar. Think of collegially enjoyable and enlightening round-table discussions. It's a form of learning by thinking in the course of interactively participating rather than learning solely by listening (the latter of which is the lecture method).

Any attorney desiring to learn how to analyze legal ethics problems or dilemmas to maximize the likelihood of an ethically proper solution is encouraged to attend this program.

Learning Objectives: 

• Refresh what should be every lawyer's common knowledge of unique aspects of the legal profession in contrast to all other professions, occupations, etc.: It's the effect of the Constitution's (and each state constitution's) vesting of "the judicial power" of the sovereign in its "Supreme Court" and its thereby incorporation of the evolutionary nature of the judiciary's common law inherent judicial power (i.e., sui generis power) to define, prescribe, and enforce educational, moral, ethical and civil standards for the practice of law and the status of lawyers as officers of the courts
• Analyze how exercising such common law inherent judicial power (sui generis power) in an adversarial system created under common law, the supreme court of the sovereign (i.e., the U.S. Supreme Court and each state supreme court) creates structural and functional tools for the administration of justice -- i.e., rules of evidence, burdens of proof, procedural rules, and regulatory control over the conduct of attorneys
• Participate actively in regulatory control over the legal profession generally and the conduct of lawyers individually, as is generally encouraged by the judiciary. Therefore, each attorney has a duty to keep abreast of such disciplinary and regulatory activities and, as much as possible, actively participate (pro bono, of course) in and support such activities
• Maximize one's objectivity by seeking a thorough analysis of all relevant and material facts, issues, and laws when determining how to solve an ethics problem or dilemma
• Recognize intrinsic conflicts between "justice" (or what's "morally right") on the one hand and legal, ethical duties on the other and then analyze them to determine when attorneys must, or sometimes must not, implement an ethically correct solution that is a polar opposite of "justice."
• Assess the best way to prevent a legal professional’s self-interests in desiring to avoid damage to the legal professional’s standing in solving an ethical problem and the professional responsibility to derive an ethically proper solution

Course Time Schedule:

Eastern Time: 4:00 PM - 6:00 PM
Central Time: 3:00 PM - 5:00 PM
Mountain Time: 2:00 PM - 4:00 PM
Pacific Time: 1:00 PM - 3:00 PM
Alaska Time: 12:00 PM - 2:00 PM
Hawaii-Aleutian Time: 11:00 AM - 1:00 PM

This course is also being presented on the following dates:

Monday, May 12, 2025
Monday, May 19, 2025
Monday, May 26, 2025
Monday, June 2, 2025
Monday, June 9, 2025

The opportunity to learn about the seldom-explored area of law, sports law, is a great opportunity for an attorney, even if they do not practice in this field. This course will describe the basic procedure for challenging various occurrences that arise in sport and where attorneys can educate themselves further on the rules and regulations governing these sports. 

Attendees will explore how the legal field plays a role in sports such as boxing, wrestling, and volleyball among others. Legal professionals will delve into the regulatory bodies in each sport and the processes sports related cases follow. 

Practitioners who either practice, dabble in, or are otherwise interested in learning more about the regulatory procedures behind some of their favorite sports are encouraged to attend this course. 

Learning Objectives: 

• Observe the regulatory/legal procedures behind some sampling of the world’s professional sports
• Identify where to look and what to think about when faced with an athlete in certain professional sports who has a rules/regulatory issue arise in the course of their careers or during a particular competition
• Explore basic pointers to advise the agents and managers of athletes in certain sports as to how to handle rules/regulatory issues that may arise regarding their athletes
• Review how to educate athlete clients in various sports about how to avoid and mitigate certain violations of their chosen sport’s rules/regulations
• Identify when the Court of Arbitration for Sport, or other judicial/quasi-judicial bodies may or may not be available for an appeal
• Examine exceptionally niche areas of sports law that help create a more well-rounded sports law practitioner

Course Time Schedule:

Eastern Time: 12:00 PM - 2:00 PM
Central Time: 11:00 AM - 1:00 PM
Mountain Time: 10:00 AM - 12:00 PM
Pacific Time: 9:00 AM - 11:00 AM
Alaska Time: 8:00 AM - 10:00 AM
Hawaii-Aleutian Time: 7:00 AM - 9:00 AM

This course is also being presented on the following dates:

Monday, June 2, 2025
Monday, June 16, 2025
Monday, June 30, 2025
Monday, July 7, 2025
Monday, July 21, 2025

Most lawyers (if not all but a tiny percentage) would say, "I'd never even consider, much less engage in, sexual activity with a client, so why should I take a seminar titled 'Sexual Ethical Issues'"? The ethically responsible answer would be, "Even though you're certain you'd never engage In sexual activity with a client -- and thus have no need to learn about the 'ethics' or lack thereof concerning it, others may construe your ordinary behavior, conduct or attitude as manifesting sexual discrimination, harassment, intimidation, etc. or even as overtures for sexual activity, so taking the seminar would be useful even though it also includes material pertaining to sexual activity." 

