 |
 |
 |
|
| e-mail us | archives | private members area | member firm directory | |
|
Welcome Reception The delegates and companions gathered in the Oak Room at the Grand America Hotel for the opening reception. On behalf of Fabian & Clendenin, Stanford Owen opened the 2003 Regional Meeting of the Americas by welcoming the delegates and companions to Salt Lake City. The reception was followed by an optional visit to The Mormon Tabernacle Choir rehearsal.
Welcome and Opening Address Stanford Owen and his colleagues from Fabian & Clendenin opened the ILN Business Session by welcoming the delegates and invited guests to the 2003 International Lawyers Network Regional Meeting of the Americas in Salt Lake City. Stanford noted that Fabian & Clendenin was one of the first U.S. firms to join the ILN. Stanford introduced several of his partners in attendance, including Mr. Peter Billings, President of Fabian & Clendenin. Stanford Owen proceeded to introduce Governor Olene S. Walker, Utah’s 15th and first woman governor, sworn in on November 5, 2003. While serving as Utah’s first woman lieutenant governor, Olene S. Walker spearheaded many important initiatives including education programs, budget security measures, health care reform and workforce development. She led the Healthcare Reform Task Force that resulted in establishing the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP), ensuring affordable healthcare for Utah’s children. Olene S. Walker also served as Chair of the Workforce Task Force, resulting in the development of the Department of Workforce Services. Governor Walker welcomed the ILN delegates and distinguished guests to Utah, and thanked them for the opportunity to give the opening address. Governor Walker proceeded to give the delegates and guests a brief description of the qualities and beauty of Utah, a diverse state with mountains, lakes, red rock wonders and desert vistas. She noted that the true beauty of Utah is the great friendliness of its people. Governor Walker explained that the Winter Olympics held in Utah in 2002, were remarkable, particularly with bringing out the spirit of volunteerism – three times the number required volunteered. Utah has really become a global state. In closing, Governor Walker thanked Fabian & Clendenin and the ILN for choosing Utah as its venue for the 2003 ILN Regional Meeting of the Americas. Stanford Owen thanked the Governor for taking the time out of her hectic schedule to open our meeting and proceeded to introduce Mr. Henrique De Agostini, Director of the Americas at the Utah International Business Development Office and the distinguished assembled panel. The panel began the morning’s session by addressing the topic “Challenges of Doing Business in the Americas”. Stanford also welcomed the many prominent Utah business representatives invited to attend and participate in the morning session. (see separate attached list of guests)
ILN Delegates:
Corporate Panel - Addressed the Topic “Challenges of Doing Business in the Americas”
Mr.
Roger Marks H2O+– President of International Operations
and General Counsel Mr. De Agostini introduced each panelist before inviting them to make their presentations. Mr. Roger Marks, the President of the International Division of H2O+, Inc. is responsible for the strategic planning and expansion of its worldwide growth outside of the U.S. and Canada. He formulates the business/legal model that is compatible with Company philosophy and provides for successful growth. He is also actively involved in promoting the unique water-based, sea-inspired brand concept to prospective distributors and developing close working relationships with existing distributors. Mr. Perry Jensen is the International Sales Manager for ICON. ICON owns and manufactures some of the most well-known brands in the fitness industry including ProForm, NordicTrack, and HealthRider. They also license the popular Reebok and Gold’s Gym brands. In addition to manufacturing, ICON performs all marketing, research, development and industrial design for all of their product lines. These brand names are immediately recognizable to consumers and are known for their strong reputation for high performance products around the globe. Mr. D. Tod Schulthess is the Chief Operating Officer of SorensonGenomics. SorensonGenomics is a world-renown DNA laboratory and a global industry leader responsible for providing high-throughput DNA genotyping and sequencing services. SorensonGenomics is using the powerful tools of DNA testing to provide services such as DNA paternity testing, Human migration pattern assessment, and to characterize novel DNA sequencing. Mr. Mark Kendell is the President and CEO of ECONOVA. ECONOVA actively seeks strategic and professional alliances that compliment its proprietary technologies and mission through a diverse array of professional and scientific talents. ECONOVA strives to be the highest value innovator and producer of leading-edge engineered water cleaning equipment and services that: •
