Resource Library

Virtual currency is growing in use and recognition. Major entities, such as Microsoft, are beginning to recognize and accept Bitcoin payments, but most in-house counsel have little familiarity with virtual currency. Learn what it is, how it functions, how it may impact your clients and what domestic and international regulatory and enforcement regimes and issues – including enforcement actions and criminal prosecutions – have arisen from the evolving world of virtual currency. We will explain and explore the answers to these questions and demonstrate a Bitcoin transaction.

This program will review the management of compliance along the spectrum of management compliance, from legal and voluntarily adopted standards, to areas where business partners or outside organizations pressure companies to meet certain standards while weighing the costs against use of non-renewable resources (slavery, child labor, etc.) in the name of corporate social responsibility. Is it possible to create a proper and workable integration of the two efforts? Can it be within the compliance office or a joint effort of two or more corporate units?

Many companies are starting to form their own venture capital groups to explore different avenues to generate return on investment (ROI) and partner with emerging companies less expensively than through organic growth. An experienced panel of in-house practitioners and external counsel will provide a thorough understanding of current market practice, terms and conditions and applicable securities and ethical issues. You will learn the essentials of corporate venture capital, from examining the anatomy of a venture capital deal, dissecting term sheets and their negotiation, to exploring key issues in financing rounds, exit strategies and securities law compliance. You will also learn about the latest financing trends, regional differences in deal practice and ethical issues that arise when your employees act as directors of start-ups and venture-backed companies.

More than a million business entities have made Delaware their legal home, including more than half of all US public companies and more than half of the Fortune 500. This session will survey recent amendments to the Delaware General Corporation Law (DGCL) as well as major Delaware case law from 2015, including developments related to fee-shifting bylaws and DGCL §220 actions, and what those developments mean for your organization.

Increasingly, multinational corporations are conducting internal investigations to assess civil and regulatory risk, particularly in light of increased regulatory scrutiny. Because they face civil and regulatory risk in multiple jurisdictions, those investigations must also be conducted in multiple jurisdictions. Jurisdictions have different rules relating to internal investigations, such as privilege, employee interviews and disclosure obligations. This session will discuss how to conduct a cross-border internal investigation effectively and the pitfalls that may await in-house counsel.

In-house counsel will optimize their role as leaders in information governance by attending this session as they learn the lifecycle of data (collection, use, storage, archiving and destruction) and acquire tools to educate their companies on the risks and benefits associated with data as it travels through that lifecycle. Learn to resolve your company’s information management and governance issues and to add business value by finding information management systems that lower costs and improve efficiencies. Become “litigation-ready” in the face of complex discovery requests.

Whether to decide on a potential settlement or evaluate how legal risks may impact the long-term value of corporate strategies, in-house counsel are frequently expected to demonstrate business acumen and sound financial decision-making skills. During this session, experienced faculty from Boston University Questrom School of Business will help you sharpen your ability to make choices that rely on a rational financial-decision making process rather than the proverbial gut feeling. Faculty will discuss how to take into account external and internal factors that affect the longer-term profitability of the organization, in order to identify the decision that offers the best value. Faculty will also explain step-by-step how to understand the balance sheet, income statement and statement of cash flow, and how to identify red flags that signal financial difficulties or accounting problems.

Most companies enter into contracts more frequently than they realize. In fact, any time you agree to take an action or make a payment in exchange for something of value, a legal contract arguably has been created. When these “handshake deals” are made, companies find themselves relying on memories of conversations or cryptic emails to establish that a contract existed. Attend this session to determine when contracts exist, navigate disputes, protect your company, and maintain relationships.

Building upon the lessons learned in Part I (Session 911), faculty will further discuss the practical application of financial decision making practices to your everyday work. Faculty will also explain important analytical tools that indicate whether a new project will create value, such as: Net Present Value (NPV), Internal Rate of Return (IRR), Payback Period and Economic Value Added (EVA).

As more companies go global, in-house counsel must manage litigation where a foreign entity is sued in the United States or litigate a matter in Europe. Not only must in-house counsel educate overseas managers about the reality of litigation in the United States and learn various rules abroad, but they also face the difficult task of determining what is discoverable and how to conduct investigations to comply with the demands of US courts and stringent EU data and privacy regulations. This panel will focus on highlighting the differences between the key stages of litigation in the European Union and the United States, using real-world examples to help in-house counsel better prepare to deal with the practical implications of litigation involving multiple jurisdictions.