The anti-discriminatory, anti-harassment aspect of the seminar focuses on ABA Model Rule 8.4 (or equivalent state-supreme-court rules), defining as "misconduct" any conduct evincing "harassment or discrimination based on… sex …, sexual orientation, [or] gender identity." Those rules are relatively uniform from state to state, but of course, their interpretation is generally a state-law issue rather than a federal-law issue. The sexual activity aspect of the seminar focuses on ABA Model Rule 1.8(j) (or equivalent state-supreme-court rules) governing sexual conduct by a lawyer with (or towards) a client. The content of this latter category of Rules varies quite a lot from one state to the next and a number of states have declined to adopt a rule specifically regulating sexual "activity."

The format of this program is a blend of the lecture method with the Socratic method, extensively involving a high degree of interactive participation and critical analyses of a wide range of issues relevant to the seminar subject in a manner not limited to mere chronological description of particular topics and sub-topics. In other words, the content of each seminar (and the order and extent of emphasis upon particular topics and sub-topics) will be substantially influenced by the nature and extent of interactive participation regarding specific aspects thereof. Depending on the number of participants in a particular seminar, the format usually results in most, if not all, participants verbally engaging in conversational-styled interactive discussion and/or analysis of particular topics in the seminar and also permits interruptions, questions, challenges, etc. throughout the seminar. Think of collegially enjoyable and enlightening round-table discussions. It's a form of learning by thinking in the course of interactively participating rather than learning solely by listening (the latter of which is the lecture method).

This course is designed for attorneys at any level who want to explore ethical issues regarding sexual conduct and discrimination.

Learning Objectives: 

• Refresh what should be every lawyer's common knowledge of unique aspects of the legal profession in contrast to all other professions, occupations, etc.: It's the effect of our Constitution's (and each state constitution's) vesting of "the judicial power" of the sovereign in its "Supreme Court" and its thereby incorporation of the evolutionary nature of the judiciary's common law inherent judicial power (i.e., sui generis power) to define, prescribe, and enforce educational, moral, ethical and civil standards for the practice of law and the status of lawyers as officers of the courts
• Recognize that in exercising such common law inherent judicial power (sui generis power) in an adversarial system created under common law, the supreme court of the sovereign (i.e., the U.S. Supreme Court and each state supreme court) creates structural and functional tools for the administration of justice -- i.e., rules of evidence, burdens of proof, procedural rules, and regulatory control over the conduct of attorneys
• Review that the judiciary generally encourages lawyers to participate actively in the regulatory control over the legal profession and the conduct of lawyers individually. Therefore, attorneys must keep abreast of such disciplinary and regulatory activities and, as much as possible participate (pro bono, of course) in actively and supporting such activities
• Examine types of conduct by an attorney that would constitute (or that might be construed as) harassment or unlawful discrimination regarding sex, gender, or orientation. Generally, there are not wide variations in the content (or interpretation) of the state-by-state versions of ABA Model Rule 8.4, defining as "misconduct" any conduct evincing "harassment or discrimination based on… sex …, sexual orientation, [or] gender identity."
• Explore types of conduct that would constitute (or that may be construed as) "misconduct" involving sexual activity with or towards a client under ABA Model Rule 1.8(j) or under varying state-by-state versions of such Rule (or in states that have declined to adopt any Rule specifically regulating the subject matter)
• Assess how assuming that any Rule or law governing "sex" and/or "sexual orientation" or "gender" ought to be construed by whatever is the current state of medical knowledge on matters such as "XY" and "XX" chromosomes, does the intrinsically pliable nature of terms such as "orientation" and "gender" thereby somehow render such chromosomal terminology pliable (rather than empirical, scientific descriptions of the biological status of males and females) even though the statistical variations (in XY and XX chromosomes) comprise incredibly tiny percentages of deviations from the norm? So, how should we view deviations from that norm? For example, under the Americans With Disabilities Act, such deviations prohibit different treatment unless it were to be reasonably warranted in the context of such treatment. For example, disqualification of a person with a severe peanut allergy from employment requiring close proximity to peanuts would not constitute an illegal form of "discrimination." Could the XX or XY status of a lawyer warrant different treatment without such treatment being deemed violative of the Rule 8.4 prohibition against sexual discrimination?