Protect world-wide water resources Mr. Francisco Ruiz is the Executive Vice President of International Armoring Corp (IAC). IAC prides itself on designing and producing vehicles which give protection to a perceived threat level, while maintaining the vehicles original appearance and performance as a normal passenger vehicle. IAC views its product as a service - realizing it is a very personal experience, and one of utmost importance. IAC specializes in the manufacture of bullet-resistant passenger vehicles for government officials, heads of state, business executives, or any other individual who perceives a threat. Mr. Marks remarked on some of the criteria that he looks for when retaining outside counsel. At the same time he noted how law firms and/or organizations such as the ILN might promote their services and expertise to in-house counsel by facilitating and assisting in the selection process for foreign counsel. Mr. Marks commented that it is important for any foreign law firm he instructs to be able to analyze issues from an American perspective. Mr. Jensen remarked that the difficulty ICON faces when working with the Americas is navigating the cultural differences. He also noted that it would be useful to have guidance in making decisions regarding ethics, marketing strategies and exporting taxation issues. Mr. Schulthess noted that in his experience, it is very important to understand how to develop trust with counterparts in the Americas. It is also very important to be able assist companies in the Americas in understanding science on a global level. For instance, the way some of the methods used by scientists in the Americas to process DNA are the same methods used in the USA ten years ago. It is therefore difficult to gain the confidence of the scientists and explain that some newer, cheaper methods are as reliable. Mr. Kendell noted that the psychology of an American investor or private equity group expanding internationally is quite simple – do not lose money and protect your Intellectual Property. It is essential to find a law firm that really understands intellectual property as well as the nuances and bureaucracy of a particular country. Piracy issues are a large deterrent for expanding into certain countries. Mr. Ruiz reported that IAC faces challenges in the area of technology transfers. It is very easy, particularly in South America, to hire someone and six months later they will be your competitors. Labor laws and taxation issues also pose challenges for the IAC. Mr. Ruiz commented that it is difficult, as a small company, to find trustworthy and reputable law firms that will help IAC protect its interests. In addition to the shared valuable comments based on the panelists own experiences, the following is a summary of some other important issues discussed: Attorney Selection - key elements sought in firms outside the USA are: •
Ability to strategize and assess issues from American standpoint. Important points before partnering with a local company: •
Need to build element of trust and confidence. •
Overcoming scientific differences—if US is more advanced
than local scientists, new technology may not seem credible. Psychology of the American Investor: •IP
needs to be protected; local issues need to be understood. Acknowledging Each Country’s Differences: •Form
of agreement—i.e. distributorship, broker, franchise—has
different meanings and implications in each country. Mr. De Agostini invited the panelists to mingle with the delegates over a brief coffee break. Lowell Lifschultz thanked all the panelists for a very interesting presentation and encouraged the panelists to stay and participate with the second panel to create a more interactive discussion. International Lawyers Network Panel – Topic “Working with the Americas – an Ounce of Prevention” Lowell Lifschultz, ILN Chairman and Chair of the Corporate Practice at Epstein Becker & Green, New York moderated the ILN panel and began the second session by thanking the ILN panelists for their help with this panel presentation. Lowell introduced the panelists and noted their firms. Panelists Ms
Cynde Hirschtick Munzer Arnstein & Lehr – Chicago Lowell began by commenting that the ILN, during the 16 years since its inception, has developed a comparative sense of what foreign companies want in other countries. He also highlighted that the ILN has a self-regulated mechanism for quality control because work being done between the member firms is well known within the Network and its members. There is a long history of transactional experience between the members which not only keeps the level of quality high, but it also keeps fees reasonable. The panel suggested keeping the referring lawyer on your team so that the company has a local contact. It is the local contacts responsibility to manage the project and keep the company contact appraised. The panel also recommended that when entering another country, it is critical to have an exit strategy up front, and not wait until the need is there. It was noted that lawyers in the United States are used to playing more of a business advisory role, not just providing legal advice. This is not the case in all jurisdictions The morning session concluded at this time and the panelists, delegates and invited guests adjourned for more informal discussions over a buffet lunch. Many of the participants used this time to make introductions and ask any questions they may have had as a result of the morning sessions. Saturday Session – November 15, 2003 New Members Introductions Lowell opened the Saturday morning session by thanking Stanford Owen and Fabian & Clendenin for hosting such a wonderful Regional Meeting. Lowell also expressed his thanks to Alan Griffiths for his tremendous accomplishments over the last two years. Lowell continued by thanking Roger Marks for his participation and his willingness to stay for all of the events in order to give the ILN members in attendance an opportunity to spend time with him. As is usual during our Regional and Annual meetings, Lowell introduced, the ILN’s newest members, Stephen Rathke, Lommen, Nelson, Cole & Stageberg, P.A., Minneapolis and Branville McCartney, Halsbury Chambers, The Bahamas , attending their first official ILN meeting as a member. Lowell also introduced