On November 19, 1863, President Lincoln gave his most important speech, the famed Gettysburg Address. In that address, President Lincoln noted that we were “engaged in a great civil war” testing whether our nation would survive. No one can suggest that the battle  surrounding the use of independent contractors in the transportation industry rises remotely to the level of importance of the survival of our then young nation. But this battle, and the never-ending attacks on the independent contractor model at the federal and state  level, challenges many of our clients to the point of threatening the financial viability of some. This panel will address those challenges, inform attendees on the status of significant litigation, and provide regulatory and statutory updates relating to the use of independent contractors in transportation. This will include a discussion of FAAAA preemption and several strategies to mitigate risk, including the use of technology, third- party administrators, and alternative business models that we can advise our clients on to endure these harrowing times.

The waters of maritime law are still tumultuous with cyber security and pandemic issues, but new legal horizons in vessel and transactional technology, regulatory attention to demurrage, and developing admiralty case law are before us! This panel will address the past year’s legal developments on the waterfront with attention to the intermodal impact they might  have on surface transportation.

A best practices guide to preparing  corporate representative witnesses, limiting the scope of questioning, and other practical tips and tricks for defeating the reptile and effectively conveying your good company story.

Would the Founding Fathers have traded in their horses for these vehicles if they had been alive some centuries later? Our panelists will discuss the current regulatory framework in the United States and Canada governing the operation of autonomous vehicles and related challenges and considerations as we continue to move forward.

Is it a revolution or a revelation that digital freight brokers are changing the transportation industry? Faced  with unique legal challenges, efforts to digitize brokering have been expanding in the New World marriage  of tech and transportation. Our laws are lagging, and remnants of the direct shipper-to-carrier system remain in the statutes and regulations, updated mostly by MAP-21. What distinguishes digital freight brokers from the rest? Is the offering of automated ways to connect shippers and carriers closer to a transportation network services provider than a broker, and does this help to further limit liability? With all the automation, how are brokers providing safeguards to vet carriers and protect shippers? Hear from industry leadership about advances in technology and safeguards, the forefront legal issues, and discussions on benefits and pitfalls of digital freight brokering.

While the Founding Fathers did not have the benefit of air travel in their day, they certainly paved the way for the future of air travel. In this spirit, we encourage you to bring your pen and quill and join us as we discuss the Top 10 issues to look for when buying, selling, or leasing an airplane. Learn the tips and tricks used by industry leaders to ensure your transaction is as smooth  as your air travel.

To clients, sometimes it seems that almost anything a client thinks is a conflict of interest can be resolved or addressed by their outside counsel. Our panelists will discuss how to work through potential conflicts of interest while keeping  new and existing clients satisfied.

The Commerce Clause of the Constitution gives the Congress the power to regulate commerce to create a set of unified  laws to promote commercial activity. In modern times, FAAAA preemption is used by motor carriers and brokers to defend against the encroachment of state tort actions. This panel will explore attacks against FAAAA preemption in casualty and cargo cases and offer suggestions of tactics to use should your FAAAA arguments face challenge in Court.

Plaintiff attorneys, much like the British forces, came  with a game plan. They failed because their seemingly well-crafted plan was met by a ragtag band of men who decided not to play by their traditional rules. This panel will evaluate the times when the Defense team needs to get out of the rut and bring the battle to the Plaintiffs during all stages of the case, including during the pre-suit investigation, discovery phase, and in trial. War stories will abound as we seek to evaluate what has worked and what has not.

Just as our Founding Fathers understood that the country they founded would grow and change over time, in the transportation and logistics industry, carriers and third-party logistics providers grow organically or through acquisition. As owners of transportation companies pursue their own happiness, both organic growth and acquisition have their benefits, but if done correctly, acquisitions can quickly deliver a competitive advantage and significant benefits to shareholders and investors. This session  will include a strategic overview and discussion of acquisitions and will then drill down into the nuts and bolts of what lawyers need to do when putting together a deal. Whether you handle insurance defense, regulatory, general commercial work, or business litigation, mergers and acquisitions affect your clients’ needs and the daily services that you provide.

Viewing the war with the end in mind and evaluating the strategy from all angles is key in helping your side prevail. This panel will explore the benefits of using mock jurors throughout the litigation process and how doing so can help guide your discovery decisions and trial preparation.

This panel will focus on the development of White House and Federal Maritime Commission policies and enforcement mechanisms to try to resolve the port congestion and charges by carriers against shippers for demurrage and detention.