The Jacksonville Bar Association Transactional Law Section chairs Leah Goryl and Jamie Karpman hosted another successful transactional law seminar Nov. 8.
The 5th annual Marshall M. Criser Jr. Transactional Law Seminar was at the Florida Times-Union auditorium with approximately 40 attorneys in attendance. JBA President Tad Delegal welcomed attendees to kick off the seminar.
Presenters spoke on a variety of transactional law topics with the goal of educating attendees about updates in the law and issues relevant to their legal practices and clients.
In discussing the impact of social media endorsements on large and small businesses, Florida Coastal School of Law professor Lucille Ponte informed attendees about the rise of “pay for play” online reviews, the pitfalls of sponsored endorsements and objectionable contractual provisions under Federal Trade Commission guidance and case law.
Lauren Parsons Langham, a shareholder at Smith Hulsey & Busey, used real-world examples to explain the application of documentary stamp and intangible taxes to different transactions and how to ensure compliance with state law in a variety of transactions.
Intellectual property attorney Richard Vermut, a partner at Driver, McAfee, Peek & Hawthorne, addressed perfection of security interests in patents, trademarks and copyrights, as well as defense of trade secrets, termination of copyrights and licensing issues related to cloud computing.
Panelists Scott Glazier, a partner at Glazier & Glazier; Kevin Kane, a shareholder at Gunster, Yoakley & Stewart; and Stacy Byrd, an associate at Holland & Knight, engaged in a discussion of formation of S corporations versus limited liability companies and the tax treatment of these “pass-through” entities, including the impact on employee compensation arrangements.
To conclude the seminar, health law attorney Ann Bittinger, principal shareholder of The Bittinger Law Firm, advised about the pitfalls, complexities and nuances of health law in the context of advising health care practitioners and health-related businesses.
The event was sponsored by Thomson Reuters. Association board of governors member Asghar Syed, a shareholder at Smith Hulsey & Busey, helped to introduce Practical Law, an online practice tool to attendees, who will receive a free trial of the software.
Attendees earned five hours of The Florida Bar continuing legal education credit. A recording of the seminar will be available for purchase through the association.