Date & Time: September 16, 2022, 9am-3:30pm

Location: Greenberg Lounge, Vanderbilt Hall, 40 Washington Square South, NY, NY 10011

Light breakfast will be served at 9:00 a.m. Lunch will be served for those joining in-person.

Event Description:

There has been a rapid shift in the caseload of state courts.  Costs of litigation are increasing, time to disposition of litigation increasing, trials are decreasing, and it is increasingly difficult for plaintiffs to find representation to vindicate their rights in civil suits.  However, an even larger shift has occurred with a dramatic increase in “assembly line plaintiffs” taking over state court dockets for debt collections, evictions, and foreclosure, leaving more defendants unrepresented than plaintiffs.  How should our state courts respond to these changes?

Panel 1: Access to Justice (9:30 a.m. - 11:00 a.m.) Watch the recording.

Access to the courts is increasingly costly, leaving many individuals – both plaintiffs and defendants – locked out from vindicating their rights in civil proceedings.  What can be done?

Moderator: Colleen Shanahan

Panelists:

• Danielle Hirsch
• Judge Lisa Jaskol
• Lauren Sudeall 
• David Udell
• Justice Laurie Zelon

Panel 2: Consumer Debt, Eviction & Foreclosure (11:15 a.m. - 12:45 p.m.) Watch the recording.

The share of debt collection, eviction, and foreclosure actions in our state courts has risen dramatically, leaving many plaintiffs unrepresented against repeat-players.  How has this change occurred? 

Moderator: Daniel Wilf-Townsend

Panelists:

• April Kuehnhoff 
• Susan Shin 
• Nicole Summers 
• Frederick Wherry

Lunch Keynote Speaker: Chief Justice Bridget McCormack  (12:45 p.m. - 2:00 p.m.) Watch the recording.

Panel 3: Matching Civil Justice System Design to Use: A Vision for Justice in the State Courts (2:00 p.m. - 3:30 p.m.) Watch the recording.

How can we make use of procedural reforms such that our state court civil justice system actually provides justice to the citizens of the state?

Moderator: Mark Drummond 

Panelists:

• Judge Jennifer Bailey 
• Doris Cheng 
• Alyx Mark 
• Judge Matthew Williams

This program has been approved for a total of 4.5 New York State CLE credits:

Panel 1: 1.5 credits in Areas of Professional Practice
Panel 2: 1.5 credits in Areas of Professional Practice
Panel 3: 1.5 credits in Ethics and Professionalism

The credit in both categories will be both transitional and non-transitional (appropriate for both experienced and newly admitted attorneys). NYU School of Law is an accredited provider of CLE in New York State. If you are seeking CLE credit for a different state, we recommend you consult with your state’s CLE Board to ascertain regulations on reciprocity.

Access the CLE reading materials and presentations.