The ACC-STL Wraps Up 2020 Corporate Counsel Institute

August 27, 2020 (St. Louis) – The Association of Corporate Counsel Chapter of St. Louis (ACC STL), the pre-eminent professional development organization serving in-house counsel, in partnership with the Bar Association of Missouri St. Louis (BAMSL), the largest legal member association in St. Louis recently wrapped up the Corporate Counsel Institute (CCI), an annual event that brings together in-house counsel, local leaders and attorneys.

The format for the 2020 CCI changed this year from a one-day in-person conference to three sessions held once each month from June -August using the online platform Zoom because of COVID-19. There were 186 attendees who participated.

Ty Ulmer, ACC STL 2020 CCI Chairperson, discussed how the planning committee had to act quickly and strategically to redesign the 2020 program format, “The CCI planning committee members were all tremendously engaged, and the group really embraced change and adapting to take chances on new concepts and approaches. Virtual learning was a new approach for the CCI, and there were many questions and concerns about whether the CCI, which has thrived as an in-person event, would garner the same success in a virtual environment, and also whether the on-line technology could support such a large event. Ultimately, the Committee rallied around the new virtual approach, taking a chance, and embracing the change. The results were tremendous. The virtual CCI was a huge success.”

Zoe Linza, BAMSL executive director, said, “As a membership organization we strive to provide our members with the best Continuing Legal Education and as part of the CCI Planning Committee we saw the opportunity to provide quality CLE in a virtual setting. At first, we were hesitant about moving the one-day event planned for May into a three-month format but grew to like the idea and had a wonderful response from participants with the format. I think all of us were excited about the opportunity to connect even if it was a virtual setting and the outcome was another successful partnership for BAMSL and ACC.”

The 2020 CCI program offered Continuing Legal Education (CLE) sessions ranging from Intellectual Property and COVID-19 legal challenges to data privacy and the impact of Artificial Intelligence.

When asked about the partnership between ACC STL and BAMSL, Ulmer said, “The strong partnership between ACC and BAMSL is built on many years of working together, and outstanding leaders in both organizations that recognize each organization brings different, complimenting strengths to the partnership. The combination of these different strengths result in a CCI event that is greater than either organization could host on its own. For example, one of the things the partnership brings is attendance by different segments of the Saint Louis legal community. ACC brings attorneys that primarily practice law in-house at companies and organizations; whereas BAMSL brings attorneys that are engaged in private practice at law firms and attorneys employed in government service. The bringing together of these different, but complimentary groups of attorneys, makes CCI a must-attend event; as the attorneys from each segment share in common learning, where they can interact, share knowledge, and develop strong networks.”

Contact:

Ann Marie Mayuga, AMM Communications

314.485.9499

annmarie@ammcommunications.com

About the ACC STL:

The Association for Corporate Counsel of St. Louis (ACC STL), the pre-eminent professional development organization serving in-house counsel, was founded in 1987. The St. Louis chapter has more than 550 members who represent more than 100 organizations. During its 30-year-history, the ACC STL has been recognized as one of the leading chapters in the country by the national Association of Corporate Counsel with having received the 2017 and 2019 Gold Level Award and selected for the 2018 Best Membership / Recruitment Award. To learn more, please visit, https://www.acc.com/chapters/stlouis/.