02-15-2023 Session 2: Young Lawyers Exceeding the Bar Series
The Formalities and Ethics of Billing & Managing Client Expectations

Feb15Wed2023

5:30 PM to 7:45 PM

DCBA

1 Ethics Hour(s), 1 Substantive Hour(s)

Updated Registration Flyer

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Description

Young Lawyers Exceeding the Bar CLE Series

February 7, 15 & 21, 2023

SESSION TWO
Wednesday, February 15, 2023 | 5:30 - 7:45PM (1 ethics & 1 substantive credit)

The Formalities and Ethics of Billing | 5:30 - 6:30PM | Kathryn L. Simpson, Esquire | Nicholas K. Weiss, Esquire | Erik R. Anderson, Esquire & Robert H. Davis, Jr., Esquire

Designed to teach new attorneys about differences between types of billing arrangements and the ethical considerations impacting all types of attorney billing. Attendees will also be shown an example of a good engagement letter and provided with tips for drafting them.
Managing Client Expectations | 6:45–7:45PM | Edward F. Spreha, Esquire | Courtney K. Powell, Esquire | Neil W. Yahn, Esquire

One of the most difficult non-substantive aspects of practicing law is learning how to balance the (sometimes competing) interests of clients. This panel will offer attendees insight into how attorneys can manage client relationships in a way that is mutually beneficial.

SESSION THREE
Tuesday, February 21, 2023 | 5:30 – 7:30PM (1 substantive credit)

Courtroom Etiquette | 5:30 - 6:30PM | Hon. John F. Cherry, President Judge | Joseph P. Cardinale

Will cover expectations for lawyer conduct in a court room, offered from the perspective of both the presiding judge and their clerks.

Professional Networking Reception | 6:30 - 7:30PM | Non CLE

This reception will provide series attendees with opportunity to meet and connect with other new lawyers and develop a sense of camaraderie which will prove valuable as they traverse the first few years of practice.

Speakers

Nicholas K. Weiss PA Disciplinary Board District III

Nick Weiss is a Disciplinary Counsel with the Harrisburg office of the Office of Disciplinary Counsel (“ODC”). Mr. Weiss has been with ODC since April 2019. Mr. Weiss investigates and prosecutes lawyers accused of violating the Rules of Professional Conduct. Prior to his time with ODC, Mr. Weiss spent approximately two years with a law firm in Camp Hill, where he focused on state and local tax issues. Mr. Weiss graduated from Indiana Wesleyan University in 2011 and from The Pennsylvania State University, Dickinson School of Law in 2017. During law school, Mr. Weiss served as the Managing Editor for Student Work for the Journal of Law and International Affairs. Mr. Weiss also clerked for Magistrate Judge Susan E. Schwab of the United States District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania and Judge Victor P. Stabile of the Superior Court of Pennsylvania.

Kathryn L. Simpson Mette

Because of her studies while pursuing her MBA, Kathi Simpson initially aspired to be a labor attorney. But a clerkship in law school with the appellate unit of the Allegheny County District Attorney’s Office convinced her that the true calling for her legal career was in the courtroom. Since setting that course several decades ago, Kathi has become one of the preeminent litigators in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.

As a civil litigator, Kathi has handled a wide variety of cases focusing on Commercial Litigation, Professional Liability Defense, Labor and Employment Law, and Health Law. Her cases have ranged from small claims before a district magistrate judge to complex trials in the state and federal courts to appeals in the U.S. Supreme Court. This diverse experience allows her a unique view of her clients’ cases and enables her to combine her knowledge and passion to find the best avenue for her clients to take.

Despite her considerable courtroom skills, Kathi is a savvy litigator who knows when to advise clients against litigation. She works proactively with clients to help them establish best practices and to recognize the potential for disputes so that they can be handled collaboratively before they result in litigation.

