Join PBI for our 2021 Personal Injury Law Conference, to learn, compare, share, and challenge emerging developments, trends and practices in personal injury litigation.
Top personal injury lawyers, judges and experts gather to offer an information-packed agenda of topics that zero in on your practice.
We bring you statewide geographic representation, plaintiff versus defense perspectives, updates on the many tangents of personal injury litigation, and trade secrets of the baby boomers and millennials, and the generations in between!
Stay on top of the issues that are essential for your practice
Take advantage of virtual lectures, diverse panels, access to the state’s most respected plaintiff’s and defense counsel and judges, and opportunities to ask your questions throughout the day.
COVID19 may have changed your practice, but the complexities of litigation and running a successful injury practice remain the same.
Join us for topics that will include evidentiary and procedural instruction for handling a variety of injury cases, such as automobile accidents, premises liability and catastrophic injuries, and also practical and ethical standards for operating a personal injury firm after the pandemic.
The Agenda
Welcome from the Pennsylvania Bar Association and Civil Litigation Section
The Practice of Law During The COVID-19 Pandemic, Part One: Civil Jury Trials – Lessons Learned, Where We Are and Where We are Going
Hear perspectives from Trial Judges and Trial Lawyers who are on the front line of civil case management and trials during the pandemic.
Auto Insurance 101
Alleviate all crash concerns with this basic—but detailed--introduction to the Pennsylvania Auto Insurance Policy, including a thorough explanation of each of the specific auto coverages that are available in Pennsylvania.
Interplay between Personal Injury and Workers’ Compensation
When an employee gets hurt on the job, he/she has three options: file for personal injury, file for workers compensation or file for both. Unfortunately, it can be difficult to determine the difference between the two types of cases, let alone which one is right for the situation at hand. Learn from defense and plaintiff’s counsel as they explore the differences between these claims, as well as situations where compensation may be sought from a third-party for negligence that may have contributed to a work injury. This discussion will focus on potential liens (Section 319), the importance of cooperating with the workers’ compensation defense attorney/third party plaintiff’s attorney in order to obtain a good result for the client and identifying potential third party claims.
Pennsylvania Liquor Liability Law
This program explores the contours of liability of Pennsylvania liquor licensees for negligently serving alcohol on their premises that results in harm to customers and/or foreseeable third-parties.
Prioritizing Liability Against Multiple Defendants in a Construction Case
The question of how liability should be allocated in civil matters, when two or more parties are held liable for damage caused to another party or plaintiff, remains controversial. It is clear that if two or more liable defendants have caused the same loss, then those liable defendants must compensate the plaintiff. The more difficult question is how to litigate and allocate liability among the liable defendants. This panel will discuss different forms of liability, including joint and several liability, proportionate liability, liability capped by statute and contractual limitations on liability. Using a real-life example, the panel will discuss how to proceed against different defendants based upon the priority of their liability as well as offer a defense perspective on how to defend with respect to that priority.
The Practice of Law Post-Pandemic, Part Two
COVID19 transformed how we access the courts, and the way law firms interact with clients. Many lawyers are facing new challenges as they transition back to in-office legal work and these will be explored by our panel of experts from different types of practices. Topics will include the pros and cons of returning staff to the physical office and seeing clients in person versus working remotely and assessing productivity as a managing attorney. They will also address technological considerations for office management via cloud storage, technology maintenance with multiple devices per user, and issues related to remote litigation proceedings such as depositions, hearings, and jury and bench trials. Finally, the panel will also address mental health aspects of returning to the office and how these procedures disproportionately affect women and minorities.
Sponsored by the PBA Civil Litigation Section , this Conference supports their mission to build community and a supportive network through innovative, informative and fun programming.
All attendees will receive the course book as a digital download. A printed copy of the course book is available, at a discount to attendees, for $40. Additional copies are available at full price. If you wish to purchase the printed version of the course book, please call PBI Customer Service at 800-932-4637. Printed versions of the course book will not be distributed at the course; please allow up to two weeks after the program for the printed versions of the course book to be shipped.
Recorded in September 2021.