COVID-19 and the Courts

Agenda

All times are Pacific Daylight Time

8:45 a.m.

Welcome and Introductions

• Erwin Chemerinsky, Dean, Jesse H. Choper Distinguished Professor of Law, UC Berkeley School of Law
• James Anderson, Director, ICJ, RAND Corporation
• Mary-Christine ("M.C.") Sungaila, Chair, ICJ Board of Advisors; Shareholder, Chair, Appellate Practice Group, Buchalter

9:00 a.m.

Panel: Implications for Civil Juries

What impact has the COVID-19 crisis had on the courts’ ability to conduct civil jury trials? This panel will discuss achieving an equitable jury pool, potential logistical and Constitutional issues, how virtual trials might impact jury outcomes, and how civil justice participants may be affected.

• Moderator:
  Richard Jolly, Associate, Susman Godfrey LLP; Fellow, Berkeley Law CJRI
• Panelists:
  Robert A. Clifford, Founder and Senior Partner, Clifford Law Offices
• Arturo J. González, Partner, Morrison & Foerster LLP
• Valerie Hans, Charles F. Rechlin Professor of Law, Cornell Law School
• Judge Carolyn Kuhl, Los Angeles County Superior Court

10:30 a.m.

Break

10:45 a.m.

Panel: Implications for Pre-Trial Case Management

What changes to pre-trial case management have been made due to the pandemic? This panel will address discovery delays and disputes, negotiations and the settlement process, the impact of potential disparities among courts’ technology and facilities, and the degree to which litigants might begin to opt for alternatives in order to resolve disputes in a timely fashion.

• Moderator:
  Judge Jeremy Fogel, Executive Director, Berkeley Judicial Institute
• Panelists:
  Janet Abaray, Managing Shareholder, Ohio Office, BurgSimpson
• Scott Dodson, James Edgar Hervey Chair in Litigation and Geoffrey C. Hazard Jr. Distinguished Professor of Law, UC Hastings College of the Law
• Charles Lifland, Partner, O’Melveny & Myers LLP
• Judge Sandra Perlman, Seventeenth Judicial Circuit, Broward County, Florida

12:15 p.m.

Lunch Break

1:15 p.m.

Panel: Implications for Federal and State Civil Rules

Will courts implement permanent changes to rules and procedures as a consequence of the pandemic’s disruption? This panel will discuss notable proposals in regard to federal and state court systems, consider its implications on the resolution of civil disputes if adopted, and suggest optimal strategies courts might implement.

• Moderator:
  Jocelyn Larkin, Executive Director, Impact Fund
• Panelists:
  Andrew Bradt, Professor of Law, UC Berkeley School of Law
• Robert J. Giuffra, Jr., Partner, Sullivan & Cromwell LLP (Member, Standing Committee on Rules of Practice and Procedure)
• Richard Marcus, Distinguished Professor of Law and Horace O. Coil Chair in Litigation, UC Hastings College of the Law
• Tara Sutton, Partner, Robins Kaplan LLP

2:45 p.m.

Break

3:00 p.m.

Panel: Implications for Civil Litigation and the Courts in a Post-Pandemic World

Will court operations and dispute litigation be resolved in the same way prior to the crisis? This panel will speculate on the future of litigation after society has addressed the most pressing health and cultural consequences of COVID-19. How will delayed civil cases, filings and access to justice be addressed? Is this a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to make civil litigation faster, fairer, and less expensive?

• Moderator:
  Nicholas M. Pace, Senior Social Scientist, RAND Corporation
• Panelists:
  Paula Hannaford-Agor, Director, Center for Jury Studies, National Center for State Courts
• Stephen J. Herman, Partner, Herman Herman & Katz, LLC
• Chief Justice Bridget Mary McCormack, Supreme Court of Michigan
• Donna Melby, Partner, Litigation and Employment Law Departments, Paul Hastings LLP

4:30 p.m.

Concluding Remarks

• Erwin Chemerinsky, Dean, Jesse H. Choper Distinguished Professor of Law, UC Berkeley School of Law