Oregon CLE Course Catalog

In this 1-hour course, psychologist, attorney, author, and television personality Dr. Brian Russell provides actionable insights for attorneys who aspire to take better care of themselves and experience greater satisfaction with both their professional and personal lives. Participants will learn skills aimed at helping them to reduce professional burnout risk, to be more sustainably productive, and to live and work more mindfully and meaningfully.

Generative AI has taken the legal world by storm in recent months and with its capabilities and sophistication advancing at a rapid pace, many are wondering how this powerful tool can be applied to the legal profession. The most notable leader in this space is OpenText with their leading technology ChatGPT, and whether it's within legal contracts or its use in the courts, the impact could entirely change the way the legal industry moves forward.

Veteran litigators Andrew Struve and Susan Page White walk step-by-step through the key actions and decisions every litigator must take at the outset of a matter to ensure a smooth start and that nothing is missed. Overlooking even one of these critical steps could lead to at best an unhappy client, and at worst to claims of legal malpractice. The speakers also share an easy-to-follow checklist that all litigators – from the most junior to the more experienced – will find highly valuable to use for every matter that comes in the door.

In the latest installment of this popular series, Zach McGee discusses the now infamous “ChatGPT lawyers sanctions” case where a New York federal district judge sanctioned two lawyers and their law firm under Rule 11 for submitting a brief that cited to six federal court decisions that did not in fact exist. In a case of seemingly first impression, ChatGPT had made up these cases out of whole cloth, and the lawyers failed to do any independent verification of those cases before filing their brief. This fascinating case is a cautionary tale for any lawyer who is tempted to use ChatGPT or other generative AI tools in their legal practice.

Managing litigation costs is important for all sizes of litigation. The technological advances in recent years has enabled parties to participate remotely throughout many stages of litigation, but this discussion will discuss how planning your litigation strategy early can keep costs down while still effectively advocating for your client. 

Despite the old saying, facts do not speak for themselves. People must speak for them. Further, humans learn and store information by stories, not by recitation of facts. Juror persuasion happens when the right story is told the right way. Join nationally respected trial consultant Rich Matthews for an exploration of the crucial but often undervalued part that the right witness with the right preparation plays in moving jurors to vote your way.

From the onset, we must think about What Will the Jury See? First, potential evidence must be preserved then the investigation should strike a balance between privilege and documentation. When outside counsel is involved, they should trust but verify the investigation and identify other investigative needs.

Pro-active analytics can potentially help identify and mitigate certain risks and avoid litigation. This presentation will focus on Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) related human capital disclosures, including descriptions of a company’s workforce. A number of pro-active DEI-type reviews and audits, such as pay equity audits, reduction-in-force (RIF) audits, and wage and hour audits, may be performed to proactively identify and manage risk of claims, litigation, and financial and reputational impacts. This presentation will provide an overview of how, why, and when companies should consider conducting such reviews to identify and manage risk.

This presentation will cover the current status and near future outlook for the blockchain sector (or "crypto" broadly) from a legal standpoint. Questions answered include: What went wrong? Is crypto dead and buried? What's in store next for the industry and regulatory landscape? What's the cybersecurity state of play in crypto?