Tort CLE Course Catalog

This session will use examples from major mass tort settlements involving property damage and environmental contamination claims, including the Deepwater Horizon settlements and environmental tort cases following a massive sinkhole in Louisiana, to highlight creative approaches to class and non-class settlements and effective use of mediation to settle complex claims.

This presentation will discuss what steps to take when a claim for property damage has progressed into litigation. The presenters will discuss what to expect from start to finish in a litigated claim, focusing specifically on property damages claims and variations state to state. Presenters will share their observations and experiences from practice and jurisdiction, including FL, CA, and the Northeast, as well as the most common types of property claims arising in each area.

Preparing and presenting corporate witnesses for their trial testimony are two of the most important aspects of any trial. They can often be the difference between winning and losing the case. Corporate witness testimony can also substantially impact the value of juror awards. This panel discusses best practices that will help ensure the readiness of corporate witnesses for their trial testimony.

In the next installment of this popular series, Peter Afrasiabi takes a fun look at what the Constitution – as well as the criminal and tort law – have to say about sex, including those who choose to record it or lie about it. This program includes an overview of laws regulating sexual behavior (e.g., adultery, incest, obscenity), voyeurism (e.g., pornography, revenge porn, peeping Tom laws) and lying about sex (e.g., right to lie, perjury).

Experienced First Amendment litigator Peter Afrasiabi uses the facts of the notorious Johnny Depp/Amber Heard trial to provide an expert overview of the tort of defamation, including the elements, defenses and damages. This program includes several critical pieces of advice for practitioners who may be considering filing a defamation claim on behalf of a client to avoid the many traps for the unwary that lie in wait in cases where allegedly defamatory statements are placed in issue.

Opioid, sexual abuse and asbestos cases have been all over the news in the last few years. This panel of experts will discuss and analyze the complex issues involved in mass tort chapter 11 cases today, including current issues involving future claims, nonconsensual releases and plan-confirmation issues.

In this program, Dr. Brian Russell, clinical psychologist and practicing attorney, will discuss how "psychobabble" can affect a case and offers some tips on how to spot it and what to do to stop it.">In this program, Dr. Brian Russell, clinical psychologist and practicing attorney, will discuss how "psychobabble" can affect a case and offers some tips on how to spot it and what to do to stop it.