Women's Bar Association of Illinois

Join us as we work through real-life family law fact patterns with judges and practitioners to understand the intersection between domestic violence and divorce cases. We will discuss domestic violence as it relates to exclusive possession of the marital residence, how to divide up living space in the marital residence, domestic economic abuse, how to allocate parenting time in domestic violence cases, and how to handle the case when the abuse petitions for an order of protection.

Join us to talk judicial ethics in today’s climate with Judge Virginia M. Kendall, Judge Erica L. Reddick, and Judge Debra B. Walker and moderated by Nandini Pillai.

A panel of judges discuss how to appear for court over Zoom, proper courtroom decorum, attire and presentation, and an explanation about local rules, standing orders, and how to properly complete an Order.

Insight on running for judge, elections, judicial appointments, and the associate judge process in Cook County.

Learn about how to advocate for issues you care about, from the city level to the federal level.

This program will educate attorneys and participants on recent events affecting the Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) communities, the history of transgressions against the AAPI community, the movements that have developed over the course of this history, and ways for the legal community to support and stand in solidarity with their communities. The program will specifically address hate crimes, racism, discrimination, xenophobia, and bias, as well as tools for the legal community and community-at-large to combat these injustices, such as advocacy efforts and legislation, and ways to promote the AAPI community.

Over many years, both in-house departments and law firms have been working to improve diversity within their own organizations. Given the importance of diversity & inclusion in the legal profession, however, it is critical that law firms and in-house counsel work together to accelerate the pace of progress. The purpose of this panel is to talk about how in-house legal departments and law firms can partner to make a true impact on diversity & inclusion in the legal field, what’s working both from the in-house and law firm perspectives, and where we still need to do more to move the needle.

Join the Legally Moms to explore medical, legal, and personal experiences with fertility issues. Targeted to inform our audience about family law and estate planning issues, as well as provide self-journeys from those who have been there. Our panel of experts includes attorneys who have insight from a practice perspective, doctors with two different specialties to provide medical perspective, and moms who have personal experience to provide insight about fertility.

Learn the different definitions of property, the various ways individuals and businesses can own property, how to identify the property you own, and the Illinois laws that can help you protect your property once you have identified it.

Practicing law during a pandemic has its challenges. Join us to work through real life family law fact patterns with judges and practitioners. We will discuss how the court addresses parenting time issues during COVID, vaccinations and medical decision making, travel during spring break and otherwise, educational decisions, and how to handle exposure to COVID.

Join ADR Systems and WBAI's discussion regarding reunification therapy as a tool used in mediation. Dr. David Finn and Dr. Gail Grossman will discuss the components of reunification therapy. The mental health professionals will also discuss the practicalities of reunification therapy. Judge Helaine Berger and Amy Gertler will introduce a fact pattern for discussion and debate among panelists and attendees and will discuss the court’s approach to use of reunification therapy and mediation. Dr. Finn and Dr. Grossman will leave the audience with boundaries and best practices for practitioners and mediators alike when dealing with high conflict cases involving reunification therapy and mediation.

Educate attorneys around Diversity & Race in the legal profession. This session includes a panel of knowledgeable and well-respected panelists in the legal community introducing terms and examples relating to current topics of Systemic Racism; Implicit Bias, Diversity and Race.