NJSBA 2025 Virtual Spring Conference

Earn up to 8.2 credits, including 2.0 in diversity. The topics you want! The speakers you need to hear!

Spring into March with the NJSBA’s Virtual Spring Conference! Don’t miss this virtual daylong event to earn over 8 credits on topics that will help your practice bloom!

You’ll gain insights from some of the state’s top thought leaders on the topics that are crucial for you to stay ahead in 2025 and beyond. 

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8:30 - 10:30 a.m.

Family Law

Auditing Family Law Firms – Compliance and Strategies
Don’t miss this informative seminar focused on auditing family law firms. Our expert panelists will delve into compliance considerations and effective strategies for ensuring ethical and efficient practices within family law firms.

Key Topics:

• Compliance Framework: Understand the regulatory landscape and best practices for family law firms.
• Risk Assessment: Identify potential compliance risks and develop mitigation strategies.
• Financial Audits: Explore financial recordkeeping, trust accounting, and ethical billing practices.
• Client Confidentiality: Address confidentiality protocols and safeguarding client information.
• Ethical Dilemmas: Discuss common ethical challenges faced by family law practitioners.
• Effective Internal Controls: Implement procedures to enhance compliance and prevent errors.

Moderator:
Megan S. Murray, Esq.
The Family Law Offices of Megan S. Murray, Holmdel

Speakers:
Alexandra M. Freed, Esq.
Seiden Freed, LLC, Pennington

Derek M. Freed, Esq.
Seiden Freed, LLC, Pennington

Tiffany Keefer
Director of Operations, H&S Business Partners, Inc.

Best Practices for Working with Survivors of Crimes
This esteemed panel will equip attendees with essential tools and knowledge to effectively work with survivors of crimes as clients and witnesses, both in criminal and civil cases, while maintaining a trauma-informed, compassionate approach. First, the panel will begin with an overview of the New Jersey Crime Victims Bill of Rights to remind attendees of the legal rights of crime victims and witnesses. Attendees will hear from the panel about their experiences, while learning about important topics such as proper methods of questioning for survivors, how to navigate sensitive conversations and how to recognize and combat your own biases when speaking with survivors. Speakers will explore the importance of recognizing a client’s unique needs and empowering them to make informed decisions at every stage of a case. In addition, attendees will receive guidance on connecting survivors to valuable resources that serve to support survivors beyond the courtroom. The panel includes a survivor of a mass shooting who provide deeply personal and painful insights.

Join this discussion to ensure you are equipped with the best practices for working with survivors of crimes in an effective, compassionate and fair manner.

Speakers:
Jennifer DiPillo
Director, Crime Victims Law Project

Dion Green
Founder/CEO, Flourishing Under Distress Given Encouragement (FUDGE Foundation)
Mass Shooting Survivor

Richard F. Klineburger, III, Esq.
Klineburger & Nussey, Haddonfield

Lindsay Lieberman, Esq.
Lindsay Lieberman Law and Consulting

Prosecutor Joseph Paravecchia
First Assistant Prosecutor
Hunterdon County Prosecutor’s Office

Real Estate

Fire, Flood and Title Insurance  – What Real Estate Attorneys Need to Know Now 
California may be far away, but insurance companies in New Jersey are taking notice of the destruction. The Star-Ledger recently reported that non-renewals have increased in New Jersey and elsewhere as climate risks make homes less attractive for insurers to cover. New Jersey ranked eighth by non-renewal percent change from 2018 to 2023, and that was before the recent flood and fire catastrophes in the west. 

Mortgage companies require borrowers to obtain homeowners insurance, but how should a real estate attorney advise their clients when the insurance options are diminishing? What sort of additional coverage is available – and worth the price – to ensure your clients have what they need if disaster strikes? What do lawyers need to know about flood insurance, which is not a component of homeowner’s insurance? Finally, is title affected by all of this? 

Join experienced insurance professionals and practitioners as they provide you with up-to-date information on what residential real estate attorneys need to know about insurance and title in today’s volatile climate. 