Course Time Schedule:

Eastern Time: 4:00 PM - 6:00 PM
Central Time: 3:00 PM - 5:00 PM
Mountain Time: 2:00 PM - 4:00 PM
Pacific Time: 1:00 PM - 3:00 PM
Alaska Time: 12:00 PM - 2:00 PM
Hawaii-Aleutian Time: 11:00 AM - 1:00 PM

This course is also being presented on the following dates:

Tuesday, May 13, 2025
Tuesday, May 20, 2025
Tuesday, May 27, 2025
Tuesday, June 3, 2025
Tuesday, June 10, 2025

It is important for attorneys to learn about challenges to legal ethics principles posed by lawyers succumbing to alcoholism and/or addiction and the ways in which the legal profession is currently seeking to prevent, or remedy, such problems. Even attorneys not suffering from alcoholism or addiction have a professional responsibility to learn about, and apply critical analysis to, the legal profession's ongoing efforts to prevent, or attempt to remediate, problems for this profession. Attorneys who are "recovering" from either condition (or both) can contribute valuable insights in an interactive seminar on the subject such as this seminar.

The format of this course is a blend of the lecture method with the Socratic method extensively involving a high degree of interactive participation and critical analyses of a wide range of issues relevant to the subject of the seminar in a manner not limited to mere chronological description of particular topics and sub-topics. Depending on the number of participants in a particular seminar, the format usually results in most, if not all, participants verbally engaging in conversational-styled interactive discussion and/or analysis of particular topics in the seminar and also permits interruptions, questions, challenges, etc. throughout the seminar. Think of collegially enjoyable and enlightening round-table discussions. It's a form of learning by thinking in the course of interactively participating rather than learning solely by listening (the latter of which is the lecture method).

Any attorney who is required to attend a CLE seminar on "substance abuse" and any other attorney recognizing the professional responsibility to understand how the legal profession and the courts are currently seeking to (a) reduce the number of lawyers succumbing to such problems, (b) provide effective remedial assistance when needed, and (c) apply suitable disciplinary measures when necessary.

Learning Objectives: 

• Examine the effect of the Constitution's (and each state constitution's) vesting of "the judicial power" of the sovereign in its "Supreme Court" and its thereby incorporation of the evolutionary nature of the judiciary's common law inherent judicial power (i.e., sui generis power) to define, prescribe, and enforce educational, moral, ethical and civil standards for the practice of law and the status of lawyers as officers of the courts
• Explore how exercising such common law inherent judicial power (sui generis power) in an adversarial system created under common law, the supreme court of the sovereign (i.e., the U.S. Supreme Court and each state supreme court) creates structural and functional tools for the administration of justice -- i.e., rules of evidence, burdens of proof, procedural rules, and regulatory control over the conduct of attorneys
• The judiciary generally encourages lawyers to participate actively in the regulatory control over our profession generally and the conduct of lawyers individually. Therefore, each attorney has a duty to keep abreast of such disciplinary and regulatory activities and as much as possible to actively participate (pro bono, of course) in, and support, such activities
• Explore the "illness" nature of alcoholism or addiction
• Develop and implement regulatory measures to provide remedial assistance to those suffering from such illness, but do not let the goal of remediation to completely eclipse ethical (and moral) responsibility
• Analyze how the public perceives the legal profession as a "self-regulating" profession" and how this underscores the duty of the legal profession to handle  this regulatory responsibility in ways that increase, rather than diminish, the public's confidence in our legal system
• Recognize the legal profession’s duty to avoid letting compassion unduly repress the sense of responsibility to protect the justice system from the too-widespread perception among the public that lawyers can always avoid the consequences of their own shortcomings or misconduct

Course Time Schedule:

Eastern Time: 1:00 PM - 3:00 PM
Central Time: 12:00 PM - 2:00 PM
Mountain Time: 11:00 AM - 1:00 PM
Pacific Time: 10:00 AM - 12:00 PM
Alaska Time: 9:00 AM - 11:00 AM
Hawaii-Aleutian Time: 8:00 AM - 10:00 AM

This course is also being presented on the following dates:

Tuesday, May 13, 2025
Tuesday, May 20, 2025
Tuesday, May 27, 2025
Tuesday, June 3, 2025
Tuesday, June 10, 2025