|
|
| SVP, Legal Affairs and General Counsel Ivan K. Fong is Senior Vice President, Legal Affairs and General Counsel of the 3M Company. Prior to joining 3M in October 2012, Ivan was nominated by President Obama and confirmed by the Senate to serve as General Counsel of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. He was previously Chief Legal Officer and Secretary of Cardinal Health, Inc.; Senior Vice President and General Counsel of GE Vendor Financial Services; and GE’s first Chief Privacy Leader and Senior Counsel, Information Technology. Ivan also previously served as Deputy Associate Attorney General at the U.S. Department of Justice, an adjunct professor at Georgetown Law, and a partner with the firm of Covington & Burling. He began his legal career as a law clerk to Judge Abner J. Mikva of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit and Justice Sandra Day O’Connor of the U.S. Supreme Court. Ivan is active in his community and currently serves on the boards of Equal Justice Works and Minnesota Public Radio. He has been named one of “America’s 50 Outstanding General Counsel” by the National Law Journal and is a member of the Council of the American Law Institute. He has received, among other honors, the Trailblazer Award from the National Asian Pacific American Bar Association; the Justice-in-Action Award from the Asian American Legal Defense and Education Fund; and the Spirit of Excellence Award from the American Bar Association. Ivan received a B.C.L. with first class honors from Oxford University, where he was a Fulbright Scholar, a J.D. (with distinction) from Stanford Law School, and an S.B. in chemical engineering and S.M. in chemical engineering practice from MIT. He is a registered patent attorney. |
|
Linda Klein, President, American Bar Association
Shareholder Linda Klein is the senior managing shareholder at Baker Donelson Bearman Caldwell & Berkowitz and president of the American Bar Association (ABA). Klein’s practice, based in Atlanta, includes business dispute resolution -- contract law, employment law and professional liability -- in the construction, higher education and pharmaceutical industries.
In June 1997, Klein became the first woman to serve as president of the State Bar of Georgia. During her term, she led efforts to allocate millions of dollars in state funding for Georgia Legal Services and Atlanta Legal Aid to hire lawyers to help indigent victims of domestic violence, efforts that continue to help thousands of Georgians today.
Klein was one of the first women to lead a prominent Georgia law firm, serving as managing partner of Gambrell & Stolz in 2001 and leading the merger with Baker Donelson in 2007.
She served as chair of the ABA's House of Delegates from 2010−2012. In 2004, the ABA honored Klein with the prestigious Margaret Brent Women Lawyers of Achievement Award. Klein served on the Board of Directors Network, which seeks to increase diversity on corporate boards and general counsel positions. In June, the Georgia State Bar presented her with its highest honor, the Distinguished Service Award. Klein earned her J.D. at Washington & Lee Law School and a B.A. at Union College in New York. |
| Reporter Elly Yu is a reporter at WABE 90.1.FM, an NPR affiliate station in Atlanta where she covers immigration, state politics and health policy. Her stories can be heard daily on WABE’s Morning Edition and All Things Considered. Her work has also broadcast nationally on NPR and APM’s “Marketplace.” During her time at WABE, Elly has reported on the disparities in Georgia’s special education system, the court battles involving lethal injection in the state, and how Syrian refugees in Georgia have been affected by both national and local policies. For the past two years, she has also covered the Georgia General Assembly’s 40-day legislative session. In 2014, Elly was selected as an immigration reporting fellow with the Institute of Justice and Journalism. She is a recipient of the “Rising Star Award” by the Atlanta Press Club, a distinction given to journalists under 30, and her reporting has won awards from the Georgia Associated Press. |
| Judge Alvin T. Wong Pioneer Award Enforcement Director U.S. Department of Education, Office for Civil Rights Lisa is an Enforcement Director for the U.S. Department of Education, Office for Civil Rights; she oversees the New York, Seattle and Dallas regional offices. She joined the Department in 2015, moving to Washington, D.C. after twenty years in Atlanta. |
| City of Atlanta Municipal Court, Pro Hac Judge Founding Partner Parag Y. Shah is a personal injury and criminal defense attorney in Atlanta, Georgia. He graduated from Rhodes College in 2003 and went on to receive his law degree from Ohio Northern University in 2006. Shah started his own law firm, The Shah Law Firm, specializing in personal injury and criminal defense. In 2016, he was appointed by Mayor Kasim Reed as a Pro Hac Judge to the City of Atlanta Municipal Court where he presides over traffic offenses and city ordinances. He is also a registered neutral with the Georgia Office of Dispute Resolution and mediates civil litigation cases at Miles Mediation.