Speakers:
Lou Hoguet
Executive Vice President, Fortune Title Agency, Inc.

Brad Slater
Personal Risk Specialist, USI Affinity

Lisa W. Spiegel, Esq.
Associate Executive Director, Continuing Legal Education
New Brunswick State Bar Association

Kevin Thomas
Personal Risk Practice Leader, USI Affinity

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10:40 a.m. - 12:30 p.m.

For Every Attorney

Memory on Trial - Plenary Session for Lawyers in Every Kind of Practice
Steve Easton, the trial lawyer and award-winning teacher who has brought many innovative programs to NJICLE, will present a new and impactful program.

“What you end up remembering isn't always the same as what you have witnessed.” Every case begins with a story, but what if what a client remembers is not what actually happened?

Nationally-acclaimed lawyer and lecturer Steve Easton will present a unique session that will help you acquire a better understanding of the fascinating nature of memory and how to apply this knowledge in your practice. From the client interview to settlement discussions, from trials to contract negotiations, you will gain insights into memory and the recollection of details. Steve will provide you with practical steps for using this knowledge to better represent your clients. 

The work of Dr. Elizabeth Loftus and other psychologists has established that a person's recollections about what happened on a particular occasion are often not consistent with what actually happened on that occasion. As Dr. Loftus has said, "What we believe with all our hearts is not necessarily the truth." 

Our justice system reflects this over-reliance on honest memories. Many jurisdictions have pattern jury instructions advising jurors about their duty to determine if a witness is testifying honestly, but few have pattern jury instructions advising them about the imperfections of human memory. In this presentation, Steve Easton will provide a case study of a trial whose result turned on the reliability of witnesses' memories. Easton, along with Marine Corps Lt. Col. Jessica Martz (ret'd) and others, represented a Marine Corp Drill Instructor who was charged with illegally kicking a recruit.

Even though the program examines memory through the lens of a trial, this unique presentation will help all lawyers gain a better understanding of the tenuous nature of memory and how to apply this knowledge in every area of practice so you can better represent your clients. 

Speaker:
Stephen D.  Easton, Esq.
Trial Lawyer, Award-Winning Teacher
President, Dickinson State University

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12:45 - 2:25 p.m.

DEI, Labor and Employment

Neurodiversity in the Workplace
Tracy Sanders Rucker, attorney and founder of “Natural Hair and the Law,” returns with a look at diversity through the prism of neurodiversity and the law. She will be joined by Janna Sheiman, Associate Attorney with the Legal Department of the Mercer County Board of Social Services.

Neurodiversity describes the idea that people experience and interact with the world around them in many different ways. There is no one "right" way of thinking, learning, and behaving. The word neurodiversity refers to the diversity of all people. Still, it is often used in the context of autism spectrum disorder (ASD), as well as other neurological or developmental conditions such as attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), learning disabilities and dyslexia. A discussion about this is especially helpful to lawyers who represent clients or management in the workplace, or who are neurodiverse themselves.

This continuing legal education (CLE) seminar will inform how relevant state and federal laws like the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA) and Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) apply to neurodiverse clients. The speakers will also discuss accommodations in the workplace and constructive tips for interacting with neurodiverse colleagues. Finally, attendees will learn more about the balance between individualism and dress codes in the workplace, which may result in "perceived disability" based on personal appearance (hairstyle, clothing, body piercings, and hygiene).

Speakers:

Tracy Sanders Rucker, Esq.
Author, Natural Hair and the Law

Janna Sheiman
Associate Attorney, Legal Department
Mercer County Board of Social Services

DEI, Family Law

Obergefell 10 Years Later
Obergefell vs. Hodges established a nationwide right to marriage equality for committed same-sex couples, based partly upon the modernized interpretation of the 14th Amendment’s substantive due process requirements. The conversation will consider the role of U.S. v. Windsor and the substantive issues in New Jersey’s marriage equality litigations, Lewis v. Harris and Garden State Equality v. Dow.

