2010 Speakers
Alex Dimitrief
Vice President & Senior Counsel for Litigation and Legal Policy
General Electric Company
Chief litigation counsel and compliance officer for GE’s worldwide operations.
Responsible for litigation and criminal/civil enforcement proceedings in the United States and international jurisdictions against GE and all of its business segments – GE Capital, Technology Infrastructure (Aviation, Healthcare, Transportation and Enterprise Solutions), Energy Infrastructure (Energy, Oil & Gas, Water and Process Technologies) and NBC Universal.
Oversee GE’s worldwide program for the prevention, detection, investigation and remediation of compliance issues, as profiled in Ethisphere’s 2008 and 2009 awards for the “World’s Most Ethical Companies.”
Dimitrief joined GE from by Kirkland & Ellis LLP, where he had been a trial lawyer since 1986. His practice spanned many industries and subject areas, including regulatory matters, securities class actions and regulation, intellectual property disputes, environmental matters and bankruptcy litigation. By way of more recent examples, he defended Morgan Stanley and its senior executives against the far-reaching investigation of research - investment banking conflicts of interest spearheaded by then NY Attorney General Eliot Spitzer and served as lead trial counsel for United Airlines in its 3-year bankruptcy reorganization.
Prior to joining Kirkland & Ellis, Dimitrief was a White House Fellow in the Reagan Administration's Office of Political and Intergovernmental Affairs and an Honors Intern in the Office of the Solicitor General at the Department of Justice. He graduated from Yale College in 1981 with a degree in economics and political science and earned his J.D. at Harvard Law School, where he was the Managing Editor of the Harvard Law Review.
Andrew E. Shipley
Corporate Director – Assistant General Counsel
Northrop Grumman Corporation
Andrew E. Shipley serves as Corporate Director – Assistant General Counsel in charge of litigation for Northrop Grumman Corporation’s Eastern Operations. Northrop Grumman, a global defense company headquartered in Los Angeles, provides innovative products, services and solutions in systems integration, defense electronics, information technology, advanced aircraft, shipbuilding, and space technology. The company has more than 120,000 employees and operates in all 50 states and 25 countries. Mr. Shipley is responsible for managing litigation in the eastern United States as well as in Canada, South America and Europe. In addition to his litigation duties, Mr. Shipley served as the company’s lead on developing and implementing a preferred provider program for outside counsel. In October 2007, he was named the American Corporate Counsel Association’s Outstanding In-House Counsel of the Year Award for the Washington, DC metro area and currently serves on the Board of the Washington Metropolitan Corporate Counsel Committee. He chairs WMACCA’s Street Law program which brings corporate counsel into the classroom to teach law to high school students.
Mr. Shipley graduated from the University of Maryland with a degree in Journalism and obtained his JD from Harvard Law School.
Charlie Madison
Associate General Counsel, Litigation
Progress Energy
Charlie Madison is Associate General Counsel at Progress Energy, a Fortune 300 electric utility based in Raleigh, North Carolina, where he manages a large, nationwide portfolio of disputes and litigation of all types. He also advises company management on a wide variety of legal liability, contract and risk management issues. Prior to going in-house with Progress Energy, he spent 17 years in private practice in Colorado and North Carolina, where he maintained a large caseload of litigation involving medical malpractice, products liability, employment, tort, insurance, commercial and construction cases. He has handled numerous trials and arbitrations. In addition to his litigation work, Mr. Madison is an educator and trainer, with 30 years of experience designing curriculum and training subordinates and peers, as well as leading classroom and seminar instruction for professionals. He has also written articles on litigation and risk management issues. Mr. Madison went to college and law school at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. In his leisure time, Mr. Madison likes to go sailing, surfing and mountain climbing.
Duncan MacKay
Deputy General Counsel
Northeast Utilities
Duncan MacKay is the Deputy General Counsel for Northeast Utilities (“NU”), which operates New England’s largest utility system serving more than two million electric and natural gas customers in Connecticut, western Massachusetts and New Hampshire. Duncan is responsible for the team of lawyers who counsel and represent NU with respect to commercial, labor, employment, and environmental matters and disputes and for the company’s various infrastructure development projects. He has been active in the development and implementation of pro-active approaches to managing disputes involving NU and its various subsidiaries, including the implementation of standard ADR clauses in commercial contracts, early case evaluation, and consideration of ADR options in the early stages of disputes or litigation.