and welcomed Mr. Albert Kennedy from Tonkon Torp, LLP, Portland, who was attending the meeting as our guest. Lowell then handed the floor to Alan Griffiths – Executive Director. Alan began by welcoming all of the delegates to Salt Lake City and then asked Stephen Rathke to take the floor and give a presentation outlining the strengths of Lommen, Nelson, Cole & Stageberg, P.A.,. If you would like to view any of the presentations below, please go to the following address:www.iln.com/presentations_slc.htm Lommen, Nelson, Cole & Stageberg, P.A. is a mid-sized, 35 plus, Midwest law firm offering litigation and appellate services, services to businesses and entrepreneurs, and counsel to individuals. The firm has offices in Minneapolis, Minnesota, Woodbury, Minnesota and Hudson, Wisconsin. Martindale-Hubbell awarded Lommen, Nelson, Cole & Stageberg, P.A., its highest rating for legal ability and recommendation. For further information about the firm and individual attorneys, please consult their website www.lommen.com or their listings on Martindale-Hubbell. Lommen,
Nelson, Cole & Stageberg, P.A. Alan thanked Stephen for his very informative presentation and invited Branville McCartney to take the floor to make his presentation. Halsbury Chambers is a multidisciplinary, commercial law practice, established in December 2000 by Mr. W. A. Branville McCartney, a former Acting Magistrate and civil litigation lawyer. The firm expanded its scope and practice of the law with the admission of Mr. Alexander Berkley Ferguson, a civil and commercial litigation lawyer, and Mr. Tyrone L. E. Fitzgerald, a corporate and commercial lawyer, to the partnership of the firm, in July 2001.
Halsbury
Commercial Centre, Suite 1 Guest Firm Presentation Mr. Albert N. Kennedy - Tonkon Torp LLP, Portland, Oregon Tonkon Torp works with companies of all sizes to achieve a range of business goals, such as: raising capital through private sources and public offerings, resolving disputes through negotiation and in court, protecting intellectual assets, and forging strong relationships with employees and strategic partners. Clients benefit from Tonkon Torp’s deep roots in Oregon, their contacts in the business and financial communities, and their experience working with federal and state regulatory agencies throughout the Northwest. Tonkon Torp combines the entrepreneurial spirit of a small firm with the legal skills and resources usually found only in much larger firms. 1600
Pioneer Tower, 888 S.W. Fifth Avenue In closing, Mr. Kennedy thanked the ILN for the invitation to attend this year’s meeting and noted that he had been made very welcome by all of the members. He was also very impressed with the quality and style of the ILN member firms in attendance and thought that Tonkon Torp would be a perfect fit with the existing profile of ILN members. At this point in the session, Alan asked Stanford Owen to introduce two of his partners from the Business/Tax Group at Fabian & Clendenin, who were going to present some of the pressing concerns and issues related to: “Cyberspace/Internet Issues of Security and Privacy” Mr.
Victor A. Pollack – Chair, Business/Tax Practice Group at
Fabian & Clendenin Mr. Pollack addressed the issue of cyber threat response and reporting guidelines. An organization must respond in some way to a computer security breach – whether it is an intrusion/hack, the implantation of malicious code such as a virus or worm, or a denial of service attack. The better prepared the organization is to respond quickly and effectively, the better chance it will have to minimize the damage. Mr. Pollack continued by discussing some guidelines intended to provide a framework and a starting point for developing a cyber threat response and reporting capability. Mr Pollack’s presentation was extremely detailed and specific in nature. To view the complete presentation, please visit the following website: www.iln.com/presentations_slc.htm If you would like any further information concerning these important issues and potential solutions, Mr. Pollack can be reached via e-mail vpollak@fabianlaw.com or tel: (801) 323-2247. Current Member Update Lowell asked the delegates to provide their ILN colleagues with a a short update on how their firm’s have changed and expanded during the past 5 years. He noted that many of the ILN member firms have expanded quite dramatically, both in the practice areas they cover and in their geographic locations. Lowell asked Mr. Robert Bijloos of Lefèvre Pelletier & Associés, Avocats, Paris to begin by detailing how his firm had changed. Robert began by announcing that in Paristheir firm had just celebrated its 20th Anniversary in practice. Recounting when Lefèvre Pelletier & Associés, Avocats joined the Network in 1989, there were only four very dynamic partners with 10 associates. Today, they have 150 fee earners and in all those twenty years, not one partner has ever left the firm. Robert noted that this can be considered the best compliment for any firm. Stanford Owen continued the series of firm reports by informing the group that Fabian & Clendenin is now approaching 50 lawyers. The firm is a full-service law firm, primarily litigation, but also very strong in many other areas. All of the delegates in turn gave an update about their firm. It is important that all the ILN members are aware of the expansion and changes taking place with their fellow ILN colleagues. For a complete and continually updated synopsis of all ILN member firms, please visit the website at www.iln.com. Lowell asked Roger Marks to share any observations or make suggestions on how the ILN can better improve its ability