This program will address the status of same-sex marriage ten years after the landmark Obergefell decision. The speakers, including a co-founder of Garden State Equality and the co-author of New Jersey’s marriage equality statute (signed into law by Governor Murphy on Jan. 10, 2022), will discuss the current state of the law, what to expect in the coming months and what advice attorneys can give to their clients in light of the recent executive orders signed by the President.

Moderator/Speaker:
Alison C. Leslie, Esq.
Leslie Law Firm, LLC, Morristown

Speakers:
Jeffrey M. Fiorello, Esq.
Cohn Lifland Pearlman Herrmann & Knopf LLP, Saddle Brook

Thomas H. Prol, Esq.
Past President, NJSBA
Sills Cummis & Gross, PC, Newark

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2:50 - 4:30 p.m.

Civil

How Appealing – The Very Latest in Appeals for Civil Litigators
Don’t miss this timely seminar on the latest in appellate practice. Join the Hon. Louis Locascio, J.S.C. (Ret.) and appellate practitioner Jeffery S. Mandel, Esq. as they combine their decades of experience to highlight the most important do’s, don’t’s and recent rulings for your cases.

Topics include:

• Do’s and don’ts from decades of experience
  - Deciding whether to appeal and which issues appeal
  - How to prioritize issues on appeal – the issues appellate courts are receptive to deciding
  - Best practices for interlocutory appeals
  - Best practices for oral argument preparation and structure
  - How to prepare state appellate briefs that grab the judges’ attention and strengthen your argument
• The latest on e-filing – what you need to know now
• Important recent cases including:
  - Brehme vs. Irwin – in which the New Jersey Supreme Court held that a plaintiff who accepts full payment of an automobile personal injury final judgment awarding damages for pain and suffering, disability, impairment, loss of enjoyment of life, and past lost wages, and executes a warrant to satisfy that judgment, may then appeal an in limine ruling barring evidence of future medical expenses if certain circumstances apply.

Speakers:
Hon. Louis F. Locascio, JSC (Ret.)
Andrew S. Blumer LLC, Freehold

Jeffrey S. Mandel, Esq.
Law Offices of Jeffrey S. Mandel LLC, Freehold

Immigration

Immigration Under the New Executive Orders
A roundtable discussion of executive actions, policy changes and legislative changes affecting the practice of immigration law in several areas, including:

• Family immigration
• Removal/deportation
• ICE enforcement
• Parole
• Travel in and out of the United States
• Visa processing

Moderator/Speaker:
Alan J. Pollack, Esq.
Wilentz Goldman & Spitzer, Perth Amboy

Speakers:
Lloyd E. Bennett, Esq.
Lloyd E. Bennett, Esq., PC, Union City, NJ

Carolina T. Curbelo, Esq.
Law Office of Carolina T. Curbelo, LLC, Ridgewood

Municipal Court

State vs Zingis – Important 2025 Updates
The Court has issued a revised opinion and the Court ordered Zingis Index and Dennis Calibration Repository just went live online, and the new Zingis obligations on Prosecutors, Defense, and Courts are immediately effective. 236,664 breath tests between 2008 and 2016 are indexed online, and 1,046 calibrations are available as a download. This seminar is MUST for anyone practicing DWI. The new obligations apply to every DWI prosecution ANYWHERE in the State whenever a prosecutor intends to use a prior DWI from ANYWHERE in the State. 

Don’t miss out on this one time online seminar with our panelists:

Jeffrey Evan Gold, Esq., a NJICLE Distinguished Service Award winner, former Asst. Burlington County Prosecutor and DWI defense attorney. After representing the NJSBA as an amicus curae party in State v. Zingis and advocating for the position which the Court ultimately adopted, Mr. Gold will provide the latest information on what is required on affected DWI cases going forward.

Michael Troso, Esq., Former Deputy Attorney General with the New J Division of Criminal Justice and DWI defense attorney. Certified by the Supreme Court of New Jersey as a Certified Municipal Court Trial Attorney and certified by Draeger as an Alcotest Operator, Mr. Troso was on the NJSBA team that litigated State v. Zingis along with Mr. Gold.