LMRM Conference Agenda and Speakers

March 4, 2026

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Conference Check-In | Badge Pick-Up | Exhibits

8:00 AM – 5:00 PM

Breakfast Buffet and First-Time Attendee Breakfast

8:00 AM – 9:00 AM

Welcome and Opening Remarks

9:00 AM – 9:15 AM

• Marissa I. Delinks, Speaker | Partner and Leader, Professionals, Hinshaw & Culbertson LLP
• Camille D. Evans, Conference Emcee | Associate, Hinshaw & Culbertson LLP
• Ian A. King II, Conference Emcee | Associate, Hinshaw & Culbertson LLP

Year in Review: Significant Developments in Legal Malpractice Cases of 2025

9:15 AM – 10:05 AM

• Peter D. Sullivan, Moderator | Chairman, Hinshaw & Culbertson LLP
• Matthew W. Breetz, Panelist | Attorney, Stites & Harbison PLCC
• Nancy Hart, Panelist | Partner, Gibson, Dunn, & Crutcher LLP

A perennial favorite, the year in review returns. This panel of legal malpractice and large law firm defense veterans, led by Hinshaw Chairman Peter Sullivan, will break down significant attorney malpractice and ethics decisions from 2025. In analyzing the year that was, the panel will explore legal malpractice trends and make predictions about what law firms and their insurers can expect in 2026.

The Implications of AI on Legal Fees, Billing, and Law Firm Economics

10:10 AM – 11:00 AM

• Anthony E. Davis, Moderator | Partner, FisherBroyles
• Sandy Gill, Panelist | Deputy General Counsel, Dentons Canada LLP
• Keith Maziarek, Panelist | Principal, Lucratic Method LLC 

Under the heading “Firms in an Unstable Environment,” the third "key finding" of the recently issued Thomson Reuters 2026 Report on the State of the US Legal Market has this caption: “Structural Business Model Conflict.” The finding is summarized this way: "The industry remains trapped between transformative technology and outdated billing structures. Despite heavy Al investments that fundamentally will alter how work is performed, firms and clients remain locked in hourly billing arrangements that may no longer reflect value delivered.”

This panel will consider whether the AI being used by the legal profession helps or hinders profitability. Specifically, the panel will discuss these open questions:

• What will AI's effect be on fees and billing? To the degree AI saves lawyer time, how will firms sustain profitability with less leverage? On the other hand, will AI have the opposite effect, requiring extensive review and supervision of its product?
• How will AI change the skill set of effective lawyers? And where will the burden fall to train the next generation? What will firms need to do to retain lawyers skilled in the use of the technology and avoid the huge cost of turnover at every level?
• What will AI's effect be on profitability and law firm structure? Will huge investments in technology become the norm? Will mega-firms with multiple service lines continue to dominate the marketplace, or will specialized boutique firms focusing their skills and investments in one practice area prevail in the long run? Most fundamentally, will firms be forced to transition from time charging to bills based on the value of their services?

Networking Break

11:00 AM – 11:20 AM

Disclosing Material Errors in the Tripartite Relationship: It’s Not as Easy as It Sounds

11:20 AM – 12:10 PM

• Robert M. Buchholz, Moderator | Partner, Hinshaw & Culbertson LLP

• Edward Kozel, Panelist | Claims Practice Lead – Head of Litigation, Munich Reinsurance America, Inc.

• Shannon M. Sprinkle, Panelist | Member, Stites & Harbison

Defending an attorney who has erred—and then making a misstep yourself—raises difficult ethical and practical questions for lawyers. This panel will address how to assess whether the error is material, what must be disclosed to the client and insurer, when to disclose it, and whether continued representation is appropriate, with insights from both a senior insurance professional and defense counsel.

Lunch and Networking

12:15 PM – 1:15 PM

The Domino Effect: Malpractice Risks Tied to Outcomes in Related Litigation

1:30 PM – 2:20 PM

• Matthew R. Henderson, Moderator | Partner, Hinshaw & Culbertson LLP

• Bates McIntyre Larson, Panelist | General Counsel, Perkins Coie

• John K. Villa, Panelist | Partner, Williams & Connolly LLP

Litigation rarely occurs in isolation–and neither do legal malpractice claims. This program brings together two seasoned malpractice defense counsel and a large-firm general counsel to examine situations in which an attorney’s potential liability is shaped by the outcomes of separate, related proceedings. The panel will discuss what it means to memorialize risk effectively, including the level of detail that should be documented and how courts assess claims that sophisticated clients “should have known” the relevant dangers, even absent explicit warnings.

The program will also address how factual disputes in the underlying matter can complicate or defeat dispositive motions in the malpractice action. In addition, the panel will explore best practices for drafting statute tolling agreements, analyze the role of collateral estoppel and when an attorney may be bound by findings or judgments in the related case, and outline the essential components of effective conflict waivers – including why those waivers must be revisited as the underlying litigation evolves.

Go Let it Out: Nonlawyer Ownership in Law Firms

2:25 PM – 3:15 PM

• Barry F. MacEntee, Moderator | Partner, Hinshaw & Culbertson LLP
• Andy Kvesic, Panelist | CEO, Aprio Legal
• Laura Walker, Panelist | Chief Risk Officer, Aprio Legal

The debate over nonlawyer ownership in law firms reached a fever pitch in 2025, with Arizona granting more than 100 firms Alternate Business Structure (ABS) licenses. Our panelists include Andy Kvesic and Laura Walker, both of whom were instrumental in standing up Aprio Legal, Arizona’s first nonlawyer-owned law firm. The panel will discuss issues related to the founding and operation of nonlawyer-owned law firms, contrast Arizona’s approach with Florida's and California’s rejection of proposals to liberalize nonlawyer ownership models, and make predictions about the ABS revolution in 2026.

Networking Break

3:15 PM – 3:35 PM

What's Keeping Law Firm General Counsel Awake at Night?

3:35 PM – 4:50 PM

• Janis M. Meyer, Moderator | Of Counsel, Clyde & Co. LLP
• Christopher M. Farella, Panelist | General Counsel, Epstein Becker & Green, P.C.
• Jonathan H. Margolies, Panelist | General Counsel, Michael Best & Friedrich LLP
• Edward J. Reich, Panelist | General Counsel, Dentons

Another boring year for law firm general counsel–but we have a few things to discuss. There are of course the continuing questions surrounding the appropriate use of AI (and whether the GC will have any control over it); how to develop and nurture a culture of ethical conduct and attention to risk management when events are moving at lightning speed; the threshold question of how the general counsel’s office should be organized to maximize its ability to serve its clients, as well as who those clients are; and much more. As always, questions from the audience are welcome.

Women's Networking Reception

5:00 PM – 6:00 PM

Conference Dinner

6:30 PM – 9:00 PM