45th Annual Labor & Employment Spring Conference

When:  May 9, 2024 from 09:00 AM to 04:00 PM (ET)

The Massachusetts Bar Association welcomes back our Labor & Employment members to the 45th Annual Labor & Employment Spring Conference. This year’s conference will be an in-person event at Suffolk University Law School on Thursday, May 9. Faculty presenters include a number of judges and accomplished attorneys who have provided significant thought leadership in the areas of labor and employment law.

This year's keynote speaker will be Karla Gilbride, general counsel of the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC). Gilbride was nominated by President Joe Biden on Jan. 3, 2023, and confirmed by the U.S. Senate on Oct. 17, 2023, to a four-year term.

Conference Agenda

9:00- 9:30 a.m.: Registration

9:30-9:35 a.m.: Welcoming Remarks

9:35-10:45 a.m. Employment Law Update
Moderator Sujin Han, Cengage Group, Boston
Panelists:
Michelle De Oliveira, Kenney & Sams, P.C., Southborough 
Michaela May, Bennett & Belfort  P.C., Cambridge 
Mark Macchi, Gunderson Dettmer, Boston 
Adam Gutbezahl, Ruberto, Israel & Weiner, P.C., Boston 

10:45-11:00 a.m. Networking Break

11:00-12:10: Labor Law Update
Moderator, Katie Lev, Lev Labor, LLC
Panelists:
Kier Wachterhauser, Murphy, Hesse, Toomey & Lehane, LLP, Braintree
Patrice Dixon, Jackson Lewis P.C., Boston 
Thomas Henry, Krakow, Souris & Landry, LLC, Boston 
Paige McKissock, Segal Roitman, LLP, Boston 

12:10-1 PM Lunch & Networking

1:00– 2:15 p.m.: Keynote Speaker, EEOC General Counsel Karla Gilbride

2:15-2:30 Networking Break

2:30 -3:40 p.m.: The Impact of Recent US Supreme Court Decisions on DEI: Misconceptions, Intersectionality and Ramifications in the Employment Context.
Moderator, Stesha Emmanuel, McCarter & English, LLP, Boston 
Panelists:
Ari Kristan, Hirsch Roberts Weinstein, LLP, Boston 
Michael Kippins, Lawyers for Civil Rights, Boston 
Kiana Pierre-Louis, Northeastern University School of Law, Boston 

3:45-4:00 p.m.: Networking Break

4:00-5:00 p.m.: Annual Judicial Panel
Moderator Richard Loftus, Hirsch Roberts Weinstein, LLP, Boston 
Hon. Scott Lewis Kafker, Associate Justice, Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court
Hon. Valerie A. Yarashus, Associate Justice, Massachusetts Superior Court 
Hon. Patrick J. King, Settlement Counsel, U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit

5:00-5:10 p.m.: Closing Remarks

5:15-6:00: Networking Reception

Registration for the conference is required by noon on Monday, May 6.

Location

120 Tremont Street
Boston, MA 02108-4977