Duncan is a member of the executive committee of the International Institute for Conflict Prevention and Resolution (“CPR”), and the ADR sections of the Energy Bar Association, American Bar Association and the Connecticut Bar Association. Duncan chairs the CPR Committee on Energy, Oil & Gas that developed the first of its kind national energy panel of neutrals, and is the Vice-Chair of the Energy Bar Association’s ADR Committee.
Duncan was educated at the University of Massachusetts at Amherst, where he received his B.A. in legal studies. He attended Suffolk University Law School in Boston, where he received his J.D., cum laude, served on the Law Review, and after graduation served as a member of the adjunct faculty.
Duncan Crabtree-Ireland
Deputy National Executive Director and General Counsel
Screen Actors Guild
Duncan Crabtree-Ireland is Deputy National Executive Director and General Counsel of Screen Actors Guild, responsible for all Guild legal affairs and strategy, and for overseeing its national Legal, Government Relations & Policy, Affirmative Action/Diversity, Human Resources, Governance, Agency Relations, and Financial Assurances departments. Previously, Duncan served as the Guild's Deputy General Counsel and as a Deputy District Attorney for the County of Los Angeles.
Duncan serves as a Judge pro tem and court appointed arbitrator for the Los Angeles Superior Court, an Adjunct Professor of Law at the University of Southern California Law School, and a member of the Board of Trustees of the Los Angeles County Bar Association and its Labor & Employment Law Section’s Executive Committee. Duncan also serves as a member of the board the Screen Actors Guild-Producers Pension and Health Plans
Evan C. Dann
Associate General Counsel
EnCana Corporation
John Mellen
Associate General Counsel-Litigation & Regulatory
Ford Motor Company
John Mellen, Associate General Counsel with Ford Motor Company's Office of the General
Counsel, heads the Company's Litigation and Regulatory Practice Group, a team of 75
individuals (31 attorneys) who manage Ford's litigation in the following areas: class action,
product liability, environment, employment, asbestos, commercial and contract disputes,
franchising, consumer and insurance. The group also serves as
counsel to the Company in rulemaking, compliance and enforcement proceedings before
the EPA, NHTSA, EEOC, OSHA and various other federal and state agencies. Finally,
Mr. Mellen's team counsels the Company's Human Resources activity in the areas of collective bargaining, labor/employment law and benefits.
Ford has an active litigation practice that has long been at the leading edge of developments in areas including strategic case management, early case assessment, advanced motion practice and litigation cost controls. Since launching its current approach to product litigation in 1992, the Company has tried approximately 900 product liability cases to verdict and has implemented flat annual retainer agreements with its outside counsel that encompass approximately 80% of its entire litigation inventory.
Mr. Mellen joined Ford's OGC in 1981 and has practiced in a wide range of litigation and corporate positions. He received his B.A. from Yale University in 1977 and his J.D. from the University of Detroit in 1981.
Liza Ring
Assistant General Counsel
McKesson Corporation
Liza Ring is Assistant General Counsel for McKesson Corporation, a Fortune 15 health care company based in San Francisco, California with over 106 billion in sales and 34,000 employees. During her 15-year tenure at the company, she has advised on mergers and acquisitions, securities issues, and other corporate matters. Prior to joining McKesson, Ms. Ring practiced law at three international law firms, providing legal advice to both public and private companies, as well as to individual executives. She received both her M.A. and her J.D. from the University of Minnesota.
Kevin M. Quinley
Vice President, Risk Services
Berkley Life Sciences LLC.
Kevin M. Quinley is Vice President, Risk Services for Berkley Life Sciences LLC. He has over 30 years experience in managing casualty claims and litigation. He has a BA from Wake Forest University and an MA from the College of William & Mary. He holds the Chartered Property & Casualty Underwriter (CPCU) designation and specialty designations from the American Insurance Institute in Risk Management (ARM), in Claims (AIC), in Reinsurance (ARe) and in Management (AIM). A Contributing Editor of Claims Magazine, Kevin is the author of over 600 published articles and ten books. The latter includes Litigation Management, published by the International Risk Management Institute in Dallas. Kevin has taught classes in insurance, claims and risk management for the Washington D.C. Chapter of the Society of CPCU. He is a past President of the Washington D.C. Chapter of CPCU. He is a frequent writer, speaker and trainer on topics relating to litigation management.