Throughout her extensive experience, the cases that she takes distinct pride in are those where she has authored amicus curie (“friend of the court”) briefs. Amicus Curie briefs are important because they point out to the court the policy considerations and concerns regarding the potential outcome of cases. She never tires of seeing the language from her amicus curie briefs included in the court’s opinion.

During her career, Kathi has been selected for membership in the Academy of Trial Lawyers of Allegheny County. She has been honored by the Pennsylvania Bar Association for her service as Chair of its Professional Liability Committee and the Federal Practice Committee. She has also been named as a Pennsylvania Super Lawyer and has been similarly recognized by several local publications.

A frequent presenter of continuing legal education programs for the Pennsylvania Bar Institute and the National Business Institute, Kathi has spoken on topics including lawyers’ professional liability, employment law, and the right-to-know law.

In addition to practicing law, Kathi explores her other passions through her volunteer work with several community organizations and nonprofits. She serves on the Board of Directors for the Pennsylvania Coalition Against Rape. She has also worked with the Susquehanna Service Dogs as a puppy raiser and is a proud supporter of the Delaware Valley Golden Retriever Rescue.

Education: University of Pittsburgh, J.D. | University of Pittsburgh, M.B.A. | The Pennsylvania State University, B.S.

Court Admissions: Pennsylvania Bar | U.S. District Court: Western District of PA, Middle District of PA, Eastern District of PA, Northern District of Ohio | U.S. Court of Appeals, Third Circuit | U.S. Supreme Court

Erik Roberts Anderson McNees Wallace & Nurick LLC

Erik R. Anderson is a principal in Post & Schell’s Commercial Litigation Practice in the Harrisburg office. He has a broad litigation practice that focuses on advising and representing clients confronted by complex, high-stakes challenges at the intersection of law, government, and public policy—often under the glare of intense media, political, or reputational and professional scrutiny. His clients include regulated corporations, high-ranking public officials and employees, law firms, attorneys, judges, lobbyists, and other state-licensed professionals. With substantial experience operating in the media and public relations arenas, Mr. Anderson has represented elected or appointed officials—on both sides of the aisle—from each branch of Pennsylvania state government and each Chamber of the Pennsylvania General Assembly in criminal, civil, or administrative proceedings.

PRACTICES: Commercial Litigation | Legal Ethics and Disciplinary Defense | Internal Investigations & White Collar Defense | Employment and Labor | Regulatory and Administrative Agency Law | Professional Licensure | Employment and Employee Relations | Trade Secret & Non-Compete Law | Wage and Hour | Local Counsel | Regulated Cannabis

INDUSTRIES: Banking and Financial Services | Communications | Construction | Energy and Utilities | Health Care | Manufacturing | Municipal & Government | Pharmaceutical | Professional Services

EDUCATION: J.D., Widener University School of Law, 2006 | B.A. in Political Science, University of Delaware, 2003

COURT ADMISSIONS: U.S. Court of Appeals, Third Circuit | U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania | U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania

Robert H. Davis Jr. Law Office of Robert Davis

Mr. Davis, is still, after 50 years of practice in Georgia, West Virginia and Pennsylvania, actively engaged in the solo private practice of law in Harrisburg, PA. His practice focuses upon representation and advice to lawyer respondents, judicial officers, government employees and officials and others in Pennsylvania and West Virginia before professional and judicial discipline boards and the State Ethics Commission. He counsels law firms, lawyers, judges, government officials and employees and other professionals on questions of professional responsibility, ethics, malpractice avoidance and the law of lawyering. He also provides advisory opinions and serves as an expert witness on questions of professional responsibility, ethics, fiduciary duties of lawyers and other professionals and the law of lawyering. Mr. Davis has taught numerous classes and seminars on legal ethics and professionalism and malpractice avoidance for the Widener University Law School, the Pennsylvania Bar Institute, Pennsylvania Bar Association and a number of other state and private continuing education organizations. He provides written materials for most of the CLE classes he has taught and has occasionally written articles for publication on ethics and professional re
sponsibility topics.