to work with generals counsel and companies like H2O+. Roger Marks noted that there are a number of organizations that have international members, for instance the International Franchise Association and the District Export Counsel, that provide members with a list of lawyers that the business members can tap into. On a more local level, some sort of advertising in the local Bar Association journals and in other organizations could be very productive. Lowell informed the delegates that the Board has spent substantial time discussing the current and future development of the ILN, and in particular, its European representation. Lowell invited Robert Bijloos to give a brief overview of the plans for development in Europe over the next year. Robert noted that the ILN coverage in Europe had historically been far greater that the coverage in the USA. Due to the extremely successful recruitment achievements in the US, that is now not the case. As was stated in Seattle, the administration is going to be spending a great deal of time and energy in recruitment activities in Europe. In some European jurisdictions, is must be stated that some existing member firms may be too small to compete for some of the larger referrals, especially in the M & A arena.. The ILN must move forward and find new solutions to provide a deeper coverage throughout Europe. Lowell added that the ILN is focused on creating balance and uniformity across the board within the Network with regard to quality and size. Lowell handed the floor back to Alan for the ILN administrative update. ILN Update Alan noted that it had been important to concentrate the morning session on the changes taking place with the member firms, and as a result, time was limited for a full review of the administrations activities. In August 2003, the administration rolled-out of the 2nd phase of the website development. This included a searchable database of member firms by country, practice area, firm name and contact. In addition, a keyword search function was made available so both members and the public can search ILN member articles and documents that have been uploaded to the website. Alan provided a short demonstration of the capabilities of the website and the various search functions. Outlining the continual need to “push down” the ILN experience within the member firms, Alan informed the group that two new ILN Practice Groups had been formed: an International Tax Group and an Intellectual Property Group. The first step in developing the tax group was to develop a database of every tax individual in the Network; the second stage is to appoint a main contact person for the tax group within each firm and the third stage is to further develop the individual database to identify each attorney’s tax specialty. The data collected from these practice groups will be readily accessible on the website as the 3rd phase is rolled-out in early December 2003 Alan informed the delegates that the administration constantly monitors the statistical data of website visitors and pages accessed. The ILN website and many of the articles are accessed quite frequently. Alan proceeded to show the members that the ILN website, during the past twelve months, had received a total of 40,000 visitors who had visited approximately 80,000 pages on the site. Worthy of note, after the ILN Main Page, the ILN Newsletter and associated articles are the most popular locations visited. Also worthy of note, articles published more that two years ago, were still being accessed by the public. The ILN articles are frequently found listed in the top ten search results of many of the common search engines. Alan thanked all member firms and attorneys for their efforts in supplying articles for the Newsletter. Alan informed the delegates that the next Annual Meeting, co-hosted by Memery Crystal and Fladgate Fielder is scheduled to be held in London, June 2 – 6, 2004. Simon Ekins from Fladgate Fielder present as a delegate and Alan invited him to give a short outline of the planned activities for next year’s Annual Meeting. Upcoming 16th Annual Meeting – London
Closing Remarks Lowell graciously thanked Stanford and Barbara Owen as well as all the members of Fabian & Clendenin, for all the work and effort they put into making the conference so interesting and successful. It was clear that the delegates, companions and guests had enjoyed Salt Lake City and all it had to offer. Lowell announced that the meeting in Salt Lake City had been, without question, the most “on schedule” meeting of all time. Lowell also thanked Alan Griffiths, noting that the Network would not be what it is today without his dedication and efforts. In closing, Stanford Owen thanks all the delegates for making this a rich experience for him and his colleagues. He invited everyone to relax and enjoy the afternoon activities around the City, and said he looked forward to seeing everyone at the Gala dinner in La Caille Restaurant. Gala Evening The
gala evening was held at La Caille Restaurant, where the delegates
and companions were able to relax and enjoy the soothing ambiance
and beautiful surroundings, including the gardens and vineyards,
which created a feeling of stepping back in time to the rural
valleys of Bordeaux, Champagne and Alsace. As the evening drew
to a close, Lowell and Alan presented Stanford and Barbara with
a specially crafted Royal Delft plate, to mark to occasion. There
seemed to be some concern that the plate might look best in Fabian
and Clendenin’s office, but cooler heads prevailed and it
was decided that it would look more at home alongside Stanford’s
prized basketball trophies.
|
|
|
