In Demystifying NFTs Episode 3, Alice Budge, Jennifer Stivrins and Vito Marzano welcome guest contributor, Meredith Challender, of Kissel Straton & Wilmer, to the podcast.  The group discusses the legal landscape in the U.S. surrounding NFTs and their intersection with securities and commodities regulation (or lack thereof), anti-money laundering laws and sanctions issues.  The team dives deep into the current apparent "turf war" between the SEC and CFTC and examines how this might ultimately affect NFT liability and exposure.

Special thanks, as always, to Liam Thau of Kissel Straton & Wilmer for support and research for this episode.

If you'd like to send a question to the speakers, you can email them to [email protected]. 

The Current State of Ransomware Attacks in 2023

Ransomware attacks continue to rise in 2023. This podcast addresses the state of the cyber response to these attacks as well as the U.S. government’s National Cyber Security Strategy and the FBI’s recently announced heightened proactive strategy to disrupt ransomware threat actors. Questions remain as to whether these actions will lead to a decrease in the number of ransomware attacks that business entities sustain, or whether an increase in ransomware attacks will occur as a result of the decentralization of the threat actors. The presenters also discuss how these actions could affect the claims and underwriting environment for insurers and their insureds.

In Demystifying NFTs Episode 2, Alice Budge of SR International is joined by the head of Kissel Straton & Wilmer's media practice, Jennifer Stivrins, and her colleague Vito Marzano, to discuss the legal landscape in the U.S. surrounding NFTs and their intersection with intellectual property laws.  Our speakers address how the courts have viewed NFTs in conjunction with both copyright and trademark laws, which cases we should be paying attention to now, and where they expect to see additional litigation in the future.  Join them for a lively chat on Playboy Rabbitars, Metabirkins, Quentin Tarantino, and the Nike v. StockX ongoing saga.

Special thanks to Liam Thau of Kissel Straton & Wilmer for support and research for this episode.

If you'd like to send a question to the speakers, you can email them to [email protected].

This episode discusses examples of and reasons behind large scale employee layoffs, the potential pitfalls for companies to avoid, and what companies should be considering when making these decisions to try and mitigate risk and liability issues.  

 In Demystifying NFTs Episode 1, Alice Budge of SR International is joined by Jennifer Stivrins and Vito Marzano of Kissel, Straton & Wilmer to discuss the super-basics of NFTs. What are NFTs? How do they work? And how are they valued? Our speakers have a spirited conversation about why we should care about NFTs and preview topics for future episodes as well, including how they expect NFT exposure to factor into liability underwriting in the coming years.

Special thanks to Liam Thau of Kissel, Straton & Wilmer for support and research for this episode.   

If you’d like to send a question to the speakers, you can email them to [email protected].

Cryptojacking is an emerging cybercrime in which another party's computing resources are hijacked to mine cryptocurrency. Also referred to as malicious cryptomining, cryptojacking lets hackers mine cryptocurrency without paying for computing power, hardware and other mining resources. This podcast will explore this latest cybercrime and related risks for carriers and their insureds; and how insurers are responding. 

In Episode Four, John and Stephanie discuss how corporate boards and officers should respond to negative financial news and specifically the speculation that a recession in 2023 appears inevitable. Stephanie and John look at this topic through the lens of the liability risks that a recession – and talk of a recession – pose for directors and officers. First, using the comparison of the COVID pandemic, they explore how company leaders and decision makers might be faulted for failing to prepare for a recession. That leads to a discussion of how boards should communicate with shareholders about recession concerns. Finally, they talk about how a recession can disrupt a company’s prior decisions and existing commitments on a variety of issues, such as ESG, recruiting and compensation.

In this episode we will hear about the litigation trends surrounding excessive  fees litigation, how this is evolving, and if excessive  fee litigation shows any signs of slowing.

