Dear Section Members,

The Antitrust & Complex Business Disputes Law Section Annual Meeting and CLE was held on February 13, 2020 at the Bar Center in Cary. As usual, the event was well attended with almost 150 people attending in person or online. Topics included an analysis of the Economic Loss Rule, enforcement of Antitrust laws from those that enforce them, business valuation issues, ethical issues arising in small business disputes and receiverships. The highlight of the day was the Business Court Judges Panel Discussion which was attended by all five of the state’s Business Court Judges.

The CLE was wonderfully planned by Tom Segars of Ellis & Winters, LLP. Special thanks to our presenters and moderators Katie Burchette, Fred Monroe, Greg Skidmore, Catherine Arrowood, Stephen Carey, Sarah Clayton, Vic Domen, George Hawkins, Deborah Hylton, Catherine Lawson, Scottie Lee, Ryan Quillian and George Sanderson. Of course, a big thank you also is extended to Judges Bledsoe, Gale, McGuire, Conrad and Robinson for their always instructive and educational panel discussion on the Business Court. If you missed the CLE, we highly encourage you to catch a replay.

At the annual meeting, we thanked outgoing council members Melanie Black Dubis, Kenzie Rakes, Greg Skidmore and Caroline McLean for their service to the Section. We also welcomed Phoebe Coddington, Joshua Durham, Michael Parrish and Lauren Snyder as incoming members to our council. The membership approved John Marshall as incoming Secretary and Greg Skidmore as incoming Treasurer of the Council for the next fiscal year, which runs from July 1, 2020 to June 30, 2021. The Council also has nominated Tom Segars to serve as Chair next year and Gavin Parsons to serve as Vice Chair for approval by the Board of Governors later this year.

Please mark your calendars for May 8, 2020. Wilmington is the venue for our Section’s mini-CLE and networking event. Please stay tuned for more details as we get closer to the event.

March 9, 2020/by ACBD