The CLOC Global Institute conference (CGI) continued yesterday with a full day of activities! Here are the Wednesday CGI 2024 sessions and events to check out!

The 2024 CLOC Global Institute (CGI) conference is being conducted this week through tomorrow, at the ARIA Resort & Casino in Las Vegas, after being held at the Bellagio the last several years.

Sessions

With that in mind, here’s a list of the Wednesday CGI 2024 sessions and events of note you may want to check out, along with the location (all times PT):

9:00 AM – 10:15 AM 

General Session: The Global Evolution of Legal Operations – Insights from Industry Leaders (Ironwood Ballroom)

Explore global perspectives on the evolving landscape of legal operations in this engaging panel session. We’ll discuss the current state of the legal operations role, discussing the challenges in gaining recognition and the skills needed for true impact. Discover how we can drive enterprise-wide transformation and up-level the profession. Don’t miss this insightful discussion, offering insights for legal operations professionals looking to navigate and lead in an evolving legal landscape.

Speakers: Katrina Gowans, Director Legal Operations, IFM Investors, Guilherme Tocci, Senior Global Legal Ops Manager, Gympass, Mary O’Carroll, Chief Community Officer, Ironclad, Curt McDaniel, Chief Legal Officer, Ferring Pharmaceuticals, Frances Pomposo, Treasurer, CLOC VP of LGA Strategy & Operations and Chief of Staff to the General Counsel, Splunk, Splunk Inc.

10:30 AM – 11:20 AM 

It’s Time: Meet the Legal Data Intelligence (LDI) Model and Learn How To Turbocharge Your Role (Starvine 10/11)

Be among the first to see the Legal Data Intelligence (LDI) model as it debuts at the 2024 CLOC Global Institute! The LDI model presents a new framework for expressing the value that legal teams can bring to their organizations through the power of data analysis – is the culmination of months of work by a volunteer team of industry leaders who deeply understand and have experienced the dynamic nature of our industry.

The LDI model tackles one of the fundamental challenges facing the legal industry today: the explosion of data volumes, variety, and sources. Lawyers are currently forced to spend inordinate amounts of time navigating data challenges instead of focusing on their core areas of expertise. Indeed, legal professionals are engaged in a constant struggle to contain escalating costs from rising data volumes, along with building consistent and defensible processes for their legal teams.   

Today, this glut of raw data has escalated from a nuisance to a universal problem across almost every practice area and legal task: from litigations and investigations to corporate deals and contract analytics, to DSARs, data breach responses, regulatory requests, and many others. Despite the ubiquity of these data challenges, we have yet to see a strategic, unified, and process-oriented approach to solving them. Until now. 

In this session, legal operations professionals can expect to learn about:

• A new process framework and vocabulary to proactively tackle common legal data challenges and express the value that their teams bring to the table.   
• New types of roles that this model creates, the skills essential to performing these emergent roles, and the changes in legal team structures that will best enable the model’s success.  
• The role that technology — particularly Generative AI and LLMs — plays in this new paradigm.  
• Inspirational stories of how the panelists are using this model to expand the scope of their role and reinvent themselves.

*Eligible for General CLE credit and Technology CLE credit where applicable.

Speakers: Omar Haroun, Founder & CEO, Stealth Startup, Farrah Pepper, Chief Legal Innovation Counsel, Marsh McLennan, Ashley Christakis, Senior Manager eDiscovery and Legal Operations, CrowdStrike, Jeremiah Weasenforth, AGC- Legal Analytics Director, Edward Jones.

10:30 AM – 11:20 AM 

Change My View: Gen AI Is Overrated (Juniper Ballroom 4)

Generative AI is revolutionizing legal operations like nothing we’ve ever seen. It automates contract creation, optimizes negotiations, and predicts operational risk–or does it?  In a world increasingly shaped by the promise of generative AI, it’s time to engage in an open and honest conversation about the often-hyped capabilities of generative AI within legal operations.  

Join Mike Haven, Former CLOC President and Intel Head of Legal Operations, and Jerry Ting, Founder and CEO of Evisort, for this thought-provoking and interactive session as we challenge the prevailing notion that AI is the magic solution for all legal ops challenges. We’ll explore the nuances of AI in the legal field, examining its true potential and limitations. We’ll also delve into real-world case studies and experiences, critically assessing where AI falls short and where it truly delivers.