Meet the Speakers

Lars Golumbic -Principal, Co-Chair Litigation Practice, Executive Committee Member at  Groom Law Group

Lars Golumbic serves as the co-chair of the firm’s Litigation Practice. His ERISA litigation practice includes the defense of “excessive fee” and ESOP class actions brought against plan sponsors, fiduciaries, and service providers. Lars also represents health plan sponsors and health insurers in actions brought under the Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act.  Additionally, Lars defends plan trustees, fiduciaries, companies and their board members, and service providers in Department of Labor investigations and enforcement proceedings instituted by the federal agency. He has appeared in dozens of federal courts across the country as part of his active ERISA litigation practice.

While the focus of Lars’ national practice is in ERISA litigation, Lars also represents plan fiduciaries and other stakeholders in matters concerning plan funding, restructuring, withdrawal liability, and plan termination.

Lars serves as a member of the firm’s Executive Committee.

Joseph Kelly – SVP & Employment, ERISA & Fidelity National Practice Leader at Sompo International

Joseph “Joe” Kelly is the National Practice Leader for Sompo International’s Employment, ERISA & Fidelity products.  Joe is charged with growing Sompo International’s EPL, Fiduciary, and Fidelity books of business by working with distribution partners to find opportunities to provide creative risk transfer solutions for their clients.  Additionally, Joe has developed underwriting tools, training protocols, and data analytics to ensure that these product lines and underwritten consistently and profitably.  

Joe has over 20 years of insurance industry experience as both an underwriter and a broker.  Prior to joining Sompo International, he ran the National Private & Not-For-Profit Management Liability Practice for CNA.  Joe has prior management liability experience at St. Paul/Travelers, Aon, and AIG.  In addition to underwriting management liability for both private and public companies, he has managed professional liability, financial institutions, and public entity lines of business.

In episode three, John and Stephanie discuss why boards and officers need to be particularly thoughtful about the topics of diversity, equity, and inclusion, or DEI. They will explain how DEI presents a truly unique set of legal concerns because companies can be faulted both for doing too little or for doing too much. Citing trends in recent lawsuits, including one that led to a $10 million jury verdict, they outline the legal risks from both angles. The conversation wraps up with some practical tips about best practices for minimizing risks in your DEI initiatives.

Meet the Speakers
Stephanie Resnick is a partner at Fox Rothschild, a national law firm, and is co-chair of the firm's Director and Officer's Liability and Corporate Governance Practice Group. For 14 years, Stephanie has been ranked by Chambers USA as a leading litigator in Pennsylvania. She is known for taking the lead in high stakes, bet-the-company litigation and defending corporate boards and officers in complex and protracted litigation. Stephanie is a former managing partner of Fox’s Philadelphia office and a past chair of its nationwide Litigation Department.

John Cornell Fuller is also a partner at Fox Rothschild and is the other co-chair of the firm's Director and Officer's Liability and Corporate Governance Practice Group. John has extensive experience defending directors and officers of public and private corporations in claims stemming from the discharge of their duties and management decisions.

Since 2015, Stephanie and John have been co-authoring articles on topics of interest to corporate boards and directors for a variety of publications, including Corporate Compliance Insights, The Legal Intelligencer, and the Wiley Board Leadership Journal. 

In Episode 2, John Fuller and Stephanie Resnick focus on the potential legal liabilities that corporate officers and boards must consider in the wake of the U.S. Supreme Court's decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization, which overturned Roe v. Wade.

Meet the Speakers
Stephanie Resnick is a partner at Fox Rothschild, a national law firm, and is co-chair of the firm's Director and Officer's Liability and Corporate Governance Practice Group. For 14 years, Stephanie has been ranked by Chambers USA as a leading litigator in Pennsylvania. She is known for taking the lead in high stakes, bet-the-company litigation and defending corporate boards and officers in complex and protracted litigation. Stephanie is a former managing partner of Fox’s Philadelphia office and a past chair of its nationwide Litigation Department.

John Cornell Fuller is also a partner at Fox Rothschild and is the other co-chair of the firm's Director and Officer's Liability and Corporate Governance Practice Group. John has extensive experience defending directors and officers of public and private corporations in claims stemming from the discharge of their duties and management decisions.

Since 2015, Stephanie and John have been co-authoring articles on topics of interest to corporate boards and directors for a variety of publications, including Corporate Compliance Insights, The Legal Intelligencer, and the Wiley Board Leadership Journal.