Shah is an adjunct professor at Ohio Northern University Law School where he teaches jury selection and cross-examination. He is also a faculty member for the Georgia Trial Skills Clinic and AAJ's Deposition College. In addition, Shah runs a criminal defense externship program through John Marshall Law School in Atlanta. Shah has been acknowledged as Georgia’s Top 40 Under 40 by the Daily Report, a "Rising Star" by Super Lawyers Magazine & Georgia Trend Magazine. In 2011, he was featured as an expert in criminal defense on NPR's "This American Life", Episode 430 - Very Tough Love. In addition, Shah regularly provided legal commentary on CNN's Nancy Grace. He is the author of three Georgia pocketbooks: The Code Criminal, The Code Civil and The Code Evidence. The Code is currently published by the Institute of Continuing Legal Education in Georgia. Currently, Shah is working on a series of "How To" books that will be published November of 2017. |
| SVP, GC and Secretary Juliette Pryor serves as senior vice president, general counsel and corporate secretary for Cox Enterprises, a leading communications, media and automotive services company. She is responsible for leading Cox’s legal function, as well as serving as corporate secretary supporting the company’s board of directors. Pryor is also responsible for being a strategic legal advisor to the senior leadership team, focusing on key legal and business strategies and issues facing the organization. Before joining Cox, Pryor served as executive vice president, general counsel and chief compliance officer for US Foods where she was responsible for all legal, risk management and ethics and compliance functions since 2005. Prior to that, she was in private practice with the law firm Skadden Arps Slate Meagher & Flom. Before joining Skadden, Pryor was general counsel and corporate secretary for e.spire Communications, Inc., a publicly-traded telecommunications company. Earlier in her career, she served as legal advisor to the vice chairman of the U.S. International Trade Commission and as in-house counsel with IBM Corporation. Pryor earned a law degree from Georgetown University Law Center and a master’s of science degree from Georgetown University School of Foreign Service. She also holds a bachelor’s of arts degree from Fisk University. Pryor is a member of The Chicago Network and served on Governor Patrick J. Quinn’s Women’s Advisory Council. She is a member of the law advisory board of Georgetown University Law Center, and a trustee of Fisk University. A fluent Portuguese speaker and longtime enthusiast for all things Brazilian, Pryor is a founding board member of Levantamos: The Center for Afro-Brazilian-American Cooperation. She is married to Walter Pryor, and they have two children: Jordan Adjua, 23, and Wade, 19. |
| Cyndie M. Chang, President, NAPABA Los Angeles Managing Partner Cyndie M. Chang is the Los Angeles Managing Partner of Duane Morris LLP handling litigation and counseling involving complex business disputes and torts, real estate, trademarks, class actions, and products liability. Her service has spanned various industries, including fashion, retail and consumer goods, manufacturing, utilities, and telecommunications services. She also handles insurance coverage claims involving large, multimillion dollar environmental, asbestos and toxic tort matters. Cyndie has obtained favorable results as first chair for many kinds of businesses at trial and arbitration. |
| Diversity Partner Sam Matchett is a partner with thirty-plus years’ experience. He currently chairs King & Spalding’s Diversity and Inclusion Committee – an area in which he has over two and a half decades active involvement. As a practitioner, Mr. Matchett’s practice has focused on employment law litigation in both state and federal courts, governmental agencies (OFCCP), and arbitration tribunals. He has significant experience defending employers in litigation involving the various civil rights acts and employment-related state law claims. Chambers USA: America’s Leading Lawyers for Business recognized Mr. Matchett for his “extensive expertise in civil rights, and discrimination litigation.” Additionally, Mr. Matchett provides client advice on the avoidance of employee-related problems and presents seminars concerning all aspects of employment law. He is admitted to practice before the United States Supreme Court and several appellate courts. Sample significant matters in which he has been involved include:
Mr. Matchett is listed as a leading Labor and Employment lawyer in The Best Lawyers in America, 2012 edition. Additionally, Mr. Matchett was recently selected by Chambers USA as a leading lawyer in his practice area and named to Georgia Trend magazine’s “Legal Elite” — a list of Georgia attorneys chosen by their peers as the leading lawyers in their practice areas. He is a member of the Gate City Bar Hall of Fame and recipient of the State Bar of Georgia’s 2010 Commitment to Equality Award. Mr. Matchett graduated from Morehouse College with a B.A. in 1981. He received his J.D. from the University of Georgia in 1984. Mr. Matchett has served as a faculty member for the Institute of Applied Management and Law (IAML). He formerly served as a member of the Board of Trustees for the University of Georgia Foundation and is a member of the Board of Governors for the State Bar of Georgia. |
|