Deploying Technology to Meet Compliance and ESG Demands

Cassandre is a Washington D.C.-based legal technology reporter for ALM. She covers new things happening around data privacy and cybersecurity law, e-discovery, and emerging technologies.

Veronica is a creative, innovative national litigation defense leader and strategist. She partners with executives and subject matter leaders in the corporate setting to optimize business results by employing proactive, preventive legal strategies. Her more than 17 years as an attorney spans a career of multiple achievements and advancements, including serving as managing counsel in litigation and tort for global retailer Walmart. In this role, Veronica supervised one of the largest tort litigation portfolios in the nation and led one of Walmart's largest legal teams to protect the reputation and financial spend of the corporation.

Veronica worked in private practice before joining Walmart as a senior counsel, then became the associate general counsel of Walmart’s Tort – Premises and Products division. In these roles she recovered millions of dollars in over 450 high exposure cases by asserting company’s rights against product and service vendors, component part suppliers and insurers, and attained a 30% reduction in inventory of product liability cases. After a promotion to general counsel of Litigation Support – Employment Class Action, she governed deployment of discovery strategies for all U.S. labor and employment litigations involving Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), Department of Labor (DOL) and state equivalents.

At Shook, Veronica plays a number of key leadership roles and has initiated a number of efforts to be ever intentional in the mentoring of associates and in the inclusive practices that lead to the further development of outstanding lawyers. In addition to her efforts to work with the Fortune 500 in connection with preventive litigation approaches, policy and governance issues, and creative resolution strategies, Veronica, together with the firm’s Chair, Madeleine McDonough, serves as co-chair of the Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) practice. Veronica has been recognized as a trailblazer in many areas of the law involving litigation and women of color. She is thought of as visionary and a trusted counsel by many Fortune 500 general counsel.

Veronica offers insight to clients on a variety of business functions including operations, employment, insurance, logistics and supply chain issues. She is a servant leader and team player with excellent interpersonal skills that foster her professional relationships.

Elizabeth Small is Chief Legal Officer and Head of ESG.

She is a mission-driven leader committed to changing the trajectory of the climate crisis and supporting sustainable and just livelihoods across the globe. Elizabeth is adept at forging and protecting unprecedented solutions across governments, finance, philanthropy, communities, business and innovation.

Prior to GEAPP, Elizabeth served as General Counsel and Head of Policy at CDP the global data and disclosure platform, focusing investors, companies, and governments on building a sustainable economy by measuring and understanding environmental impacts. As a thought-leader on ESG, Climate Change and Environmental Justice, Elizabeth led on legal and strategic business matters, advising C-Suite executives, boards of directors, and overseeing CDP’s annual investor request, the CDP Supply Chain program, CDP policy, Cities, States, and Regions (CStaR), data and technology operations; the Science Based Targets Initiative (SBTi) partnership; and served on the Justice, Equity, Diversity, Inclusivity and Accessibility (JEDIA) global task force.

Previously, Elizabeth worked as a Global Litigator with Howrey LLP and with Hemenway & Barnes, focusing on complex commercial litigation, antitrust and intellectual property law. Elizabeth has a J.D. from American University, Washington College of Law, where she trained in the International Sustainable Development program in London, Paris and Geneva. Elizabeth also holds a B.A. in Philosophy from The College of the Holy Cross.

Elizabeth is also an adjunct professor of Bioethics and Logic.