Speakers: Mike Haven, Head of Legal Operations, Intel, Jerry Ting, Chief Executive Officer, Evisort Inc., Jenn McCarron, CLOC President.

11:40 AM – 12:10 PM 

Can We Talk? How To Have Difficult Conversations With Your OC (Starvine 10/11)

With budgets tightening and business needs shifting, 2024 is anticipated to provide a number of challenges for Corporate Legal Departments of all sizes. In those challenges, we expect to continue to have tough, difficult conversations with our Outside Counsel and other legal vendors about rates, budgets, and more.

Crossing those waters can be precarious – particularly for non-GCs. 

• How do I negotiate my rates outside of hiring a third-party vendor?
• How can I push back on a budget overage?
• How do I tell a firm they did a bad job without ruining the relationship? 

Let’s leverage the best role models for navigating volatility – Bravo’s Real Housewives.  Join Matt Rubbelke, Senior Vendor Strategy and Governance Management Associate on Google’s Outside Counsel Management team.  Matt will provide a practical framework for these conversations, a case study for application and tips for what’s worked well for him.

Speaker: Matt Rubbelke, Senior Vendor Strategy & Governance Management Associate, Google LLC.

1:55 PM – 2:45 PM 

Don’t Just Collect It – Use It!  A Primer on Outside Counsel Data for In-House Teams

Legal Operations teams love to collect data, especially about their outside counsel and service providers. But are teams collecting the right data? And once they have it, are they doing anything useful with it?  As the sources of data continue to multiply — including e-billing platforms, compliance software, internal knowledge silos, and publicly available data sources, oh my!

Designing a sound data strategy is more critical than ever for both the in-house evaluators and their partner providers being evaluated.  How can the legal ecosystem work together to take our most shared valuable asset — data — and make it actionable? And for law firms and providers, how can you leap ahead in this area to quickly become your client’s favorite partner? 

In this discussion, you’ll peek behind the curtain and hear from legal operations leaders who are tackling this problem. They’ll share their strategies for bringing these sometimes disparate sources of data together and using the results to improve decision-making and save time and money for their legal teams.

Find out how legal departments and their law firms and providers can: 

• Connect different sources of data using legal technology
• Track and retain institutional data over time
• Ensure you’re using the right sources and scoping the right questions
• Implement and act on performance reviews and other performance-based metrics
• Create law firm hiring guardrails that help achieve key department goals
• Enhance panel management with scorecarding.

*Eligible for General CLE credit

Speakers: Wendy Butler Curtis, Chief Innovation Officer, Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe, Mirra Levitt, Chief Product Officer & General Counsel, Priori Legal, Farrah Pepper, Chief Legal Innovation Counsel, Marsh McLennan, An Trotter, Sr. Director of Operations, Office of the General Counsel / HearstLab Scout, Hearst Corporation.

3:50 PM – 4:40 PM 

LinkedIn: Not Just a Resume Builder, Elevate Your Career (Juniper Ballroom 4)

Join our panel of social media influencers, for a deep dive into leveraging LinkedIn’s potential for the legal industry. This discussion will cover vital aspects of why they chose to leverage LinkedIn, the ups and downs of content creation, what have been the benefits, what have been the downfalls, and the enhancement of their professional skillsets.

Discover how to excel in the ever-changing legal landscape, whether you’re an experienced professional or just starting your legal career.

Speakers: Brittany Leonard, General Counsel, Civix, Matt Margolis, Partner & Advisor, Margolis PLLC & JusticeHQ & AttorneyShare, Alex Su, Chief Revenue Officer, Latitude.

In addition to the Wednesday CGI 2024 sessions, there are a few more networking events, happy hours and receptions. But remember, what happens in Vegas stays in Vegas – unless I report it! 😉

So, what do you think? What Wednesday CGI 2024 sessions are you looking to attend? Please share any comments you might have or if you’d like to know more about a particular topic.

Disclaimer: The views represented herein are exclusively the views of the authors and speakers themselves, and do not necessarily represent the views held by my employer, my partners or my clients. eDiscovery Today is made available solely for educational purposes to provide general information about general eDiscovery principles and not to provide specific legal advice applicable to any particular circumstance. eDiscovery Today should not be used as a substitute for competent legal advice from a lawyer you have retained and who has agreed to represent you.