Mr. Davis is an adjunct professor at the Widener University- Commonwealth School of Law in Harrisburg, teaching professional responsibility and an advanced ethics problems seminar. He is the 2004 recipient of the Adjunct Faculty Distinguished Service Award from Widener. He currently serves as and active Co-Vice-chair of the Pa Bar Association Committee on Ethics and Professional Responsibility.

Edward F. Spreha Jr. Wagner & Spreha

Ed Spreha is a partner at the Harrisburg law firm of Wagner and Spreha. A graduate of Bishop McDevitt High School, the University of Pittsburgh and Widener University School of Law, he has been living in Central PA since 1978.

In 1997, Ed started his career as a Deputy District Attorney in the Dauphin County District Attorney's office. He prosecuted criminal cases including DUI's and administered the ARD program while working in the Dauphin County District Attorney's office. He joined his present law firm in 2002 where he defends citizens accused of criminal conduct.

Ed is also associated with the PA Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers. He regularly lectures for the Minor Judiciary Education Board, where he conducts the annual motor vehicle and DUI updates for the district judges across Pennsylvania. He served as the 2016 President of the Dauphin County Bar Association.

Hon. Courtney Kishel Powell Dauphin County Court of Common Pleas (Judges)

Courtney Kishell Powell is a graduate of the Pennsylvania State University where she majored in Speech Communications and minored in Business Administration. She earned her Juris Doctor from Widener University School of Law in 1997.

Courtney began her career as an Assistant Public Defender in the Dauphin County Public Defender’s Office, where she represented minors in juvenile delinquency and dependency matters. She also represented adults in all stages of the criminal process from preliminary hearings to jury trials, including appellate work in the Superior and Supreme Court of Pennsylvania.

Following her tenure as a Public Defender, Courtney entered private practice in 2001, where she began her family law practice while continuing her criminal practice. In 2002, she joined JSDC, and her practice is focused almost exclusively in family law.

Courtney is a member of the American Bar Association and the Pennsylvania Bar Association, Family Law Sections. She also is an active member of the Dauphin County Bar Association Courtney currently chairs the Orientation Committee for new members of the Lipsett Inn of Court. She previously served as a Board Member of the Dauphin County Bar Association and the Chair of the Young Lawyers Section.

For more information about my practice, please visit www.pafamilylawyersjsdc.com.

EDUCATION
Widener University School of Law (J.D., 1997)
The Pennsylvania State University (1993)

Neil Warner Yahn JSDC Law

Neil Warner Yahn, Sr., is a partner with the firm of JSDC Law Offices and he also serves on the faculty at Villanova University since 2011 as an adjunct professor where he teaches Individual Taxation and Taxation of Business Entities.

Neil primarily concentrates his law practice on income, partnership, corporate and estate tax matters and related litigation. Neil advises clients with respect to the use of partnerships, S corporations, limited liability companies (LLCs) and other pass-through entities to assist clients in a wide range of tax planning matters. He works with our clients to use pass-through entities to avoid double taxation, to allow business owners to obtain the full benefit of tax losses or tax incentives, and to minimize the tax impact of various asset acquisitions or dispositions. In the controversy area, Neil has represented clients at the audit and appellate levels of the IRS and in litigation before the U.S. Tax Court. He has also represented large estates and beneficiaries in disputes over testamentary documents and claims of undue influence.

Neil also writes and lectures extensively on tax planning topics and related matters for the Pennsylvania Bar Institute, the Pennsylvania Institute for Certified Public Accountants and the Financial Planning Association. He is a graduate of the Villanova University School of Law. At Villanova, Neil earned his Juris Doctorate and Masters in Taxation (LL.M.). Neil supplemented his Masters in Taxation from the Georgetown University Law Center where he focused on employee benefits, employer plan designs and fiduciary provisions under ERISA.

Neil is AV Rated.

02-15-2023 Session 2: Young Lawyers Exceeding the Bar Series
The Formalities and Ethics of Billing & Managing Client Expectations

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