FRIDAY, MAY 10
   
 

 

FRIDAY, MAY 10
   
7:30 a.m. BREAKFAST BUFFET
  Urban, an American Grill
   
8:30 a.m. THE FUTURE OF THE LEGAL PROFESSION
  Primrose Ballroom
   
 

This panel of law firm leaders will consider the trends transforming the legal profession—from the

impacts of artificial intelligence to how and where lawyers work to evolving client expectations of

their lawyers—and discuss how lawyers and law firms will adapt to those changes.
   
Introduction: Honorable Karen Gren Scholer
  United States District Judge
  Northern District of Texas
  Dallas, Texas
   
Moderator: Michael J. Bentley
  President, BAFFC
  Bradley Arant Boult Cummings LLP
  Jackson, Mississippi
   
Panel: David T. Dekker
  Firm Chair
  Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman LLP
  Washington, DC
   
  Sakina Rasheed Foster
  Dallas Office Managing Partner
  Haynes and Boone, LLP
  Dallas, Texas
   
  Hilda C. Galvan
  Partner-in-Charge, Dallas
  Jones Day
  Dallas, Texas
   
  Gina Shishima
  Chief Strategy and Operations Partner, US
  Norton Rose Fulbright US LLP
  Austin, Texas
   
9:30 a.m. REFRESHMENT BREAK
  Primrose Ballroom Foyer
   
10:00 a.m. A CONVERSATION WITH JUSTICE BRETT M. KAVANAUGH
  Primrose Ballroom
   
11:00 a.m. REFRESHMENT BREAK
  Primrose Ballroom Foyer
   
11:30 a.m. EXECUTIVE SESSION
   (Judges of the Fifth Circuit and Court Unit Executives ONLY) 
  Lantana
   
Presiding: Honorable Priscilla Richman
  Chief United States Circuit Judge
  U.S. Court of Appeals, Fifth Circuit
  Austin, Texas
   
Speakers: Honorable Robert J. Conrad, Jr.
  Director
  Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts
  Washington, D.C.
   
  Honorable Jennifer Walker Elrod
  United States Circuit Judge
  U.S. Court of Appeals, Fifth Circuit
  Houston, Texas
   
  Honorable Elizabeth E. Foote
  Senior United States District Judge
  Western District of Louisiana
  Shreveport, Louisiana
   
  John S. Cooke
  Director
  Federal Judicial Center
  Washington, D.C.
   
11:30 a.m. BREAKOUT SESSIONS (3 Options)
Option 1 Qualified Immunity:  Nuts and Bolts of the Defense for Practioners
  Camellia
   
 

This session will examine the doctrine of qualified immunity as a defense to suits brought under

42 U.S. C. § 1983. The panelists will analyze the application of the defense in the context of Fourth

Amendment excessive force cases with a specific focus on assertion of the defense at the

Rule 12(b)(6) motion to dismiss and Rule 56 motion for summary judgment stages of litigation,

including a review of caselaw regarding the summary judgment burden when courts consider

video evidence. This course will also provide an overview of the standard of review for interlocutory

appeals when district courts deny qualified immunity.  
   
Moderator: Honorable Jason K. Pulliam
  United States District Judge
  Western District of Texas
  San Antonio, Texas
   
Panel: Phillip Adkins
  General Counsel
  Texas Department of Public Safety
  Austin, Texas
   
  Lisa R. Eskow
  Clinical Professor and Co-Director, Supreme Court Clinic
  The University of Texas School of Law
  Austin, Texas
   
  Robert Piatt
  Assistant Criminal District Attorney, Civil Division
  Bexar County Criminal District Attorney’s Office
  San Antonio, Texas
   
Option 2 Hot Topics in Bankruptcy
  Verbena
   
 

Professor Yadav will examine cutting edge developments in bankruptcy law – using the example

of recent crypto-bankruptcies to survey what lessons we have learnt and how this learning might

impact future emerging challenges to come before the Bankruptcy Court (e.g., generative AI-focused

debtor companies). 
   