Maidie Ryan
Assistant General Counsel
Seahawk Drilling
Maidie Ryan is the Assistant General Counsel and Assistant Secretary of Seahawk Drilling, Inc., a publicly traded, offshore drilling company (NASDAQ: HAWK), spun-off from its former parent, Pride International, Inc. (NYSE: PDE) in August 2009. At Seahawk, she assists with corporate governance and securities compliance functions, and provides day-to-day counsel to operations, marketing and other corporate and field departments. Previously, Maidie served as Legal Counsel with Schlumberger Information Solutions, where she supported the global operational and commercial affairs of the division and the legal aspects of its strategic and business development transactions. Prior to her in-house career, she was with the international law firm of Baker & McKenzie LLP.
Maidie is actively involved in numerous community and professional organizations. She is a member of the Continuing Legal Education Committee for the Houston Bar Association. She serves on the Professionals’ Circle Advisory Board for The Health Museum, as well as the Advancement Committee for the Board of Trustees of Duchesne Academy of the Sacred Heart. Maidie is also a member of the American, Texas and Houston Bar Associations, Association of Corporate Counsel, the Houston Young Lawyers Association, and the Junior League of Houston.
Maidie earned her J.D. from The University of Texas School of Law (2001), where she served as Chief Notes Editor of the Texas Law Review, and her B.A. (1996) from The University of Texas at Austin.
Michael Born
Vice President - Claims
AXIS Pro Insurance
Mr. Born joined Media Professional Insurance in April of 2002 as claims counsel and was promoted to Vice President of Claims in November of 2004. He has continued in this role for AXIS Insurance after they acquired Media/Professional in May of 2007. Mr. Born oversees the claims department for AXIS PRO’s Professional Liability programs which include Technology, Specialty Errors and Omissions, Lawyers and Accountants. Mr. Born is a frequent speaker and panelist on various topics surrounding the cyber liability and errors and omissions insurance industry.
Mr. Born graduated with honors from Washburn University in Topeka, Kansas with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science and Philosophy. He received his Juris Doctorate degree from Boston University School of Law, graduating in the top third of his class. Since receiving his law degree, Mr. Born has distinguished himself in various areas of insurance law representing corporate and individual clients at defense firms in Dallas, TX and Chicago, IL, and as in-house counsel for American Family and Zurich American Insurance. He is admitted to practice law in the state courts of Missouri, Kansas, Illinois, and Texas as well as several federal jurisdictions.
Paul Leslie
Assistant General Counsel, Law
Tenet Health
Paul Leslie is a senior legal executive responsible for managing the company’s uninsured litigation and government investigations. He also manages the law department’s relationships with outside counsel including the negotiation and execution of engagement agreements. He also oversees the negotiation and execution of alternative fee arrangements. He recently led a law department projection to consolidate its outside legal work and reduce the company’s legal spent. The project resulted in successfully reducing hourly rates by approximately 10%. He is a former large law firm partner with 18 years of legal experience before going in-house including serving as the firm’s hiring partner and chairing its political action committee.
Samuel N. Shapiro
Assistant General Counsel
Pepco Holdings, Inc.
Mr. Shapiro is an Assistant General Counsel with Pepco Holdings, Inc. (“PHI”), one of the largest energy delivery companies in the Mid-Atlantic region, serving about 1.9 million customers in the District of Columbia, Maryland, Delaware and New Jersey. Mr. Shapiro has been litigating for 11 years in the State and Federal Courts of Maryland and the District of Columbia. Prior to joining PHI, Mr. Shapiro practiced at a boutique litigation firm in Maryland where he served as a principal of the firm. Mr. Shapiro is also active in his community and has volunteered as a mediator for the Montgomery County Maryland District Court.
As Assistant General Counsel at PHI, Mr. Shapiro handles a wide variety of general legal matters but primarily focuses on claims and litigation in the DC and Maryland courts. In addition to taking cases to trial himself, Mr. Shapiro is solely responsible for the selection and monitoring of outside counsel for all general liability and automobile claims in the Metropolitan DC area. Mr. Shapiro is also actively involved in the overall risk management of the corporation and its subsidiaries.