Introduction: Honorable Jason D. Woodard 
  Chief United States Bankruptcy Judge
  Northern District of Mississippi
  Aberdeen, Mississippi
   
Speaker: Yesha Yadav
  Associate Dean and Robert Belton Director of Diversity, Equity & Community
  Milton R. Underwood Chair
  Faculty Co-Director, LL.M. Program
  Vanderbilt University Law School
  Nashville, Tennessee
   
Option 3 Constitutional Challenges to Administrative Agencies
 

Plumeria

 
  NOTE:  due to interest, this session will repeat at 4:00 p.m., in Plumeria
   
 

This panel discussion will review some of the major constitutional issues before the courts today

about the structure and work of administrative agencies, and will also consider the directions that

such litigation may go in the years ahead.   
   
Moderator: David Coale
  Attorney at Law
  Lynn Pinker Hurst & Schwegmann
  Dallas, Texas
   
Panel: Mark Chenoweth
  President and Chief Legal Officer
  New Civil Liberties Alliance
  Washington, D.C.
   
  Tara L. Grove
  Vinson & Elkins Chair in Law
  The University of Texas School of Law
  Austin, Texas
   
  Kyle Hawkins
  Partner
  Lehotsky Keller Cohn LLP
  Austin, Texas
   
12:30 p.m. CONFERENCE LUNCHEON WITH PROFESSOR H.W. BRANDS:  FOUNDING PARTISANS
  Primrose Ballroom
  Guests should be seated by 12:45 p.m.
   
 

Americans today often lament the partisanship that infuses our politics. Alas, it was always so.

Despite the desires of the Founders, parties emerged in the first decade of America's independent

existence. Indeed, the bitterness then exceeded what we experience now. This is the story of how

such a discouraging development unfolded - and what hope we can draw from it.
   
Introduction: Honorable Sean D. Jordan
  United States District Judge
  Eastern District of Texas
  Plano, Texas
   
Speaker: Professor H.W. Brands
  Jack S. Blanton Sr. Chair in History
  The University of Texas at Austin
  Austin, Texas
   
2:30 p.m. BREAKOUT SESSIONS (4 Options)
Option 1 PTRA-fied:  Bringing Evidence-based Practice into the Decision to Detain or Release
  Camellia
   
 

The decision to release or detain pretrial has lasting significance for defendants through sentencing

and beyond. This session explores how magistrate judges and criminal law practitioners can use the

latest data from the Pretrial Risk Assessment tool.
   
Presiding: Honorable Susan J. Hightower
  United States Magistrate Judge
  Western District of Texas
  Austin, Texas
   
Panel: Honorable Henry J. Bemporad
  United States Magistrate Judge
  Western District of Texas
  San Antonio, Texas
   
  Honorable Donna Phillips Currault
  United States Magistrate Judge
  Eastern District of Louisiana
  New Orleans, Louisiana
   
  Amanda Garcia
  Chief Pretrial Services Officer
  Northern District of Illinois Pretrial Services
  Chicago, Illinois
   
Option 2 Criminal Law Hot Topics:  Updates to the Sentencing Guidelines
  Lantana
   
  This session will provide judges and practitioners with recent updates to the sentencing guidelines and caselaw interpreting the guidelines including zero-point offenders, large capacity magazines, 821 motions, acceptance of responsibility, and safety valve eligibility. 
   
Panel: Kristen Kimmelman
  Supervisory Assistant Federal Public Defender
  Western District of Texas
  San Antonio, Texas
   
  Honorable Carlton W. Reeves
  Chair, United States Sentencing Commission
  United States District Judge
  Southern District of Mississippi
  Jackson, Mississippi
   
  Leigha Simonton
  United States Attorney
  Northern District of Texas
  Dallas, Texas
   
  Ross Thomas
  Deputy Director, Office of Education and Sentencing
  United States Sentencing Commission
  Washington, D.C.
   