Sean M. Georges
Vice President of Human Resources & In-House Counsel
Shoe Carnival, Inc.
Sean M. Georges, J.D., LL.M., currently serves as In-House Counsel and Vice President of Human Resources for Shoe Carnival, Inc., a publicly-traded, 320-store retail footwear chain, headquartered in Evansville, Indiana. In 1983, Sean graduated with Distinction from the United States Naval Academy at Annapolis, Maryland, where he served as the Vice Chair of the Brigade Honor Committee. After accepting a Commission as a Marine Corps Officer, and while on Active Duty, Sean was selected to attend Law School under the Marine Corps Funded Law Education Program. Sean earned his Law degree from the University of Illinois’ College of Law in 1989, and later earned a Master of Laws degree from The Judge Advocate General’s School of the Army at the University of Virginia.
During his 13 years on Active Duty as a Marine Corps Officer, Sean served in numerous positions of responsibility with units from North Carolina to Okinawa, to include Senior Trial and Senior Defense Counsel, Special Assistant United States Attorney, Deputy Staff Judge Advocate for the 3d Marine Air Wing, and Senior Judge Advocate for the 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit (Special Operations Capable). Prior to joining Shoe Carnival in 1999, he worked as a senior litigation associate at law firms in Evansville, Indiana, with a focus on business law, employment litigation, and labor law. Sean is admitted to practice in Indiana and Illinois, and is a member of the Association of Corporate Counsel, the American Bar Association, the Indiana State Bar Association, and the Society for Human Resource Management. Sean is a frequent writer and speaker on employment law, Human Resources, and organizational leadership issues.
Suzanne Woodard
Vice President, Assistant General Counsel for Litigation
Macy's, Inc.
Suzanne Woodard is Vice President, Assistant General Counsel for Litigation for Macy's, Inc., and manages Macy's in-house litigation group in St. Louis, Missouri. Macy's litigators conduct every phase of Macy's uninsured litigation, including employment, commercial, credit and class actions, from the filing of a lawsuit through trial. Suzanne also handles complex commercial cases and consumer class actions as lead litigation counsel. Prior to joining Macy's in 2005, Suzanne had been Senior Counsel at The May Department Stores Company in St. Louis and was responsible for litigating May Company's uninsured litigation, including intellectual property, employee and commercial cases. In her role with both companies she has worked with senior management and the merchant and operations sides of the business.
Suzanne obtained her B.A. and J.D. from the University of Illinois, Urbana – Champaign. Prior to working in-house she was in private practice for 7 years.
Tim Harrington
General Counsel, Lycoming Engines
Deputy General Counsel-Litigation, Bell Helicopters
Textron
Responsible for all litigation at Bell Helicopter for the past 12 years and, for the last six years, responsible for all legal affairs of Lycoming Engines. Bell is the largest commercial helicopter manufacturer in North America. Over half of the general aviation aircraft in North America are powered by reciprocating engines made by Lycoming.
Previously in-house with Deere & Company and in private practice as a trial attorney at Williams, Montgomery & John in Chicago, IL and with Harrington, Kauffman & Shilling in Harrisburg, PA.
William DeVaul
Associate General Counsel, IP and Litigation
Cubist Pharmaceuticals, Inc.
Bill is an IP attorney and litigator with fifteen year’s experience. At Cubist Pharmaceuticals, Inc., Bill oversees the day-to-day patent and trademark procurement practice and is heavily involved in a Paragraph IV litigation involving the company’s product Cubicin®. He also oversees general commercial and employment disputes at Cubist and leads an internal effort to use outside counsel effectively. Bill came to Cubist in 2003 from a large Boston law firm where he managed patent disputes and counseled clients seeking advice with intellectual property issues.
Bill is a volunteer mediator in the Dedham District Courts, chairs the Boston Patent Law Association In-house Practice Committee, belongs to the Boston IP American Inn of Court, serves on the ACC Litigation Committee and is a registered patent attorney. Bill is a graduate of Boston University School of Law and holds a bachelor’s degree in biochemistry from Columbia University.