Option 3 Major Questions About Major Questions:  Exploring How Courts Define the Balance of Lawmaking Power Between the Congressional and Executive Branches
  Plumeria
   
  A high-level conversation about the emergence of the major questions doctrine, its historical origins, its relationship to the Chevron and nondelegation doctrines, and a framework for moving forward.
   
Moderator: Lisa R. Eskow
  Clinical Professor and Co-Director, Supreme Court Clinic
  The University of Texas School of Law
  Austin, Texas
   
Panel: Aaron Nielson
  Texas Solicitor General
  Austin, Texas
   
  Aaron Streett
  Partner, Chair of the Supreme Court and Constitutional Law Practice Group
  Baker Botts
  Houston, Texas
   
  Stephen I. Vladeck
  Charles Alan Wright Chair in Federal Courts
  The University of Texas School of Law
  Austin, Texas
   
Option 4 Hot Topics in Bankruptcy
  Verbena
   
  Professor Yadav will examine cutting edge developments in bankruptcy law – using the example of recent crypto-bankruptcies to survey what lessons we have learnt and how this learning might impact future emerging challenges to come before the Bankruptcy Court (e.g., generative AI-focused debtor companies). 
   
Introduction: Honorable Jason D. Woodard 
  Chief United States Bankruptcy Judge
  Northern District of Mississippi
  Aberdeen, Mississippi
   
Speaker: Yesha Yadav
  Associate Dean and Robert Belton Director of Diversity, Equity & Community
  Milton R. Underwood Chair
  Faculty Co-Director, LL.M. Program
  Vanderbilt University Law School
  Nashville, Tennessee
   
3:30 p.m. REFRESHMENT BREAK
  Primrose Ballroom Lobby
   
   
4:00 p.m. BREAKOUT SESSIONS (2 Options)
Option 1 A Tale of Two Chiefs
  Primrose Ballroom
   
  A Tale of Two Chiefs is a conversation about, with, and between, our chiefs.  We think Chief Judge Richman and Chief Justice Hecht are the only married-to-each-other chief judges.  Come find out their secrets to success in love, in jurisprudence, and whatever else they will share.
   
Moderators: Honorable Lee H. Rosenthal
  United States District Judge
  Southern District of Texas
  Houston, Texas
   
  Honorable Don R. Willett
  United States Circuit Judge
  U.S. Court of Appeals, Fifth Circuit
  Austin, Texas
   
Panel: Honorable Nathan L. Hecht
  Chief Justice
  Supreme Court of Texas
  Austin, Texas
   
  Honorable Priscilla Richman
  Chief United States Circuit Judge
  U.S. Court of Appeals, Fifth Circuit
  Austin, Texas
   
Option 2 Constitutional Challenges to Administrative Agencies
  Plumeria
   
  This panel discussion will review some of the major constitutional issues before the courts today about the structure and work of administrative agencies, and will also consider the directions that such litigation may go in the years ahead.   
   
Moderator: David Coale
  Attorney at Law
  Lynn Pinker Hurst & Schwegmann
  Dallas, Texas
   
Panel: Mark Chenoweth
  President and Chief Legal Officer
  New Civil Liberties Alliance
  Washington, D.C.
   
  Kyle Hawkins
  Partner
  Lehotsky Keller Cohn LLP
  Austin, Texas
   
7:00 - 10:00 p.m. SOCIAL EVENT FOR ALL CONFEREES
  LASSO AND LASSOS
  The Lexus Club at Q2 Stadium
   
  Friday night's social will be held in the Lexus Club at Q2 stadium.  Visit the food stations; sip on cocktails; and dance to your “heart’s” desire with the Love and Happiness Band – all while taking in the sweeping views of America’s best, new soccer venue, home to the Austin Football Club.  
   
Attire:   Come dressed as your favorite Ted Lasso character; wear your favorite FC team’s colors; or show off your Texas Western pride!  
   
  Motor coaches arranged for the social event will shuttle between the Westin Austin at The Domain and Q2 Stadium periodically 6:30 – 10:00 p.m.